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Troll: A Love Story
"A wily thriller-fantasy . . . Each discovery sounds like the voice of a storyteller reminding us of how the gods play with our fates."�New York Times
Winner of the Finlandia Award, A Love Story is an enchanting novel that has become an international sensation. Angel, a young photographer, comes home from a night of carousing to find a group of drunken teenagers in the courtyard of his apartment building, taunting a wounded, helpless young troll. He takes it in, not suspecting the dramatic consequences of this decision. What does one do with a troll in the city? As the troll's presence influences Angel's life in ways he could never have predicted, it becomes clear that the creature is the familiar of man's most forbidden feelings. A novel of sparkling originality, Troll is a wry, beguiling story of nature and man's relationship to wild things, and of the dark power of the wildness in ourselves.
Winner of the Finlandia Award, A Love Story is an enchanting novel that has become an international sensation. Angel, a young photographer, comes home from a night of carousing to find a group of drunken teenagers in the courtyard of his apartment building, taunting a wounded, helpless young troll. He takes it in, not suspecting the dramatic consequences of this decision. What does one do with a troll in the city? As the troll's presence influences Angel's life in ways he could never have predicted, it becomes clear that the creature is the familiar of man's most forbidden feelings. A novel of sparkling originality, Troll is a wry, beguiling story of nature and man's relationship to wild things, and of the dark power of the wildness in ourselves.
292 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2000
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About the author
Johanna Sinisalo
61books286followersENG: Johanna Sinisalo is an award-winning Finnish author. She was born in Sodankylä in 1958. During 1984-1997, she worked as a professional designer in advertising, after which she started as a screenwriter and writer. Sinisalo's first novel, Troll, won the Finlandia prize, the most important literature award in Finland. As her hobbies, Sinisalo mentions astronomy, gastronomy, hiking, literature and comics.
The author notes that her novels always feature a bit of the small everyday reality. However, overcoming the borders of realism does not mean that the author's works were to be classified as sci-fi or fantasy � from Sinisalo's point of view, categorizing literature by genre should be left behind.
FI: Johanna Sinisalo on syntynyt Sodankylässä vuonna 1958. Hän valmistui ylioppilaaksi Tampereella 1977 ja suoritti kandidaatintutkinnon Tampereen yliopiston yleisen kirjallisuustieteen draamalinjalla vuonna 1986. Markkinointi-instituutissa opiskellessaan hän sai vuoden parhaan diplomityön palkinnon 1987. Vuosina 1984�1997 Sinisalo toimi ammatikseen mainonnan suunnittelijana, sittemmin hän ryhtyi vapaaksi käsikirjoittajaksi ja kirjailijaksi. Sinisalon esikoisromaani Ennen päivänlaskua ei voi voitti vuoden 2000 Finlandia-palkinnon. Sittemmin Sinisalo on saanut muun muassa James Tiptree Jr. -palkinnon, Tampereen kaupungin kirjallisuuspalkinnon ja Prometheus-palkinnon.
Kirjailijan perheeseen kuuluu avomies ja aikuinen tytär. Harrastuksikseen Sinisalo mainitsee tähtitieteen, gastronomian, vaelluksen, kirjallisuuden ja sarjakuvan. Sinisalo asuu lapsuutensa kotikaupungissa Tampereella.
Tärkeitä kirjailijoita Sinisalolle ovat olleet Tove Jansson, Astrid Lindgren, L. M. Montgomery, Ray Bradbury, Volter Kilpi, Vladimir Nabokov, Michel Tournier ja Margaret Atwood. Tieteiskirjallisuuden lukemisen Sinisalo aloitti lapsena Edgar Rice Burroughsin seikkailukirjoilla. Niiden jälkeen hän löysi George Orwellin ja Aldous Huxleyn, joiden teoksissa science fiction on yhteiskunnan havainnoinin ja arvostelun väline.
Kirjailija toteaa, että hänen romaaneissaan on aina jokin pieni piirre arkitodellisuuden ulkopuolelta. Sinisalo on useiden muiden tavoin muistuttanut, että puhdas realismi on varsin nuori, 1800-luvun lopulta peräisin oleva kirjallinen suuntaus. Realismin rajojen ylittäminen ei kuitenkaan tarkoita, että kirjailijan teokset olisivat lajityypiltään scifiä tai fantasiaa. Sinisalon mielestä lajityyppiajattelusta pitäisi irtautua.
Sinisalo painottaa, että spekulatiivisuus ei ole kirjallisuudessa itseisarvo, vaan että sen kautta voidaan sanoa jotain oleellista jopa paremmin kuin realismin keinoin. Fantasian tai science fictionin kirjoittaminen ei ole päämäärä vaan väline kirjallisuuden tuottamiseen. Sinisalo käyttää sanaa ”viistovalaistus� kuvaamaan tämän välineen toimintaa: todellisuuden tutkiminen uudesta ja ennenkokemattomasta näkökulmasta voi paljastaa uusia puolia, joita ei ole voinut aikaisemmin nähdä.
The author notes that her novels always feature a bit of the small everyday reality. However, overcoming the borders of realism does not mean that the author's works were to be classified as sci-fi or fantasy � from Sinisalo's point of view, categorizing literature by genre should be left behind.
FI: Johanna Sinisalo on syntynyt Sodankylässä vuonna 1958. Hän valmistui ylioppilaaksi Tampereella 1977 ja suoritti kandidaatintutkinnon Tampereen yliopiston yleisen kirjallisuustieteen draamalinjalla vuonna 1986. Markkinointi-instituutissa opiskellessaan hän sai vuoden parhaan diplomityön palkinnon 1987. Vuosina 1984�1997 Sinisalo toimi ammatikseen mainonnan suunnittelijana, sittemmin hän ryhtyi vapaaksi käsikirjoittajaksi ja kirjailijaksi. Sinisalon esikoisromaani Ennen päivänlaskua ei voi voitti vuoden 2000 Finlandia-palkinnon. Sittemmin Sinisalo on saanut muun muassa James Tiptree Jr. -palkinnon, Tampereen kaupungin kirjallisuuspalkinnon ja Prometheus-palkinnon.
Kirjailijan perheeseen kuuluu avomies ja aikuinen tytär. Harrastuksikseen Sinisalo mainitsee tähtitieteen, gastronomian, vaelluksen, kirjallisuuden ja sarjakuvan. Sinisalo asuu lapsuutensa kotikaupungissa Tampereella.
