This month I’d like to get back to my Finnish heritage and read some novels from Finland that have been languishing on my TBR pile for too long. There are four novels I plan to start with:
Two Crime Novels
The Hummingbird by Kati Heikkapelto
The Healer by Antti Tuomainen (I have already read his fabulous second novel Dark as My Heart)
Two Literary Novellas from the Peirene Press
White Hunger by Aki Ollikainen
The Brothers by Asko Sahlberg
*****************************************************
I have about 5 other books on my shelf but I will start with these.
Finnish novels are usually overshadowed by the Scandi neighbours but it seems there is a small but steady stream now being translated into English.
If you happen to read a Finnish book this month or have done in the past, please leave your link or any comment below. English and Suomi welcome 🙂
Orange Pekoe Reviews 
Hi I’ve a number of Finnish books under review on the blog .You could also try the Felt site the http://feltcooperative.org a site run by Finnish to English translators
Perfect! I’ll look into the Felt site and keep you posted! (I am also keen to read your reviews!)
I’ve a soft spot for Finland because when I was a snotty teenager I loved listening to Finnish metal bands. I’d love to read some Finnish lit, although they have very little international visibility, it seems.
Recommend me some authors?
Now you’ve forced my hand with my guilty secret – I haven’t really read many Finnish authors because I can’t read Finnish and they’ve only just started really being translated into English… This is why I am finally doing this! I have read Sofie Oksanen’s Purge before and liked that.
I will keep you posted…
What bands did you listen to?
I loved Nightwish the most when I was a high schooler. Have you heard of it?
It is a little bit “funny”, but those books and writers (except one) are totally unknown to me although living in Finland 🙂 The writer Asko Sahlberg was a name, which I have heard, others are unknown to me.
That is really funny! It’s always odd which authors and books get translated into English (but every other language seems to get Dan Brown etc :-))
What Finnish authors are super popular / in all the book stores? (Even if they aren’t translated into other languages).
My best friend and childhood neighbour’s mother was Finnish, so we grew up with Moomins and other Finnish influences. I’ve enjoyed Kati Heikkapelto (even more her second book in the series The Defenceless) and I’ve also recently read (but have yet to review) The Girl and the Bomb by Jari Jarvela.
I look forward to your review of The Girl and the Bomb. I have a copy of it and it is one of the mysterious ‘other 5 Finnish novels’ I have on my shelf that may surface in this challenge.
Thanks for reminding me – I read it a while ago and still haven’t reviewed it! Putting it on my list right now…
Great! By the way, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed having a Finnish neighbour when you were young 🙂
I reccomend warmly Pasi Ilmari Jääskeläinen and his marvelous novel The Rabbit Back Literary Society. http://pushkinpress.com/book/the-rabbit-back-literature-society/