Solveig Eggerz
 "In this fierce and poignant novel Solveig Eggerz deftly transports her readers between Iceland in the fifties and Germany in the thirties and forties as heroine, Charlotte, struggles to come to terms with her past and present. Seal Woman is rich in vivid detail and psychological understanding. A beautiful and suspenseful debut." -Margot Livesey, author of The House on Fortune Street "Set in the tough but beautiful landscape of Iceland, a wonderfully written story about the triumph of love, strength, and art over crippling loss." -Barbara Esstman, author of A More Perfect Union |
A native of Iceland, I've carried the stories my forefathers told in my heart all my life. My great-great grandfather, Frišrik Eggerz, a farmer and a protestant minister, wrote his autobiography when he was in his eighties, a book that documented 19th century Icelandic regional history; my grandfather, Siguršur Eggerz, twice prime minister, wrote plays and essays. My father, Pétur Eggerz, a foreign service officer, wrote fiction and non-fiction until the day he died at age 80.  It's the late 1940s, and Berlin is in ruins. "The Icelandic Agricultural Association advertises for 'strong women who can cook and do farm work,' and artist Charlotte, who has watched her life and her city crumble around her, agrees to work at a farm called Dark Castle. Seal Woman is, at its core, about the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves, and our lives. What is real, and what is myth? After almost incomprehensible pain and loss, how does one go on? Impressionistic and mythic in the Iceland-based sections, and all too real and present in the Berlin-based sections, the settings-both time and place-are beautifully rendered. The characters, particularly the protagonist Charlotte, are very real and every bit as frustrating and messy as real people. I caught myself more than once thinking I was reading the biography of a mid-20th century war survivor. But as fascinating as the story and the characters are, the writing itself is gorgeous; many passages are so lovely, I wanted to underline them and commit them to memory so I'd never forget their lyric beauty. Overall, this is a challenging book on many levels, but very rewarding. A fantastic story, beautifully written; highly recommended." Julie K. Rose, Historical Novels Review, Editor's Choice Titles, November 2008. Published May 2008 by Ghost Road Press. |
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