Tärkeitä kirjailijoita Sinisalolle ovat olleet Tove Jansson, Astrid Lindgren, L. M. Montgomery, Ray Bradbury, Volter Kilpi, Vladimir Nabokov, Michel Tournier ja Margaret Atwood. Tieteiskirjallisuuden lukemisen Sinisalo aloitti lapsena Edgar Rice Burroughsin seikkailukirjoilla. Niiden jälkeen hän löysi George Orwellin ja Aldous Huxleyn, joiden teoksissa science fiction on yhteiskunnan havainnoinin ja arvostelun väline.
Kirjailija toteaa, että hänen romaaneissaan on aina jokin pieni piirre arkitodellisuuden ulkopuolelta. Sinisalo on useiden muiden tavoin muistuttanut, että puhdas realismi on varsin nuori, 1800-luvun lopulta peräisin oleva kirjallinen suuntaus. Realismin rajojen ylittäminen ei kuitenkaan tarkoita, että kirjailijan teokset olisivat lajityypiltään scifiä tai fantasiaa. Sinisalon mielestä lajityyppiajattelusta pitäisi irtautua.
Sinisalo painottaa, että spekulatiivisuus ei ole kirjallisuudessa itseisarvo, vaan että sen kautta voidaan sanoa jotain oleellista jopa paremmin kuin realismin keinoin. Fantasian tai science fictionin kirjoittaminen ei ole päämäärä vaan väline kirjallisuuden tuottamiseen. Sinisalo käyttää sanaa ”viistovalaistus� kuvaamaan tämän välineen toimintaa: todellisuuden tutkiminen uudesta ja ennenkokemattomasta näkökulmasta voi paljastaa uusia puolia, joita ei ole voinut aikaisemmin nähdä.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 640 reviews
December 11, 2008
Well. I must tell you. Two things broke this book to crap for me. Although it was generally rather boring, and I skipped all the alternating chapter of “Troll lore� that were just pointless (despite my love of mythology), and the ludicrous structure that switched so quickly from one character POV to another (in chapters as brief as a paragraph that communicate such deep transitions as “I swung my fist at him.� “His fist hit me in the cheek.�) that they pick up immediately where the other character left off mid-action (must we humiliate ourselves at the alter of Roshomon?), and the “mail order bride� character who lived downstairs and was beaten (don’t care, don’t believe it), and the relationships that were so dysfunctional you don’t like anyone at all, and the majority of characters being so shallow you, again, don’t care, and the fairly flat writing style, and utter lack of humor, and the just-not-quite-convincing behavior of this “troll�, no, it wasn’t all that that broke me on the book, and it certainly wasn’t the perverted troll bestiality-—been there, done that�-nor was it necessarily the offhand reference to a troll by a child as a “black man� when these trolls are, uhm, animalistic wild things and sure, out of the mouths of babes, but to leave a casually racist comment unaddressed for the entirety of a book that’s all about this guy adopting a foundling troll is uncomfortable, but still no, it wasn’t that although I felt that was inexcusable.
It was the troll being stuffed into hipster jeans by the main character (commercial photographer) for an ad campaign, and it supposedly being so serious and traumatic when in fact it was just so stupid it was painful. And then finally at the end, the image of papa troll…well, surprise they weren’t so dumb after all. In fact, they stole some guns and know how to use ‘em. And the troll waves the guy into the cave…using the gun like an old time gangsta. Move it buddy, this forest troll’s packin� heat. This second moment was just so stupid I was embarrassed reading it.
What can I say. Unable to suspend belief. And I love the fantastical. Move along people, nothing to read here.
It was the troll being stuffed into hipster jeans by the main character (commercial photographer) for an ad campaign, and it supposedly being so serious and traumatic when in fact it was just so stupid it was painful. And then finally at the end, the image of papa troll…well, surprise they weren’t so dumb after all. In fact, they stole some guns and know how to use ‘em. And the troll waves the guy into the cave…using the gun like an old time gangsta. Move it buddy, this forest troll’s packin� heat. This second moment was just so stupid I was embarrassed reading it.
What can I say. Unable to suspend belief. And I love the fantastical. Move along people, nothing to read here.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 22, 2020
this book is both cute and creepy; and can be read in about three hours. what could be better?? it stays on table!!
January 18, 2019
I was very taken with the idea of a fantasy book written by a Finnish author and steeped into Nordic folklore. This story is different from my usual reads (epic/low fantasy) and the worldbuilding is particular, consisting in several explanations, poems or details about trolls and other topics related to the story or the characters reactions to the events, all looking like book extracts. As a literary device to provide background and to further blend the elements of the novel, alongside my interest in them, it succeeded.
The first person POVs were also nice and the plot, with its absurd situations the unmoored characters found themselves in quickly felt kind of okay. To a degree at least, because in a nutshell what happens is: guy finds troll, he keeps it as a pet and becomes obsessed. The protagonist’s and the other characters� lives change dramatically, one way or another, because of the presence of this creature out of myth.
It’s hard to identify in any of the characters (thankfully), they all sport peculiar obsessions which factor into the story and the only one who got my sympathy is the guinea pig; I had the impression that I was not supposed to care for any of them, either, as the consequence of a deliberate choice from the author's part, stressed by the compulsive changes of viewpoints and the total lack of character development. The rhythm is slow and the chapters are usually very short, switching back and forth many times during a conversation between the interlocutors.
The book gets pretty disturbing halfway through, but a kind of explanation arrives later. It’s a very peculiar work, which deals with a lot of controversial issues (racism, homosexuality, objectification, bride-buying, promiscuity, fixations, a mix of pedophilia and bestiality, brutality....) thrown around like peanuts and often with no purpose that I could discern. I don't judge the depiction but I can’t shake off this feeling of pointlessness. The world is ugly and unfair and selfish, human nature sucks, urban policies will kill us all and people are either slaves of themselves or of someone else; bottom line?
I am not sure I liked this book because of all the creepy themes, the flat characters, the vague plot, the so-and-so ending and the narrative flaws, but despite all of this I've read it in a single sitting and that always counts for something.
Our city’s unique, but with a slightly different nuance for each of us. In a little town like this, we don’t have our own streets, shops or galleries, but we do have our individual hidden topography, our own street corners.
