A Medieval Fairy Tale, but a modern story.

books:


	• Kristin Lavransdatter I: The Wreath (Penguin Classics) Sigrid Undset Penguin Classics, 1997 - 336 pages average customer review:based on 32 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

couldn't put the book down!

Wonderful book. Worth the read. Hardest part of the book is deciphering the names and following the family lineage.

Much ado about Nunnally

I, too, like some of the other reviewers here, was at first disappointed with the "modernized" translation of Nunnally, preferring the quirky "thees" and "thous" and "methinkses" of Archer's translation--until I discovered that in fact Undset wrote in contemporary, not mediaeval, Norwegian. The subject matter is mediaeval; the language is supposed to be 20th century. The Elizabethanized language of Archer reflects his own effort to set the reader in the mood for older times, not something called for by the Undset's Norwegian! (Some of the other reviewers here objected that Vol. II is entitled by Nunnally "The Wife" rather than, as in Archer's, "The Mistress of Husaby." But you will see that the Norwegian title is "Husfrue," as in the German "Hausfrau," or "Housewife." "Wife" is therefore in fact the proper translation.) I have it on good authority from someone who knows Scandinavian languages that Nunnally's translation is superb.

Another merit of Nunnally is that she restores quite a bit of text that had been bowdlerized by Archer. Check out the difference, to cite just one example that I have noticed, between the way Nunnally and Archer portray the key scene when Erlend takes Kristin's maidenhood:

Nunnally: "Kristin was trembling--she thought it was because her heart was pounding so hard--and her hands were clammy and cold. When he kissed the bare skin above her knee, she tried powerlessly to push him away. Erlend raised his face for a moment, and she was suddenly reminded of a man who had once been given food at the convent--he had kissed the bread they handed to him. She sank back into the hay with open arms and let Erlend do as he liked" (p. 145).

Archer: "Kristin shook--it must be because her heart beat so--her hands were cold and clammy. As he kissed her vehemently she weakly tried to push him from her. Erlend lifted his face a moment--she thought of a man who had been given food at the convent one day--he had kissed the bread they gave him. She sank back upon the hay...." (p. 129).

The two are pretty close where Archer actually gives you the text, but he prudishly leaves out some key stuff (I'm assuming Nunnally is not putting anything in that's not there in the original). The ellipses there at the end of the Archer translation are his own, and you find them throughout the text just at the, um, interesting parts. With both translations given above, something is left to the imagination, as Undset surely wanted it, but with Archer's, you are missing text! Undset expected her readers to be perceptive, not prophetic. And this is a pivotal moment in the plot, when just the right measure is needed. Readers of Archer's translation have to wonder why, in the next chapter, Kristin keeps feeling her belly and thinking she must be carrying Erlend's child, until they go back to the ellipses and realize what the translator must have omitted. This is the only clear example of Archer's censoring I've come across, but I am told there are plenty more.

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Wreath

This book is a nice, easy read. The character descriptions are great, and as the plot develops your opinions of the characters will change. Even as Kristin (the main character) changes, the way she sees and describes other characters changes. This is an interesting tale of a daughter and her father and her journey from his loving home into her own as she matures.

A Medieval Fairy Tale, but a modern story.

The story takes place in fourteenth-century Norway and is essentially about a young girl's journey into womanhood. Kristin Lavransdatter is a young maiden from a close, well-to-do family who falls head-over-heals in love with an impetuous, young man (Erlend Nikulausson) with a tainted reputation. And rightfully so, for Erlend, like so many young men of his age, is a major screw-up, for a lack of a better definition. To complicate matters even more, Kristin is already engaged (in an arranged marriage) to a most prim and proper young man by the name of Simon. Obviously, Kristin's parents and family wish her to obey them and marry Mr. Nice Guy (Simon). However, like so many young, impressionable women, she goes gaga over the bad boy with the great looks and charismatic appeal. Ergo, when she finally does make her choice - all hell breaks loose.

I enjoyed the novel. It was a bit slow at times, and I wish that Undset would develope her characters a little more, but overall it was a very pleasurable read. I definitely would never go so far as to label this one a 'Harlequin Romance'. It is beautifully written and very nicely translated by Tiina Nunnally (yes, that is how Tiina spells her name). I am interested in reading the next two books of this medieval triology - ("The Wife" and "The Cross") mainly because I want to see if this marriage truly does work out. I am not so sure at the moment, because there is no denying that Erlend is a bit of a cad and it is too early to tell if Kristin is truly in love or lust. If I had to guess, I would go with the former, however, even if that is the case, both of these young people ended up hurting quite a few others along the way while carrying out their secret tryst. And we all know about KARMA and how it has a way of sooner or later rearing it's ugly head.

I have never been a big fan of novels written about the medieval times, so I knew beforehand that this novel might be a bit of a challenge for a guy like me. However, I was pleasantly suprised and like I said, I will be definitely picking up the second book of the trilogy "The Wife" to see just what happens next in this epic, Norweigan soap opera. If your are a fan of love stories and/or medieval tales, than odds are you will enjoy this classic. There is a reason why the author Undset won a Nobel Prize (among countless other awards) and also why so many critics loved this trilogy. This novel is very well constructed and there is no doubt one can relate with a story that is just as relevant and prevalent today as it was seven hundred years ago. Like the old Paul Anka song goes "and they called it, puppy loooooooooove..." I know, I know, I can't stand that song either, but it's the first song that comes to mind when describing this story.

Hope you enjoy it!

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

In Kristin Lavransdatter (1920-1922), Sigrid Undset interweaves political, social, and religious history with the daily aspects of family life to create a colorful, richly detailed tapestry of Norway during the fourteenth-century. The trilogy, however, is more than a journey into the past. Undset's own life-her familiarity with Norse sagas and folklore and with a wide range of medieval literature, her experiences as a daughter, wife, and mother, and her deep religious faith-profoundly influenced her writing. Her grasp of the connections between past and present and of human nature itself, combined with the extraordinary quality of her writing, sets her works far above the genre of "historical novels." This new translation by Tina Nunnally-the first English version since Charles Archer's translation in the 1920s-captures Undset's strengths as a stylist. Nunnally, an award-winning translator, retains the natural dialog and lyrical flow of the original Norwegian, with its echoes of Old Norse legends, while deftly avoiding the stilted language and false archaisms of Archer's translation. In addition, she restores key passages left out of that edition.

Undset's ability to present a meticulously accurate historical portrait without sacrificing the poetry and narrative drive of masterful storytelling was particularly significant in her homeland. Granted independence in 1905 after five hundred years of foreign domination, Norway was eager to reclaim its national history and culture. Kristin Lavransdatter became a touchstone for Undset's contemporaries, and continues to be widely read by Norwegians today. In the more than 75 years since it was first published, it has also become a favorite throughout the world.

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