8/20/2013

Of Quiet Walks and Wild Berries

Astrid and VeronikaAstrid and Veronika by Linda Olsson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Poignant and heartwarming, the novel sets you into a quiet mood, experiencing saudade in the middle of a heavy rainfall. The book opens with a cold winter welcome, it feels slow at first, but as you go along the story, you are slowly opening up - to the slow talks, to the longer sunshine, to the serense streams of the river bend, to the peaceful poems and prose, and to the sharings of the two women - of different generations, but having the same broken past and dark secrets.

I learned about their stories of loss, of longing and of love. Some are of melancholic tone - but most of them cuts deep, you cannot help but shed a tear. And oh, TEARS!

What I learned about is how the old woman named Astrid told Veronika this:
"...Love comes to us with no forewarning, and once given to us it can never be taken away."

This is for us to remember that love is a gift, and may it come in such a quiet fashion, it will remain in our hearts forever.



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