The first person POVs were also nice and the plot, with its absurd situations the unmoored characters found themselves in quickly felt kind of okay. To a degree at least, because in a nutshell what happens is: guy finds troll, he keeps it as a pet and becomes obsessed. The protagonist’s and the other characters� lives change dramatically, one way or another, because of the presence of this creature out of myth.
It’s hard to identify in any of the characters (thankfully), they all sport peculiar obsessions which factor into the story and the only one who got my sympathy is the guinea pig; I had the impression that I was not supposed to care for any of them, either, as the consequence of a deliberate choice from the author's part, stressed by the compulsive changes of viewpoints and the total lack of character development. The rhythm is slow and the chapters are usually very short, switching back and forth many times during a conversation between the interlocutors.
The book gets pretty disturbing halfway through, but a kind of explanation arrives later. It’s a very peculiar work, which deals with a lot of controversial issues (racism, homosexuality, objectification, bride-buying, promiscuity, fixations, a mix of pedophilia and bestiality, brutality....) thrown around like peanuts and often with no purpose that I could discern. I don't judge the depiction but I can’t shake off this feeling of pointlessness. The world is ugly and unfair and selfish, human nature sucks, urban policies will kill us all and people are either slaves of themselves or of someone else; bottom line?
I am not sure I liked this book because of all the creepy themes, the flat characters, the vague plot, the so-and-so ending and the narrative flaws, but despite all of this I've read it in a single sitting and that always counts for something.
Our city’s unique, but with a slightly different nuance for each of us. In a little town like this, we don’t have our own streets, shops or galleries, but we do have our individual hidden topography, our own street corners.
September 30, 2015
This is one of those books that is hard to describe and oh-so-worthwhile. It's a contemporary urban fantasy and trolls are real creatures. They are considered animals, and Angel, the main character, finds an abandoned baby troll in the alley. This is presented as like finding a wildcat cub. Adopt at own risk.
Then he spends the rest of the book researching how to take care of it. So it's sort of like reading a short story with a whole bunch of reference documents tucked between scenes, but that comes nowhere near describing the emotional impact of the whole. Especially the last chapter.
Recommended.
Then he spends the rest of the book researching how to take care of it. So it's sort of like reading a short story with a whole bunch of reference documents tucked between scenes, but that comes nowhere near describing the emotional impact of the whole. Especially the last chapter.
Recommended.
August 5, 2020
Troll: A Love Story, or “Not Before Sundown� as the original title is (and every other translation sticks to but the American) is a fascinating sort of modern folklore/mythology/horror story about a guy who finds an injured young troll, brings it home and nutures it back to life with life changing consequences. Trolls are in the universe of this novel real but rare creatures in Northern Scandinavia, and our guy, Angel, spends the first days researching what a troll eats while trying to keep its present a secret from neighbors and lovers.
The story is told from the perspectives of various characters with each their intent and persona, varying in length, and sprinkled with articles, old sagas and songs and news snippets about trolls. This narrative works extremely well for me, it’s one of my favorite ways of writing, and it worked really well with this type of story. A truly unique little gem.
I definitely want to read more by Johanna Sinisalo, sadly it seems only one other book of hers has been translated. Hopefully that’ll change.
The story is told from the perspectives of various characters with each their intent and persona, varying in length, and sprinkled with articles, old sagas and songs and news snippets about trolls. This narrative works extremely well for me, it’s one of my favorite ways of writing, and it worked really well with this type of story. A truly unique little gem.
I definitely want to read more by Johanna Sinisalo, sadly it seems only one other book of hers has been translated. Hopefully that’ll change.
August 25, 2016
A Finnish book, which is not something I ordinarily get to say. This novel was flawed, but overall I really loved it. It takes place in an alternate universe where trolls were discovered to be a real, living species in the early part of the 20th century. Mikael, a photographer, finds a troll cub who’s somehow stumbled into the city, and takes him in. Their relationship is…not something I can easily describe, but it’s more than a little disturbing, oddly alluring, and completely captivating. The narrative—especially the dénouement—is a little rushed, but it was successful in that it left me wanting more but not frustrated with the conclusion. Even the rapidly shifting POV, not something I usually enjoy, worked for me here. According to her bio, Sinisalo has written many other books, but unfortunately this seems to be the only one (besides a short story anthology to which she contributed) that’s been translated into English. How frustrating, because I’d really like to read more of her work. Still, I’m glad I got to read this, and if you can find it—I had to track it down through intramural library loans—I heartily recommend it. It’s unusual and seductive and creepy. One of my favorite combinations!
September 30, 2013
I have so many thoughts to capture in a review of this book. So many ways to try to justify not giving it that 4th star, or possibly talk myself into upping the rating to be 4 stars.
But I'm also feeling very FUCK YOU GOODREADS at the moment and not inclined to generate content. Especially for a book that I purchased through FUCK YOU AMAZON.
I'll leave eloquence to those of you who can actually write.
But I'm also feeling very FUCK YOU GOODREADS at the moment and not inclined to generate content. Especially for a book that I purchased through FUCK YOU AMAZON.
I'll leave eloquence to those of you who can actually write.
February 27, 2016
Khem.. Nežinau, ką autorė rūkė, kad parašė tokią nesamonę, bet jai derėtų liautis. Nuobodi, kvaila ir visai bevertė knyga. Padori pradžia, bet toliau išsivysto į šizofrenišką absurdą. Nerekomenduoju niekam.
August 26, 2022
Hacía mucho que no leía una historia tan inesperada, original, hermosa. Qué gran descubrimiento de esta autora finlandesa.
December 3, 2023
Read it with the book club! After Angels Before Man and this one I’m really curious to see what December will have in store for us.
I lowered the rating to a two after writing this review, but I’m still in search of the right words to describe this novel.
When I first came across the book I was under the assumption it would have a troll as an active protagonist, so in a way a more fantastical approach to the one we’ve been given. Here the troll is an elusive animal present in the northern reaches of Finland, which up until the beginning of the twentieth century was thought to be a mythical creature. Our protagonist, Mikael, finds a troll cub being kicked to death behind some trashcans, and justifies his bringing it to his own apartment by saying he loves to own beautiful things.
Trying to tame this animal in secret brings him closer to Palomita, a neighbour who is herself a captive of some sort, a Filipina mail-in bride who barely speaks Finnish, kept in the apartment with no means of leaving it by a controlling husband, who counts the change to check she doesn’t pocket it and asks the nosy neighbour to keep an eye on her movements.
