Posts under "Literature"

Asbjørnson and Moe

Posted by kari No Comments
Dec 21 2010

Peter Christen Asbjørnsen (1812-1885)and Jørgen Engebretesen Moe (1813-1882)-the names that have become synonymous with Norwegian folkeeveyntyr (folktales).  The two had been friends since their early teen years and later went on to collect folkeeventyr and edit them into a compilation that would forever impact Norwegian culture.

Jørgen Moe

Asbjørnsen was a writer and scholar from Christiania (old name for Oslo) who began to write down folk legends when he was 20 years old at the University of Oslo.  He traveled the entire length of Norway (which in that time-especially-would have been quite a long and time-consuming journey) collecting legends.  His old childhood pal, Jørgen Moe, a bishop and author from Ringerike, as it turns out, had begun to search for the relics of Norwegian folklore.  The two minds and passions together proved to be a talented and successful duo.

Peter Asbjørnsen

Asbjørnsen and Moe took a little inspiration from the Brother´s Grimm regarding language style.  At the time Asbjørnsen and Moe were working on their compilation, Danish still had a very strong influence on spoken language in Norway after the union with Denmark ended in 1814.  The Brother´s Grimm style consisted of simplistic language instead of dialects, while still maintaining the original form of the stories.

So why is the work of Asbjørnsen and Moe so influential in Norwegian culture?  Because not only is it great literature, but because at the time it was released, Norway was in a nationalist movement spurred by her recent independence from Denmark.  The stories gave Norwegians something to share culturally and something to show the world that little Norway had contributed to the folktale genre.  Asbjørnsen and Moe´s folkeeventyr are very well-known around the world today.  English translations of the stories were published in the late 19th century.  However, if you´d like to read these stories på norsk, click here :)

The following is a list of the folkeeventyr that Asbjørnsen and Moe compiled and edited:

(Note ´De tre bukkene bruse´-The 3 Billy Goats Gruff´:)

På biblioteket

Posted by kari 2 Comments
Jan 16 2010

At the library.  At some point in your life, you probably spent a significant amount of time på biblioteket.  Maybe på grunnskole (grade school), videregåendeskole (high school), universitetet (college), på jobb (at work), eller i fritida (or in freetime).  I always thought it was fun å dra til biblioteket (to go to the library) when I was younger.  There were always veldig snille damer (very nice ladies) that worked there.  Doesn’t it seem like 99% of bibliotekarer (librarians) are women?  I’ve always wondered why that is, especially since women seem to be more chatty and louder på arbeidsplass (in the workplace) than men, and of course, it is important to be stille (quiet) på biblioteket.  Besides the snille damer, I liked sitting in the barnerom (kid’s room) på bibiloteket.  There were lots of stuffed dyr (animals) and lyse farger (bright colors) overalt (everywhere\all over).  Sometimes en bibliotekar would lese historier til barna (read stories to the kids). 

Besides barnebøker (children’s books), there is mye annet som finnes på biblioteket (much more that is found at the library).  Two major categories of reading material are skjønnlitteratur and faglitteratur\fagbok (non-fiction).  I have preferred faglitteratur since I was quite young.  Hva med deg (How about you)? 

På biblioteket there are also aviser (newspapers), magasiner (magazines), filmer (movies), hørbar bøker\ bøker på kassettbånd (audible books\books on tape), musikk (music), datamaskiner (computers), o.s.v.  Even if biblioteket is not your favorite place to be, it’s pretty difficult to get bored with all of the information available to you.  I think when I’m older, I’ll probably spend a lot of time på biblioteket and I hope I have my own mini-bibliotek hjemme (at home).

Har dere en favoritt bok (Do you have a favorite book) or forfatter (author)?  Hva er din favoritt slags bok (What is your favorite kind of book)?  Mysterium (mystery)?  Krim (crime)?  Kjærlighetsroman (romance novel)?  Sci-fi?  Biografi?  Komedie (comedy)?  Poesi\dikt (poetry)?  Tragedie (tragedy)?  Krig (war)?

Easter and crime? What a combo.

Posted by kari 1 Comment
Apr 5 2009

The sale of crime novels in Norway increases 500% in the week leading up to Easter.  Norwegians simply love to read crime novels around Eastertime.  When I first heard this, my first question was why Easter?  Halloween seemed like the most reasonable holiday to be accompanied by a crime theme if I were to choose one.  I do not believe anyone knows the origins of the tradition for certain, but I have found one theory.�

Prior to 1923, new novels were released in the fall.  Kind of like movies in the U.S.-the major blockbusters usually come out late spring-summer.  In an apparent marketing campaign, the Gyldendal Publishing house decided to release a book about a criminal act on a Train in Norway set at Eastertime.   In Norway, as I have referenced in several of my posts, it is very quiet on Sundays and on holidays, times when most businesses are closed.  This means no entertainment outside of the home.  With a new crime novel out, this seemed like a great form of entertainment in an entertainment-deprived time.  And thus, according to many people, the mystery of crime novels in Norway at Eastertime is solved.

Although it has become more and more popular for Norwegians to travel south over Easter break (which is typically about 5 days, much more than we receive in the U.S.), many people still engage in the old tradition of snuggling up in their hytte (cabin) next to the fireplace reading a thrilling, suspenseful, crime novel.  There are very few things better than a long day out in the snow skiing or snowmobiling and then returning to a nice warm, cozy place with a good meal followed by a couple hours on the couch totally into a good book. 

I have not yet read any Norwegian crime novels, but I hear author Kjell Ola Dahl recently released his book ‘The Fourth Man’ that is supposed to be fantastic. 

Have any of you read any Norwegian crime novels?  Any one particular author you recommend?  I have heard that Jo Nesbø is great.

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