Genres
Description
"On a winter night, an eleven-year-old Salv�r and her unmarried mother Sigurl�na disembark at the remote, run-down fishing village of �seyri, where life is "lived in fish and consists of fish." The two struggle to make their way amidst the rough, salt-worn men of the town. After Sigurl�na's untimely death, Salv�r pays for her funeral and walks home alone, precipitating her coming of age as a daring, strong-willed young woman who chops off her hair, earns her own wages, educates herself through political and philosophical texts, and soon becomes an advocate for the town's working class, organizing a local chapter of the seamen's union. A feminist coming-of-age tale, an elegy to the plight of the working class and the corrosive effects of social and economic inequality, and a poetic window into the arrival of modernity in a tiny industrial town, Salka Valka is a novel of epic proportions, living and breathing with its vibrant cast of characters, filled with tenderness, humor, and remarkable pathos"--… (more)
Publication
Archipelago (2022), 630 pages
User reviews
LibraryThing member GingerbreadMan
Everybody was raving about Laxness over at the European Endless challenge last year, and I was lucky enough to have a book of his on my TBR mound. Not having read Laxness at all, I went into Salka Valka without really knowing what to expect – but with pretty high expectations from all the praise.
The little girl Salka Valka and her mother Sigurlina end up in a small fishing community on the Icelandic east coast, since her their money wasn’t enough to take them all the way to Reykjavik. Here everything is ruled by the merchant Bogesen, a fairly benign despot perhaps, but still one who dictates the people’s lives. It’s a community of very slender means, where enough to eat is by no means a certainty and it’s a tough existence for Salka and her mum trying to find work and shelter here. For Sigurlina, the newly established Salvation Army becomes a haven, but outside of the church she mixes with the entirely wrong people: chiefly the charming rapist Steinthor, who also has a uncanny eye for her young daughter. Young Salka finds her strength in working and earning her own money , and from the school sessions with the strange young orphan Arnald.
The book follows Salka in her growing up, but is also a story about changing times. It tells of the rise of socialism (through Arnald, who returns as an agitator) changing the rules in this small community, challenging Bogesen’s power. It’s great how Laxness is letting the political movements among the working people mirror the twists and turns of the love between Salka and Arnald. People go back and forth here, chicken out, change opinion, switch sides or get bought. It’s a pretty intense ride on a very small scale. In the end though, there are a few too many turns of more or less the same, and by the last hundred pages I had kind of lost interest just a little bit. But I’ll surely check out more by Laxness, and recommend this to lovers of the epic realism for instance Steinbeck and Harper Lee.
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And I must say Laxness was a pleasant acquaintance to make. I especially enjoyed his style – raw, real, unpolished, but with a streak of true poetry in the way he describes people and settings. It’s not pretty , but it feels true.The little girl Salka Valka and her mother Sigurlina end up in a small fishing community on the Icelandic east coast, since her their money wasn’t enough to take them all the way to Reykjavik. Here everything is ruled by the merchant Bogesen, a fairly benign despot perhaps, but still one who dictates the people’s lives. It’s a community of very slender means, where enough to eat is by no means a certainty and it’s a tough existence for Salka and her mum trying to find work and shelter here. For Sigurlina, the newly established Salvation Army becomes a haven, but outside of the church she mixes with the entirely wrong people: chiefly the charming rapist Steinthor, who also has a uncanny eye for her young daughter. Young Salka finds her strength in working and earning her own money , and from the school sessions with the strange young orphan Arnald.
The book follows Salka in her growing up, but is also a story about changing times. It tells of the rise of socialism (through Arnald, who returns as an agitator) changing the rules in this small community, challenging Bogesen’s power. It’s great how Laxness is letting the political movements among the working people mirror the twists and turns of the love between Salka and Arnald. People go back and forth here, chicken out, change opinion, switch sides or get bought. It’s a pretty intense ride on a very small scale. In the end though, there are a few too many turns of more or less the same, and by the last hundred pages I had kind of lost interest just a little bit. But I’ll surely check out more by Laxness, and recommend this to lovers of the epic realism for instance Steinbeck and Harper Lee.
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LibraryThing member japaul22
The eponymous Salka Valka is just a young girl of eleven when she and her mother arrive in a tiny fishing town on Iceland's coast. They were on their way south to Reykjavik and between the mother's seasickness and her inability to fund their whole trip, they need to disembark. They find a small
They can't find work, but end up living with an older couple. Salka shows an independent spirit from the beginning of the novel. Her mother seems unwilling to work when she runs into some roadblocks, but Salka begins cleaning fish and earning a place in the town's ledger. She also ends up able to be tutored by a local boy. Salka is not only independent, she is different. She wears trousers and cuts off her hair, and as she grows up she becomes a more important voice in the community, even organizing the local fisherman into a union. The book turns to a conflict between Bolshevism and capitalism, with those actually doing the work caught in the middle of the ideas brought by outsiders. Salka has a hard life in terms of her relationships. I don't want to give away too many plot points, but she has a traumatic experience with one of her mother's lovers, and this definitely colors her later relationships - both with him (he unfortunately remains in and out of her life) and with other men.
Overall I really enjoyed this. Despite the diatribes on religion and politics, I found the writing less dense than some of Laxness's other novels. Because there is a pretty solid focus on Salka alone, it was easy to stay engaged in her life. It was fascinating to see how this fishing village operated in the early 1900s and to see the changes that take place through the early 20th century. I read a recent translation published by Archipelago.