The racial themes are there but they don’t really go anywhere: the troll is often described as ape or human-like, sometimes described like a black man, violent and wild, the protagonist and other characters even go as far as describing it as a sexual being - all things that have been said in history about people of colour while still denying them agency and the status of humanity.
There’s one line towards the end of the book that is the closest thing to decry this shift in power being about perception, and it’s still while talking about animals (especially ones used oftentimes to describe black and brown people) and I’m still trying to understand if it was done on purpose or if we’re really only talking about animals and missing the racist undertones:
“[…] we won’t recognise the chimpanzee as a person until it rises up against us in rebellion.�
Is this not what happens to all enslaved people? They get likened to animals and subhumans in order to justify their oppression, and they only get their personhood through violent uprisings (that will be used against them anyway, because “civilised� people do not choose violence, they just sell weapons to the oppressor).
Apart from Mikael, the troll and Palomita, there are three other men who all have a connection to Mikael: one past relationship, one present and one that he wishes he had, and in all of these he has varying degrees of control - in one way or another all three also have close encounters with the troll.
I think the novel was too short but also too long at the same time? The articles and excerpts of books interspersed within the pov chapters dilute it a lot, and that makes the novel seem longer, but it really should be considered a novella. Also some chapters are literally a sentence long.
I don’t think I grasped what the scope of the novella really was: was it an analysis of gay culture in Finland? Was it an exploration of hyerarchies and power in these relationships, using the troll as a “control� test? Was it a modern dark fairytale with a moral I didn’t get?
All the themes it wants to encompass are barely parsed and I am at a loss of what to think.
All I can say is read it for yourselves if you’re curious but beware of bestiality? Kind of maybe??
I lowered the rating to a two after writing this review, but I’m still in search of the right words to describe this novel.
When I first came across the book I was under the assumption it would have a troll as an active protagonist, so in a way a more fantastical approach to the one we’ve been given. Here the troll is an elusive animal present in the northern reaches of Finland, which up until the beginning of the twentieth century was thought to be a mythical creature. Our protagonist, Mikael, finds a troll cub being kicked to death behind some trashcans, and justifies his bringing it to his own apartment by saying he loves to own beautiful things.
Trying to tame this animal in secret brings him closer to Palomita, a neighbour who is herself a captive of some sort, a Filipina mail-in bride who barely speaks Finnish, kept in the apartment with no means of leaving it by a controlling husband, who counts the change to check she doesn’t pocket it and asks the nosy neighbour to keep an eye on her movements.
The racial themes are there but they don’t really go anywhere: the troll is often described as ape or human-like, sometimes described like a black man, violent and wild, the protagonist and other characters even go as far as describing it as a sexual being - all things that have been said in history about people of colour while still denying them agency and the status of humanity.
There’s one line towards the end of the book that is the closest thing to decry this shift in power being about perception, and it’s still while talking about animals (especially ones used oftentimes to describe black and brown people) and I’m still trying to understand if it was done on purpose or if we’re really only talking about animals and missing the racist undertones:
“[…] we won’t recognise the chimpanzee as a person until it rises up against us in rebellion.�
Is this not what happens to all enslaved people? They get likened to animals and subhumans in order to justify their oppression, and they only get their personhood through violent uprisings (that will be used against them anyway, because “civilised� people do not choose violence, they just sell weapons to the oppressor).
Apart from Mikael, the troll and Palomita, there are three other men who all have a connection to Mikael: one past relationship, one present and one that he wishes he had, and in all of these he has varying degrees of control - in one way or another all three also have close encounters with the troll.
I think the novel was too short but also too long at the same time? The articles and excerpts of books interspersed within the pov chapters dilute it a lot, and that makes the novel seem longer, but it really should be considered a novella. Also some chapters are literally a sentence long.
I don’t think I grasped what the scope of the novella really was: was it an analysis of gay culture in Finland? Was it an exploration of hyerarchies and power in these relationships, using the troll as a “control� test? Was it a modern dark fairytale with a moral I didn’t get?
All the themes it wants to encompass are barely parsed and I am at a loss of what to think.
All I can say is read it for yourselves if you’re curious but beware of bestiality? Kind of maybe??
December 10, 2016
I enjoyed the twist on the end in this and unfortunately this made me feel better about this book overall. But the more I think about it, the more I remember my apathy through most of the book. It's an odd book...
Actually, here's a question for my international friends. I can't figure out if this is a regional or translation issue. When you're a kid and you get in a fight with a sibling do you say "You began it!" or "You started it!"?
... and I couldn't help but wonder about why Angel was so incredibly sexy to every single guy he met. This led to a few funny situations but I would rather have learned more about his interactions with the troll.
So it's a "meh" overall. Even the end, which I liked one aspect of very much, had another element about it that didn't make sense.
Actually, here's a question for my international friends. I can't figure out if this is a regional or translation issue. When you're a kid and you get in a fight with a sibling do you say "You began it!" or "You started it!"?
... and I couldn't help but wonder about why Angel was so incredibly sexy to every single guy he met. This led to a few funny situations but I would rather have learned more about his interactions with the troll.
So it's a "meh" overall. Even the end, which I liked one aspect of very much, had another element about it that didn't make sense.
July 20, 2007
For once, a synopsis, because I had never seen one (that actually said what Troll was about/happened in it): "Angel" (Mikael, gay photographer) takes in an abandonned Troll-puppy, which is described like a cat (believe me, I know, down to the litter), though Sinisalo lists good (fake) snippets how it is a recently discovered species of ape-cat (cp. the Okapi). Sinisalo uses real sources as well, most notably Pelli + Illusia (Angel with his head of blond curls so much like Illusia (a fairy) even calls "his" troll Pelli), and since Troll isn't sensational and often slow, the fake info seems persuasively real.
At the start of the book, Angel loves Martes, a "straight" gay who secretly enjoys having Angel lust after him, while Angel's ex "Spiderman", a vet, still loves Angel, as does Ecke (the guy that I liked in this book, short, messy, broad ass, glasses) and Palomita, a tiny young girl from the Philippines, mail-order bride, sex-slave.
Her fate just hit me so deep that for most of the book, I could not concentrate on the - much tinier than expected - "erotic" Troll love, but I dislike her for her final act, which made it clear to me that the theme of the novel is less "A Lovestory" or how the wild(erness) encroaches and how people like Palomita's "husband" and the vile Martes really are "trolls", no, for me it was about people using each other.
