A young peasant girl, Astrid catches his eye. He creates fascinating characters. But destroying a church that has been in the village for so long and which is inextricably linked with the inhabitants’ beliefs is fraught with difficulty. With him she would find what was hers, whatever that might be, and she would defend it so that she could call it "mine".”, “Rumours are the seeds of legends, light enough to spread on the wind, and quick to grow. Try again. Buy The Bell in the Lake: The Sister Bells Trilogy Vol. The villagers are wary of the pastor and his resolve to do away with their centuries-old traditions, though Astrid also finds herself drawn to him. 4.5 stars. Set in Norway in 1880. Boy oh boy - this was a good one! An amazing tale told through beautiful characters. This was rich in detail and had many touching moments. The story of whi. Having visited both Sweden and France enjoyed this aspect. Winter is hard in Butangen, a village secluded at the end of a valley. © 1996-2020, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. Butangen is described as being “twenty years behind its neighbouring villages, which were thirty years behind Norway’s towns and cities, which were fifty years behind the rest of Europe”. Set in Norway in 1880. Then you can start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required. A fascinating story of Norwegian stave churches , the harsh life of rural villagers, a Pastor new to the village, a German architect, a young woman and the legend of the two bells. Life is hard in the village, due to the tremendous cold and difficulty in farming the high-up land, but for most of the villagers this daily struggle is so routine that they are too fatigued to wish for anything else. Lars Mytting, a novelist and journalist, was born in Favang, Norway, in 1968. by The Overlook Press. Much of the local detail is inevitably lost in English, but translator Deborah Dawkin has gone to great lengths to create an equivalent of the rural vernacular, and the result adds wonderful texture to the translation. By the time a truth has put down its roots, rumours will have blossomed and become their own truths, because even the wildest fantasy has been told by someone, and this - the fact of something being told by someone - gives it a veracity, even if what is told is more than a little unlikely”, See 1 question about The Bell in the Lake…, Goodreads Members Suggest: 32 ‘Vacation’ Reads. Set in the 19. Rich, sinuous prose makes tangible the villagers' gritty perseverance in the face of poverty, isolation and the unpredictable climate . Butangen’s richest possession is. And there is a love story which I wasn't expecting, that brought the entire tale to life and completely broke my heart, which I also was not expecting. Then the bells begin to ring . Buy this product and stream 90 days of Amazon Music Unlimited for free. The Bell in the Lake was one that I requested on a whim after getting an email about it, because there was something about the cover that just called to me, and I am glad that I did because it was a beautifully atmospheric read that ensnared me from the very beginning. I don't exactly know why I had to force myself through the beginning of this book. Inspired by that story and by the real-life move of a stave church from Norway to what is now Poland, he embarked on a trilogy in which history and myth mingle to determine the future of an isolated village. The bells commemorated the long dead conjoined twins, Halfrid and Gunhild Heckne, donated to the local church by her family, steeped in folklore, myth and legend, the bells ring by themselves in times of danger. This novel begins with a dark undertone, and a sense of foreboding, building suspense and mystery. Click and Collect from your local Waterstones or get FREE UK delivery on orders over £25. But both men make a deep impression on 20-year-old Astrid Hekne, a descendant of the conjoined twins who generations before gave the bells their name – and who would weave pictures, “their four arms flying”, of the dreaded Skråpånatta or Judgment Day. A young headstrong woman, Astrid Hekne, feels a deep inner urge to see and experience life and knowledge beyond her tiny remote village of Butangen as she turns down local suitors for her hand. The new pastor, Kai Schweigaard, wants a new church for his community and to raise the necessary money he decides to sell the old stave church to Germany for re-erection in Dresden. Attention to the social conditions of the times is meticulous. The Bell in the Lake begins with a short chapter recounting the origin of a pair of bells -- the 'Sister Bells' (so also the Norwegian title of the novel) -- that ring for centuries in a church deep in rural Norway, in Butangen. Thoroughly enjoyable novel set in Norway in the 1880s. In 2015, Lars Mytting’s nonfiction handbook Norwegian Wood ignited in the British a love of chopping and stacking wood; his follow-up novel, The Sixteen Trees of the Somme, cemented his reputation. The Bell in the Lake - Lars Mytting. Looking forward to the rest of the Trilogy! 1: The Times Historical Fiction Book of the Month (Sister Bells Trilogy 1) by Mytting, Lars, Dawkin, Deborah (ISBN: 9780857059390) from Amazon's Book Store. Buy The Bell in the Lake: The Sister Bells Trilogy Vol. This book is not yet featured on Listopia. a beautiful example of modern Norwegian folklore" GUARDIANTranslated from the Norwegian by Deborah Dawkin. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of, Published If you are unfamiliar with stave churches of Norway, go Google right away. The local stave church is about to be sold to raise money for the nee church. Your recently viewed items and featured recommendations, Select the department you want to search in. The church was completed in 1170. Please try your request again later. All rights reserved. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. This shopping feature will continue to load items when the Enter key is pressed. © 2020 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. the bell in the lake by Lars Mytting translated by Deborah Dawkin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 29, 2020 In a small Norwegian village, an ancient church is demolished. Set in a small remote poor farming community in Butangen in the frozen far north of Norway around 1880, The Bell in the Lake is the first book of a proposed trilogy that it would appear is going to develop into a grand family saga. Not so Astrid Hekne, a spirited young girl who dreams of ‘more’, but isn’t sure how to get what she dreams of: travelling beyond her small village, and most of all avoiding the fate of all young women there: becoming a wife and bearing children to carry on the burdensome toil of farming. "Rich, sinuous prose . Not only did I spend some childhood years in Decorah, IA (google Norwegian and Decorah together, or even Vesterheim if you are an American interested in Norwegian heritage) but I’m about 25% Norwegian myself. This book is a solid 4.25 stars - but it’s not a piece of historic fiction that everyone would enjoy. It all centers around a small town and a stave church, and if you don't know what a stave church is - look it up quick! “Something good was waiting for her somewhere in the world. Apparently this is the first of a translated trilogy by Norwegian author, Lars Mytting, yet this marvellous historical novel already feels epic in scope, richly descriptive and so detailed when it comes to the Stave churches and their history. It also analyses reviews to verify trustworthiness. Thoroughly enjoyable novel set in Norway in the 1880s. The church was completed. The Bell in the Lake: The Sister Bells Trilogy Vol. Lars Mytting is a captivating storyteller. This is a worthy second novel to his first fiction, '16 Trees of the Somme'. E-mail after purchase. A young peasant girl, Astrid catches his eye. Free UK p&p on … Astrid has never met anyone like him; he seems so different, so sensitive. . Schweigaard knows that the church is uncomfortable and cold, and no longer meets the needs of his parishioners. You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition. Butangen is described as being “twenty years behind its neighbouring villages, which were thirty years behind Norway’s towns and cities, which were fifty years behind the rest of Europe”. The first instalment in a planned trilogy, The Bell in the Lake is set in 1880 on a barren Norwegian peninsula and weaves local legends with stories of a community on the brink of modernisation. Butangen’s richest possession is an 700-year old wooden stave church, decorated with motifs which harken back to pagan beliefs. On their death, their father commissioned the production of two bells for the local stave church. It reached #1 in Norway, but it’s a different culture there, one that I know a little bit about. His writing is so rich. A book to immerses me in other lands and people. . Lars Mytting’s The Bell in the Lake, is the first instalment in a projected trilogy, now available in an English translation by Deborah Dawkin.