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Echoes of the City
Echoes of the City | Lars Saabye Christensen
5 posts | 1 read | 2 to read
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OutAndAbout
Echoes of the City | Lars Saabye Christensen
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This slice of life novel is like living for awhile in post-war Oslo with family and old friends. While there is a plot and a few subplots, they are subtle. The real power of the novel is in the characters and in how their lives intersect and influence each other. A definite recommend for anyone looking for a slower pace of life for a little while.

#foodandlit
#norway

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OutAndAbout
Echoes of the City | Lars Saabye Christensen
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“Because the humdrum will lead us to happiness.”

Back to the one after a break for other reading priorities. This quote is so central to this entire book. Reading about the events of this little family in post war Oslo should be so boring. Instead it‘s a calming and comforting experience that I‘ll be sad to end when the story is done.

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OutAndAbout
Echoes of the City | Lars Saabye Christensen

She looks at her hands. They are getting old, too. They are changing color. They are getting liver spots. They are disgusting. She tries to pull off her wedding ring, which Halfsan bought at David Andersen‘s in 1916 and he slipped on her finger in April of the same year, when her hands were young, before they had their hands full.

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OutAndAbout
Echoes of the City | Lars Saabye Christensen
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Standing at the back is the best. From there you can see everything you leave behind. However it is not Jesper steering the tram. Not even the conductor is steering. It is the rails. It is the people who laid the rails, who perhaps died years ago, who are still steering the tram.

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OutAndAbout
Echoes of the City | Lars Saabye Christensen
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“Let us continue, not that there is any rush; on the contrary we have plenty of time. But to those who wish to accompany us, please adjust to our pace. That is the custom here.”

I missed the May entry for Norway of #foodandlit. But a cold slow holiday season seemed the perfect match for this slow paced family saga. I like that the prologue set the mood and the pace while giving a rich description of the place and time.