I'm actually pretty sure that wasn't intentional, but Angel uses Ecke and Spiderman, even if that gives those two greatest pleasure and exactly what they want (sex with Angel (sorry, hardly anything described)), so they in turn are using Angel. Advertising guy Martes uses Angel despicably, Palomita is obviously used, the Troll is used - though he of course triumphs in the end.
At the start of the book, Angel loves Martes, a "straight" gay who secretly enjoys having Angel lust after him, while Angel's ex "Spiderman", a vet, still loves Angel, as does Ecke (the guy that I liked in this book, short, messy, broad ass, glasses) and Palomita, a tiny young girl from the Philippines, mail-order bride, sex-slave.
Her fate just hit me so deep that for most of the book, I could not concentrate on the - much tinier than expected - "erotic" Troll love, but I dislike her for her final act, which made it clear to me that the theme of the novel is less "A Lovestory" or how the wild(erness) encroaches and how people like Palomita's "husband" and the vile Martes really are "trolls", no, for me it was about people using each other.
I'm actually pretty sure that wasn't intentional, but Angel uses Ecke and Spiderman, even if that gives those two greatest pleasure and exactly what they want (sex with Angel (sorry, hardly anything described)), so they in turn are using Angel. Advertising guy Martes uses Angel despicably, Palomita is obviously used, the Troll is used - though he of course triumphs in the end.
November 22, 2024
Fell a little bit short for me. Our main character stumbles across a troll on the way home from a bar one night. It has been badly beaten up by a group of teenagers and so he decides to take it home. In this universe, trolls are rare but real creatures and he spends the novel trying to take care of it despite the troll becoming more aggressive and unpredictable each day.
It’s broken up by snippets of ‘non-fiction� pieces about trolls and their existence in the wild for us to get more of a feel for the animal and how it lives in this world. I didn’t find they added much to the story. Despite the troll being really cute I didn’t find myself attached to any of the characters and found the book slightly dull. The ending made up for it as I found it quite gruesome and satisfying but I wanted a bit more life to this book. It could have been down to the point of view and how it kept switching between characters it just made the book feel a bit messy. But if you want to read something unique from Finland then I would say give this one a go.
It’s broken up by snippets of ‘non-fiction� pieces about trolls and their existence in the wild for us to get more of a feel for the animal and how it lives in this world. I didn’t find they added much to the story. Despite the troll being really cute I didn’t find myself attached to any of the characters and found the book slightly dull. The ending made up for it as I found it quite gruesome and satisfying but I wanted a bit more life to this book. It could have been down to the point of view and how it kept switching between characters it just made the book feel a bit messy. But if you want to read something unique from Finland then I would say give this one a go.
May 3, 2020
Nej usch vad jag inte gillade denna bok. Kanske är det för att jag redan från början inte har mycket till övers för troll eller trollskildringar. Kanske är det för att jag verkligen inte gillar hur denna bok, och Gräns som ett annat exempel, sexualiserar trollet eller möten med troll, på ett sånt obekvämt och onödigt sätt. Eller kanske är det för att boken kändes så lättförutspådd, så enkelt att lista ut vad som skulle komma härnäst. Det enda som jag tycker är intressant med den är hur trollet kapitaliseras, blir en vara i den moderna världens konstanta marknadsföring, men inte heller denna poäng lyckas författaren ro hem med någon form av framgång. Det når helt enkelt inte fram hela vägen.
November 1, 2011
oh now here's a lovely one.
i was hooked by the first paragraph--a description of a young man flirting with another, wanting to hold hands and being subtly rejected. perfectly described--not overblown or sentimental, but with feeling. perfect.
and the rest of the story is like that, too. how a man falls for a troll. his efforts to care for the young, unwell troll. how his world begins to spin around the animal, and how it changes his life.
the ending is pitch-perfect too--tragic but inevitable, and hopeful as well. not in a schmaltzy hollywood way, either. in the way of life as we live it.
there is a bit much troll lore, some of it misplaced, but all of it functioning to further and deepen the plot. so skim it if it gets to be too much, but be careful--you might miss something important. note to would-be authors: excerpting stuff written in a dry, academic style is still stuff written in a dry, academic style, even if it's fictional dry, academic stuff.
i wholeheartedly recommend it all the same. you won't be disappointed.
i was hooked by the first paragraph--a description of a young man flirting with another, wanting to hold hands and being subtly rejected. perfectly described--not overblown or sentimental, but with feeling. perfect.
and the rest of the story is like that, too. how a man falls for a troll. his efforts to care for the young, unwell troll. how his world begins to spin around the animal, and how it changes his life.
the ending is pitch-perfect too--tragic but inevitable, and hopeful as well. not in a schmaltzy hollywood way, either. in the way of life as we live it.
there is a bit much troll lore, some of it misplaced, but all of it functioning to further and deepen the plot. so skim it if it gets to be too much, but be careful--you might miss something important. note to would-be authors: excerpting stuff written in a dry, academic style is still stuff written in a dry, academic style, even if it's fictional dry, academic stuff.
i wholeheartedly recommend it all the same. you won't be disappointed.
July 14, 2018
Päivässä luettu romaani, joka on keikkunut omallakin lukulistalla jo toistakymmentä vuotta. Ymmärrän aikoinaan pokatun Finlandia-palkinnon, mutta sanoisin pienellä kokemuksellani Sinisalon kehittyneen myöhempiin teoksiin huomattavasti. Tässä oli ehkä hivenen liikaa jotain, enkä osaa edes varmaksi sanoa mitä. Itsetietoisuutta, tarkoituksellisuutta, jotain sen suuntaista kai, pieni rentous olisi tehnyt tarinalle hyvää, antanut tilaa kasvaa.
September 14, 2022
"I've locked him in here. I've tried to capture part of the forest, and now the forest has captured me."
Ah yes, a good old Dead Dove: Do Not Eat. I feel insane after reading this book and I have a lot to say.
Here's a huge trigger warning that is both necessary and a spoiler: Angel falls for the troll. He desires him sexually, and this troll is an animal, a puppy, a juvenile. There's no human-troll sex scene, btw, but the desire is there.
Angel is a thirty-something finnish man walking home after being rejected by a man he's had a crush on for a while now, when he comes across a group of kids kicking a little baby troll. Worried about the poor little thing, fascinated and a little drunk, he decides to take the cub home, after all, what could go wrong? Well. Everything.
