A fast-paced, whimsical story of one elderly woman determined to preserve her memories – and self.
Author: Kari Hotakainen
Finnish original: Helmi
Publisher: Siltala, 2024
Genre: literary fiction
Number of pages: 294 pp.
Reading material: Finnish original, English sample, English synopsis
Rights sold: Hungarian, Polar
Mira and Toni are the most ordinary couple whose everyday life is shadowed by a seemingly unachievable dream to have a baby of their own. When, on a foraging trip in a forest, they discover an elderly lady who doesn’t even remember her own name, everybody’s life suddenly gets speedier, bumpier, and more absurd than anyone could ever imagine.
Pearl is a charming, humorous, and moving story, where tragic things attain a tone of warm, gentle comedy. If one loses control of one’s memories and life, what is there left to hold on to?
A fast-paced plot and on-the-spot dialogue will make anyone laugh out loud, whereas topical questions, reflected in a casual, yet poignant manner, will remind the reader that, in the end, only our humanity makes our lives worthwhile.
Also available:
The Disciple (2022)
Story (2020)
Lifeline (2015)
The Word of God (2011)
The Human Part (2009)
Trench Road (2002)
About the author:
Kari Hotakainen