To Siberia
ABOUT
THE BOOK
In the bitter cold of Danish Jutland, where the sea freezes over and the Nazis have yet to invade, a young girl dreams of going on a great journey to Siberia, while her brother Jesper yearns for the former climes of Morocco. Given a staunchly Christian mother who composes and sings hymns all day, a father who is too philanthropic a joiner to be successful, and a grandfather who takes his life in a cowshed, the relationship between brother and sister flourishes. Jesper has an originality that stands out in the small community, and his sister follows in his wake as they wend their way around the town in moonlit and daytime endeavours. The unshakeable bond between them as they fiercely watch out for each other is poignant, creating a warmth that glows through the chill of the cold and the dark clouds that amass and threaten to overtake their dreams. As the narrator looks back she reflects on the harsh realities of their existence and the consequences of their choices. It is out of small and negligible things that a life may be composed, and the beauty of Petterson`s narrative lies in the resonances of one which is outwardly barren but so sharply etched, so charged with meaning.
Original title in Norwegian Til Sibir published by Forlaget Oktober AS (1996)
ABOUT
THE TRANSLATOR Anne
Born
Anne Rosemary Cookes (1924 – 2011) was born in south London on 9 July 1924. She joined the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry during the Second World War, and taught Morse code at the SOE at Grendon Underwood, Bucks, where she met Povl Born, a Danish air force pilot. In 1946 they married and moved to Copenhagen, where she studied English literature at the university. She became fluent in Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish.
She began writing poetry and, at the same time, began translating Scandinavian writers into English, such as Hans Christian Andersen, Karen Blixen, Jens Christian Grøndahl, Per Petterson, Michael Larsen, Janne Teller, Stig Holmas, Carsten Jensen, Sissel Lie, Henrik Stangerup, and Knud Hjortø.
In the 1980s, she moved to Salcombe, Devon, where she wrote books on local history. She founded the poetry publisher Overstep Books in 1992, and ran it until 2008.
Anne Rosemary Cookes (1924 – 2011) was born in south London on 9 July 1924. She joined the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry during the Second World War, and taught Morse code at the SOE at Grendon Underwood, Bucks, where she met Povl Born, a Danish air force pilot. In 1946 they married and moved to Copenhagen, where she studied English literature at the university. She became fluent in Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish.
She began writing poetry and, at the same time, began translating Scandinavian writers into English, such as Hans Christian Andersen, Karen Blixen, Jens Christian Grøndahl, Per Petterson, Michael Larsen, Janne Teller, Stig Holmas, Carsten Jensen, Sissel Lie, Henrik Stangerup, and Knud Hjortø.
In the 1980s, she moved to Salcombe, Devon, where she wrote books on local history. She founded the poetry publisher Overstep Books in 1992, and ran it until 2008.