In this alternate Finland, trolls are a registered species that are very much real. And while they're now recognized and identified as animals, it's extremely rare to come across one and even rarer (worse: illegal) is to hold one as a pet.
In his research and all his efforts for understanding and taking care of this creature that seems more myth than reality, he ends up obsessing over him. Slowly but surely it was everything he could think about and soon enough his life revolves around the troll, even affecting his already messy love life.
The mix between fantasy and reality is constant through the story, with snippets of poetry and folklore, and excerpts from scientific articles about trolls. While some might loathe it, I enjoyed the constant jumps between point of views, they seem to fit the erratic mood.
This book offers up a couple of disturbing questions for us, almost existentialist. It's easy to miss the exploration of gender politics, of the deep-rooted sexism in heterosexual relationships, how Palomita is the 'troll' for his husband that keeps her locked at home, that bought her up and sees her as nothing but an exotic animal that he desires.
From the beginning, you know everything has to end up in flames.
A problematic fave, way more interesting than a ton of more 'polished' works. 4.5/5.
February 14, 2022
Huh huh.
Olen halunnut jo pitkään halunnut lukea tämän, mutta aina tähän on ollut varauksia enkä ole sitten jostain syystä liittynyt varausjonon jatkeeksi. Reilu viikko sitten tämä kuitenkin lepäsi sateenkaarihyllyssä, joten oli pakko napata kirja mukaan.
Pelkäsin hieman, että tulen pettymään, sillä olen lukenut paljon ylistäviä arvioita.
Onneksi en joutunut!
En tiennyt juonesta enkä oikein hahmoistakaan etukäteen, oikeastaan tiesin vain että tässä on homoja ja peikkoja. (vau) Vähän muuten hävettää, että oletin Enkelin heti naiseksi, vain Enkeli-lempinimen perusteella. (eikä kyllä itseasiassa ihan vähänkään hävetä, miten voi olla näin sukupuolittunut ajatusmaailma)
Olen ymmärtänyt, että kirja on ollut ilmestyessään jotain uutta etenkin kotimaisella kirjakentällä useampien kertojien ja erilaisten tekstilajien ansiosta. Useampi näkökulma ei tunnu nykylukijasta enää uudelta, mutta toimii kyllä hyvin. Lehtileikkeistä ja muista teksteistä en ollut niinkään varma. Arvostan sitä työtä, joka erilaisten tekstien löytämiseen on käytetty (toki osa oli fiktiotakin), sillä aina ne eivät ole ilmeisimmästä päästä. Olen kuitenkin sitä mieltä, että näitä katkelmia on liikaa. Tuntuu, että aineistoa on vain löytynyt ja löytynyt, mutta sitten mitään ei olla raaskittu jättää pois. Romaanikatkelmien, tietotekstien ja muiden pätkien paljous pätkii sulavaa lukukokemusta. Osa näistä oli kuitenkin varsin nerokkaita, kuten myös Päivänsäde ja menninkäinen -laulun mukaan nimetyt kirjan osiot.
Kirja imaisi heti mukaansa ja lopulta kävi niin, että luin kirjasta yli puolet yhdeltä istumalta. En osannut lopettaa, ja saadessani viimeiset lauseet luettua kello oli pitkälle yli puolenyön. Hups.
Haukoin henkeä ja sydän hakkasi, ah nautin tästä paljon.
Olen halunnut jo pitkään halunnut lukea tämän, mutta aina tähän on ollut varauksia enkä ole sitten jostain syystä liittynyt varausjonon jatkeeksi. Reilu viikko sitten tämä kuitenkin lepäsi sateenkaarihyllyssä, joten oli pakko napata kirja mukaan.
Pelkäsin hieman, että tulen pettymään, sillä olen lukenut paljon ylistäviä arvioita.
Onneksi en joutunut!
En tiennyt juonesta enkä oikein hahmoistakaan etukäteen, oikeastaan tiesin vain että tässä on homoja ja peikkoja. (vau) Vähän muuten hävettää, että oletin Enkelin heti naiseksi, vain Enkeli-lempinimen perusteella. (eikä kyllä itseasiassa ihan vähänkään hävetä, miten voi olla näin sukupuolittunut ajatusmaailma)
Olen ymmärtänyt, että kirja on ollut ilmestyessään jotain uutta etenkin kotimaisella kirjakentällä useampien kertojien ja erilaisten tekstilajien ansiosta. Useampi näkökulma ei tunnu nykylukijasta enää uudelta, mutta toimii kyllä hyvin. Lehtileikkeistä ja muista teksteistä en ollut niinkään varma. Arvostan sitä työtä, joka erilaisten tekstien löytämiseen on käytetty (toki osa oli fiktiotakin), sillä aina ne eivät ole ilmeisimmästä päästä. Olen kuitenkin sitä mieltä, että näitä katkelmia on liikaa. Tuntuu, että aineistoa on vain löytynyt ja löytynyt, mutta sitten mitään ei olla raaskittu jättää pois. Romaanikatkelmien, tietotekstien ja muiden pätkien paljous pätkii sulavaa lukukokemusta. Osa näistä oli kuitenkin varsin nerokkaita, kuten myös Päivänsäde ja menninkäinen -laulun mukaan nimetyt kirjan osiot.
Kirja imaisi heti mukaansa ja lopulta kävi niin, että luin kirjasta yli puolet yhdeltä istumalta. En osannut lopettaa, ja saadessani viimeiset lauseet luettua kello oli pitkälle yli puolenyön. Hups.
Haukoin henkeä ja sydän hakkasi, ah nautin tästä paljon.
November 21, 2016
I'm not sure why, but I went into this one expecting a kind of twisted/playful dark comedy. That's not at all what this book is -- in fact there is pretty much no humor at all. In addition there were a number of other annoyances:
- the erratic and often pointless jumps in POV
- the fictional history/folklore, which started out interesting but eventually seemed like the author was just trying to pad the page count
- the seemingly blatant connections being made between homosexuality, bestiality, and pedophilia
- much of the writing was kind of generally wooden, although this might be the fault of the translator.
- the ending was a bit bizarre, not in a good way. What we learned about the troll throughout the novel just didn't really support what happened.
Despite this laundry list, in the end I don't think I disliked it quite enough to give it only one star. It moved at a brisk pace, which is an especially good quality in a book when you're not enjoying it.
- the erratic and often pointless jumps in POV
- the fictional history/folklore, which started out interesting but eventually seemed like the author was just trying to pad the page count
- the seemingly blatant connections being made between homosexuality, bestiality, and pedophilia
- much of the writing was kind of generally wooden, although this might be the fault of the translator.