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village whose entire economy is based on fishing and controlled by one man, who tracks everyone's work and debits what he gives them from his store - no money is involved. Salka and her mother, Sigurlina, turn to the local Salvation Army chapter for support. They can't find work, but end up living with an older couple. Salka shows an independent spirit from the beginning of the novel. Her mother seems unwilling to work when she runs into some roadblocks, but Salka begins cleaning fish and earning a place in the town's ledger. She also ends up able to be tutored by a local boy. Salka is not only independent, she is different. She wears trousers and cuts off her hair, and as she grows up she becomes a more important voice in the community, even organizing the local fisherman into a union. The book turns to a conflict between Bolshevism and capitalism, with those actually doing the work caught in the middle of the ideas brought by outsiders. Salka has a hard life in terms of her relationships. I don't want to give away too many plot points, but she has a traumatic experience with one of her mother's lovers, and this definitely colors her later relationships - both with him (he unfortunately remains in and out of her life) and with other men.
Overall I really enjoyed this. Despite the diatribes on religion and politics, I found the writing less dense than some of Laxness's other novels. Because there is a pretty solid focus on Salka alone, it was easy to stay engaged in her life. It was fascinating to see how this fishing village operated in the early 1900s and to see the changes that take place through the early 20th century. I read a recent translation published by Archipelago.
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LibraryThing member arubabookwoman
Many years ago I read and loved this Nobelist's most well-known book, Independent People, so I was intrigued to read this novel after reading jpaul's review. As the novel opens, Salka and her mother Sigurlina are debarking at the fishing village of Oseyri. Sigurlina is seeking work, and they've
The second part features Salka as a young woman who has begun to have some financial success. She is instrumental in a newly formed fisherman's union, wears trousers and mostly doesn't care what she looks like. This part dragged for me at times because there was a lot of political maneuvering and discussion. Communist organizers are moving in, elections, rigged or otherwise, are being held. Some of the villagers want to get rid of Johan Bogeson who has controlled the fishing industry in the village for years and who pays those who work for him not in cash, but in credit at the company store, which he also owns. ( "And although the villagers toiled incessantly in competition with the whims of the weather, the fruits of their labor were nowhere to be seen; everything disappeared down the same hole, whether people fished for a share of the catch or a fixed wage: their accounts with Johan Bogeson swallowed everything. Here no one ever saw money.") Other villagers see Bogeson as kind and benevolent, keeping them fed and housed in the lean years. The politicking in this section went on a bit long for me. This second part, as well as the final section, also contains snippets of romance and sexual awakening for Salka, raising issues as to whether she can maintain her strong sense of self as she comes into womanhood.
Amazon describes this as a "feminist coming of age" story, and it is that. Salka was a fascinating character, the descriptions of the village, the villagers and their day to day life, hard and poverty-stricken as it was, is engaging and interesting. Even the political shenigans interested me to an extent, just going on a tad too long. I'm glad I read this book.
Some quotes:
"There never seemed to be good weather in this village because the Creator was always experimenting with His sky. After frost and snow, He brought wind which whipped the snow into drifts. After whipping the snow into drifts, He would send a thaw, and melt all the drifts that He had swept together with great effort. All in all, it might be said that the Creator's favorite weather for this village was rain, which stirred up all sorts of stenches: sea and seaweed, fish, fish heads and fish guts, train oil, tar, manure, and refuse."
"Well, as I've always said, the depravity of the rich is like the sea; if you knew what dwelt in it, you would never dare dip your hand into it."
3 1/2 stars
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come from up north, intending to go to Reykjavik, but this was as far as their meager funds would take them. They arrive penniless, with few possessions and few prospects for work. After spending the night at the Salvation Army, they gradually begin making a life for themselves in the village. Salka is about 10 years old when they arrive, and even as a young girl she is independent and strong-willed. The whole first part of the novel depicting Salka's young girlhood is a delight.The second part features Salka as a young woman who has begun to have some financial success. She is instrumental in a newly formed fisherman's union, wears trousers and mostly doesn't care what she looks like. This part dragged for me at times because there was a lot of political maneuvering and discussion. Communist organizers are moving in, elections, rigged or otherwise, are being held. Some of the villagers want to get rid of Johan Bogeson who has controlled the fishing industry in the village for years and who pays those who work for him not in cash, but in credit at the company store, which he also owns. ( "And although the villagers toiled incessantly in competition with the whims of the weather, the fruits of their labor were nowhere to be seen; everything disappeared down the same hole, whether people fished for a share of the catch or a fixed wage: their accounts with Johan Bogeson swallowed everything. Here no one ever saw money.") Other villagers see Bogeson as kind and benevolent, keeping them fed and housed in the lean years. The politicking in this section went on a bit long for me. This second part, as well as the final section, also contains snippets of romance and sexual awakening for Salka, raising issues as to whether she can maintain her strong sense of self as she comes into womanhood.
Amazon describes this as a "feminist coming of age" story, and it is that. Salka was a fascinating character, the descriptions of the village, the villagers and their day to day life, hard and poverty-stricken as it was, is engaging and interesting. Even the political shenigans interested me to an extent, just going on a tad too long. I'm glad I read this book.
Some quotes:
"There never seemed to be good weather in this village because the Creator was always experimenting with His sky. After frost and snow, He brought wind which whipped the snow into drifts. After whipping the snow into drifts, He would send a thaw, and melt all the drifts that He had swept together with great effort. All in all, it might be said that the Creator's favorite weather for this village was rain, which stirred up all sorts of stenches: sea and seaweed, fish, fish heads and fish guts, train oil, tar, manure, and refuse."
"Well, as I've always said, the depravity of the rich is like the sea; if you knew what dwelt in it, you would never dare dip your hand into it."
3 1/2 stars
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Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1948
Physical description
630 p.; 7 inches
ISBN
1953861245 / 9781953861245