Dina's Book

Rating:
Summary: Difficult to put down once you have started
Review: As a teenager the self-willed Dina is married off to the much older merchant Jacob Gronelv of Reisnes. As a child she was responsible for the death of her mother and she carries this burden with her. After the, again unnatural, death of her husband she reigns over trading post Reisnes. She does not behave like a women, but she is still respected and accepted by the others. She is not capable of real love until the mysterious Russian Leo arrives, but this love also ends tragically.

The book Dina give a beautiful description of the the rough life in northern Norway during the 19th century. It also gives an magnificent impression of a strong woman who cannot or does not want to adapt. A book that is difficult to put down once one has started reading.

Rating:
Summary: You are unlikely to forget Dina
Review: Dina's story begins with the untimely and tragic death of her wealthy and much older husband. Set in Norway in the mid-nineteenth century, Dina's life is from an early age, fraught with tragedy. Her mother is killed in a freak accident when Dina is five, and in his grief her father sends her off to live with another family. Dina returns wild, unruly, and most unlike the women of her day. She is married off at sixteen to a friend of her father's, a wealthy land owner named Jacob. Her life as the new mistress of the estate is tempetuous to say the least. No one really seems to understand Dina, and few are able to get close to her. After her husband's death, Dina realizes she is pregnant, and so adds the duty of mother to the responsibilities of running the businesses of the estate.

Dina's trials and tribulations make for very interesting reading. Dina however is not an easy character to sympathize with. So while I ultimately enjoyed this well written novel, I never warmed to Dina(quite the opposite in fact). She may not be a particularly likeable character, but she is a memorable one.
4.5 stars.

Rating:
Summary: Strong book about a strong woman
Review: Herbjørg Wassmo is a Norwegian writer writing about Norwegian people. Her characters are always strong and Dina is no exeption. This book is one of the best I have ever read...

Herbjørg Wassmo has a fantastic, colorful language, and as soon as you are drawn into this small North Norway community of the 1900th century you will stay there through the book and still for a long time after the book is finished. The book is not at all an easy beach read, but you should give yourself the opportunity to read the book. It will change you as a person.

Britt Arnhild Lindland