- the ending was a bit bizarre, not in a good way. What we learned about the troll throughout the novel just didn't really support what happened.
Despite this laundry list, in the end I don't think I disliked it quite enough to give it only one star. It moved at a brisk pace, which is an especially good quality in a book when you're not enjoying it.
September 14, 2011
I didn't hate the book but I did hate a lot about it. I dislike in general when books are written from many different points of view, and this one seemed particularly hard to follow because of it. Characters are referred to by several different names so I cant even keep track of whose point of view it was in relation to what they've been a part of in the past.
Plus I got a sick feeling that the only reason the author made the main character, Angel, gay, was to make the leap to bestiality/pedophilia. I found that tacky and ignorant, even though that may not have been the authors intention.
I found the character of Palomita depressing and irrelevant, unless to show that humans are often treated as animals even in the modern day, perhaps hinting that one day trolls will be treated as humans by everyone.
Glad I read it but I have no desire to read anything else by this author.
Plus I got a sick feeling that the only reason the author made the main character, Angel, gay, was to make the leap to bestiality/pedophilia. I found that tacky and ignorant, even though that may not have been the authors intention.
I found the character of Palomita depressing and irrelevant, unless to show that humans are often treated as animals even in the modern day, perhaps hinting that one day trolls will be treated as humans by everyone.
Glad I read it but I have no desire to read anything else by this author.
August 6, 2019
Palkitussa esikoisteoksessaan Johanna Sinisalo käsittelee suhdettamme luontoon ja erityisesti suurpetoihin luomalla peikosta todellisen lajin. Hän ujuttaa peikon osaksi kulttuuriamme hämmästyttävän sulavasti ja biologian opiskelijana koin erityisen arvostettavaksi biologisiin yksityiskohtiin kiinnitetyn huomion. Luontosuhteen lisäksi Ennen päivänlaskua ei voi sivuuttaa monia muitakin teemoja, mutta romaani ei tunnu täyteen ahdetulta. Sen sijaan kaikki kulttuurikytkennät eivät toimineet tai ainakaan minulle auenneet, ja tarinankulku tökki välillä melko pahasti. Lisäksi kirjan ulkoasu kuvituksesta fontteihin on suorastaan vastenmielinen, mutta onneksi en antanut sen estää minua: kokonaisuutena Ennen päivänlaskua ei voi tuntui ainutlaatuiselta ja mittasuhteistaan paisuneen petovihan vuoksi myös ajankohtaiselta.
Read
September 1, 2020Um... that was... unique.
I like weird, unusual, & unique books. And this one has some positives. But, there are also deeper negatives that I'm still trying to unpack (old racist tropes; bestiality; sex slave & domestic violence; more).
It's a pretty quick read & I read it in one sitting. Even though parts were somewhat touching or intriguing, there are bigger pieces scratching at my brain, bothering me.
I think Bogi Takács' sums up a lot of the same thoughts I have on this book.
I like weird, unusual, & unique books. And this one has some positives. But, there are also deeper negatives that I'm still trying to unpack (old racist tropes; bestiality; sex slave & domestic violence; more).
It's a pretty quick read & I read it in one sitting. Even though parts were somewhat touching or intriguing, there are bigger pieces scratching at my brain, bothering me.
I think Bogi Takács' sums up a lot of the same thoughts I have on this book.
August 27, 2020
A truly cursed experience
April 14, 2024
This is a mocumentary (pseudo-documentary) crypto animal story from Finland. I read it as a part of the monthly reading for April 2024 at Speculative Fiction in Translation group.
This is the story of an ordinary Finn living in an ordinary apartment building, with the only extraordinary thing that instead of a stray dog or cat, he takes home a baby troll. The story is set roughly in the time of its first publication (2000), but in the world, where at the beginning of the 20th century trolls were confirmed as real existing animals and not just stuff of legend. They are rare, preferring not to contact with people, and potentially very dangerous � while roughly human-looking they are a case of convergent evolution only not from apes but cats.
The story is presented from POV of ‘Angel� Michael, who is an art photo designer and a gay (it is important to note that, as one of the group members pointed out, the author is a woman but a large proportion of characters are gay men and quite lusty ones). His narrative is interdicted by pieces from different sources about trolls, from Finnish folklore to witnesses as well as short pieces from the POV of people around like a neighboring mail-wife from the Philippines to the love interests of Angel.
I liked the mocumentary of the ‘main� story of raising a troll hidden in an apartment but was not interested in side stories, even if they were needed for the final.
This is the story of an ordinary Finn living in an ordinary apartment building, with the only extraordinary thing that instead of a stray dog or cat, he takes home a baby troll. The story is set roughly in the time of its first publication (2000), but in the world, where at the beginning of the 20th century trolls were confirmed as real existing animals and not just stuff of legend. They are rare, preferring not to contact with people, and potentially very dangerous � while roughly human-looking they are a case of convergent evolution only not from apes but cats.
The story is presented from POV of ‘Angel� Michael, who is an art photo designer and a gay (it is important to note that, as one of the group members pointed out, the author is a woman but a large proportion of characters are gay men and quite lusty ones). His narrative is interdicted by pieces from different sources about trolls, from Finnish folklore to witnesses as well as short pieces from the POV of people around like a neighboring mail-wife from the Philippines to the love interests of Angel.
I liked the mocumentary of the ‘main� story of raising a troll hidden in an apartment but was not interested in side stories, even if they were needed for the final.
December 29, 2024
Okaaaaayyyy, where to start?
This is a story about a young troll being taken in to the home of a young man. This is already a story set-up full of potential danger and yet nothing prepared me fully for what unfolds. It's maybe due to the subtitle - A Love Story. For this is a love story, of sorts. But don't be mistaken, this is also a truly horrifying horror. And the love story that plays out lies somewhere between cute and adorable and disgustingly depraved.
Interspersed throughout are snippets of Nordic folklore and song lyrics about trolls. There's also numerous snippets from medical journals or scientific musings on trolls and their lifestyles that give a huge amount of credence to the existence of trolls in modern-day Finland. On more than one occasion I found myself questioning whether trolls are in fact actual real-life animals. These entries are fascinating but they do also slightly break the flow of the grippingly weird story. As does the constant switching of first-person viewpoints. That said, I thought this was really great. Just don't go in expecting a "love story"...
