Berlin Poplars [Paperback]

Anne B Ragde (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 21, 2009

Just before Christmas on a farm in Northern Norway, 80-year-old Anna Neshov, matriarch of a troubled family, is taken gravely ill. Her three sons have been quietly immersed in their work: one an undertaker, one a window-dresser, and the eldest running the family farm, but now they are forced to reunite for the first time in many years. Their personalities are as disparate as their careers, and tensions mount from the second they meet, climaxing over Christmas dinner when the matter of inheritance prompts the revelation of disturbing family secrets. Anne B. Ragde has created an engrossing dark comedy brought vividly to life through extraordinary characters. While perfectly in tune with their professions the Neshov sons as a family are little short of dysfunctional; nevertheless, the real theme of the novel is a sense of belonging. The farm itself defines this, with its power to draw people back to their roots, whether they like it or not.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Anne B. Ragde has written more than 30 books published in her native Norway.

Product Details

• Paperback: 298 pages
• Publisher: Random House UK (April 21, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0099502577
• ISBN-13: 978-0099502579
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #612,030 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars First in trilogy, December 7, 2008

By 

S. Lund (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Berlin Poplars (Paperback)

This is the first book in the trilogy about the pigfarmer in rural Western Norway, the dysfunctional Neshov family and their family history.
The second book "Eremittkrepsene" was published in 2005 and the third, "Ligge i grønne enger" in 2007.

Each book won literary prizes, and are personal favorites of mine!

READ THEM ALL IF YOU CAN GET THEM!!!!!

The story at large spans from pre WW II up until present time and is a brilliantly written tragic comic saga about the hard life of a pig farmer; about loneliness, illusions, secrets, tabus, despair, love, hate, indifference, family ties, dreams both lived and crushed; and hope.

Each person is so vividly described that he or she feels like someone you know intimately; places and scenarios so detailed that you can smell it!

If reading the story about a Norwegian pig farmer does not seem all that interesting or tantalizing, it actually is. The whole cast of characters (the pig farmer's daughter and brothers primarely)is a study in human psychology, and each book on its own is a gem and a delight to read, almost impossible to put down.

The first two books were filmatized by NRK (The Norwegian state run broadcastng company)in 2007 and is available on DVD; apparently the third book has now also been filmed.

Regretfully Ms Ragde is adament about not writing further follow-ups, which should almost be considered criminal.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hard to put down, pure joy, January 7, 2010

By 

S. L. Callaway "Danish city girl" (Grand Rapids, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Berlin Poplars (Paperback)

I absolutely loved this story! I fell in love with all the characters and really almost felt I knew them personally. I read it in Danish so I don't know how the English translation is. I am close to done with the last book in the trilogy and it has taken me a little over a week. I just can't put the books down!

If I were to say anything, it is that the characters may be a bit stereotypical, but it doesn't harm the story in the slightest as all are likeable and to a large degree egocentrical, each in their own way. I loved the portrayal of Copenhagen, Denmark, and the most Northern part of Norway, both places that I love and have visited many times.

This book made me smile and cry, and it has a very surprising turn of events...

2 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Down on the farm, December 24, 2008

By 

Cleo (New Zealand) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Berlin Poplars (Paperback)

According to the blurb on the back, this novel was published to "huge acclaim" in the author's native Norway and won a major literary prize. You got to be kidding!

I found it largely unreadable - it has no single major character, just a collection of family members drawn almost as caricatures - the morose funeral director, the campy window dresser, the salt-of-the-earth pig farmer.
And it was the pig farmer I found most irritating. Many pages - that I skipped - were devoted to his interactions with his pigs.
The plot was ludicrous. The character central to the plot (which we don't learn until the final pages) is very lightly sketched so I was left shaking my head in wonder.

If you enjoyed The Shipping News - which I didn't, you may like this novel. But if you didn't, then believe me, this is worse.