Week 6, 2012
Joensuu, Finland

Here I write my very first book review. I want to learn to do this.
Book: Purge
Author:  Sofi Oksanen
Type of book:  Novel  (mix of crime and historical fiction)
Theme: Personal events on the life of two women at different periods of time
Thesis:  The interpretations of events on each ones’ life knitted with the personal aim and the influences of the society each one lives in.

The novel develops on the story of two characters: Zara and Aliide. Both stories are individual, but they  are also interlinked when one sees the big picture of both stories.  Zara’s story is based on the present  (around 1990s), she is a russian woman descendent of Estonian. Aliide’s story is based on the past, she is a estonian woman from the time of the second war.

The historical moment plays a role in each of the main character’s story. Each character has the pressure of the economical, social, historical and human challenges of her time, in addition to her personal limitations. Furthermore the psychology of the characters, showing their feelings of hope, shame, betrayal, guilt, denial are strongly describe along the novel, in concordance with their historical moment.

Very well writing, and the author (Sofi Oksanen)  lets us travel along different layers of time to follow the stories of both main characters. Invite us to think and to wonder about the characters and their time. It is mandatory to read all the book, any page can expose fundamental details to understand future or past sections.  Therefore, the book requires concentration.

I message between lines, that I have interpreted from the novel is: No all what you see is what it is, and there are a lot of stories behind each moment we live….. and most of those stories are unknown for us.  Additionally, all of us, in any period of time, have fears and we wish to be loved and accepted.

Purge - British Cover