This is a story about a young troll being taken in to the home of a young man. This is already a story set-up full of potential danger and yet nothing prepared me fully for what unfolds. It's maybe due to the subtitle - A Love Story. For this is a love story, of sorts. But don't be mistaken, this is also a truly horrifying horror. And the love story that plays out lies somewhere between cute and adorable and disgustingly depraved.
Interspersed throughout are snippets of Nordic folklore and song lyrics about trolls. There's also numerous snippets from medical journals or scientific musings on trolls and their lifestyles that give a huge amount of credence to the existence of trolls in modern-day Finland. On more than one occasion I found myself questioning whether trolls are in fact actual real-life animals. These entries are fascinating but they do also slightly break the flow of the grippingly weird story. As does the constant switching of first-person viewpoints. That said, I thought this was really great. Just don't go in expecting a "love story"...
February 6, 2018
Tykkäsin mytologian sekoittamisesta nykyaikaan ja tarinan eri elementeistä, vaikka henkilöt olivatkin aika kamalia ihmisiä ja muita tekstilajeja seassa vähän liikaa. Muuten ehkä kolmen tähden arvoinen, mutta lopun tapahtumat nostivat neljään.
April 16, 2020
An odd story, but well done. Love the mix of folk tale and the way it is intertwined into the story.
January 16, 2014
Why did I read it? It came up a few times on recommended lists and a book which featured a troll by a Finnish writer seemed like an interesting read, even when the synopsis hinted at sexual themes.
What's it about? Mikael is returning from a gay club one evening and intercepts a gang intent on beating a cornered animal. Upon seeing the victim, it becomes clear to Mikael it is a young troll and, intoxicated by liquor and the beauty of the troll itself, he takes it home with him. Mikael attempts to restore the troll to health by reading all sorts of materials, but never seems aware of the intoxicating pheromones the troll exudes, and which come to mingle with his own scent.
What did I like? It's a different kind of fantasy I suppose. The chapters were short, making it a quick read and, once again, the ending isn't neatly tied up. I was a little interested in the fate of the troll, and some of the snippets of information inserted between chapters were intriguing.
The portrayal of the futility of attempting to tame an animal which thrives in the wild was quite well done. The story also highlights the increasing urbanisation of previously wild environments which is forcing many an animal/creature to adapt and survive on our terms, and how much mankind/humans are adverse to this encroachment by "wild things" on what they consider their turf.
What didn't I like? "" as it's also known, just didn't grab me. I stopped caring about Mikael, or what fate awaited him fairly early in the story, when his tiresome selfish/self-centered personality was revealed. Eventually, the factual accounts, snippets of folklore and various bits of information regarding trolls which was inserted between chapters also became tedious. Thus, the book dragged itself, limping, to it's conclusion[?].
Certain aspects of Mikael's behaviour were also very off-putting; more particularly, .
Would I recommend it? I can't say I would, mostly because I cannot think of anyone who should enjoy reading it; certainly no-one of my acquaintance.
What's it about? Mikael is returning from a gay club one evening and intercepts a gang intent on beating a cornered animal. Upon seeing the victim, it becomes clear to Mikael it is a young troll and, intoxicated by liquor and the beauty of the troll itself, he takes it home with him. Mikael attempts to restore the troll to health by reading all sorts of materials, but never seems aware of the intoxicating pheromones the troll exudes, and which come to mingle with his own scent.
What did I like? It's a different kind of fantasy I suppose. The chapters were short, making it a quick read and, once again, the ending isn't neatly tied up. I was a little interested in the fate of the troll, and some of the snippets of information inserted between chapters were intriguing.
The portrayal of the futility of attempting to tame an animal which thrives in the wild was quite well done. The story also highlights the increasing urbanisation of previously wild environments which is forcing many an animal/creature to adapt and survive on our terms, and how much mankind/humans are adverse to this encroachment by "wild things" on what they consider their turf.
What didn't I like? "" as it's also known, just didn't grab me. I stopped caring about Mikael, or what fate awaited him fairly early in the story, when his tiresome selfish/self-centered personality was revealed. Eventually, the factual accounts, snippets of folklore and various bits of information regarding trolls which was inserted between chapters also became tedious. Thus, the book dragged itself, limping, to it's conclusion[?].
Certain aspects of Mikael's behaviour were also very off-putting; more particularly, .
Would I recommend it? I can't say I would, mostly because I cannot think of anyone who should enjoy reading it; certainly no-one of my acquaintance.
June 19, 2007
Johanna Sinisalo is apparently well-known in Finland. It's too bad the only pieces of hers that we have in English are this book and a short story in the (which I have yet to read). But if Troll is representative of her writing, I have high, high hopes for more of her work.
Troll plays with several kinds of eroticism and desire as we see the central story unfold: Angel, a gay photographer, rescues a young, injured troll from a band of teenage tormenters and takes it home to nurse it. The situation is complicated by a series of encounters and a maze of desire and lust. Who desires whom and why becomes very important as the story reaches its climax. Throughout, Sinisalo has inserted bits of Finnish troll lore—partly authentic, partly invented—that lend a confident air of realism to the novel. Above all, this is less a fantasy than a novel of an alternate Finland where trolls (Felipithecus trollius) really do exist.
Troll plays with several kinds of eroticism and desire as we see the central story unfold: Angel, a gay photographer, rescues a young, injured troll from a band of teenage tormenters and takes it home to nurse it. The situation is complicated by a series of encounters and a maze of desire and lust. Who desires whom and why becomes very important as the story reaches its climax. Throughout, Sinisalo has inserted bits of Finnish troll lore—partly authentic, partly invented—that lend a confident air of realism to the novel. Above all, this is less a fantasy than a novel of an alternate Finland where trolls (Felipithecus trollius) really do exist.
January 7, 2012
This book had been mentioned by someone whose own writing I like quite a lot. It was a selection included in a creative writing course that he was teaching. In fairness, I never heard him say if he liked it or not, but wow - what a relentless bombardment of puerile drivel! I liked the troll, what little of him I got to see. Hated every other character in the (first half of)(far as I could get)the book. This is one of those books that I would like to physically throw just as far away from me as I could, but alas - it's in my Kindle. It shall be electronically-jettisoned, I assure you, but that simply doesn't pack the same enjoyment one gets from hurling a physical tome.
But hell - you might like it - who knows.
But hell - you might like it - who knows.
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