Read Around Europe Challenge
Read at least one book by an author from each country in Europe.
Best books from Europe (4406)
691.
The Reconstruction by Rein Raud EN
EstoniaDescription:
For five years, Enn Padrik has postponed the investigation into the apparently religiously inspired suicide of his daughter and her friends at a commune near Viljandi, but now he cannot do it any longer. He has to travel all over Estonia and even to France to talk to those who might remember anything relevant. Some of these people seem to have been waiting for him, others refuse to talk. And little by little, a bigger and quite unexpected picture starts to emerge. From the late 1970s through 2011, the book spans the lives of two generations, the changes in the world at large and the Estonian s... continue
692.
Secret Passages in a Hillside Town by Pasi Ilmari Jääskeläinen EN
FinlandDescription:
An atmospheric love story with a twist by the author of The Rabbit Back Literature Society. In a small hillside town, Olli Suominen - publisher and discontented husband - is constantly losing umbrellas. He has also joined a film club. And Greta, an old flame, has added him on Facebook. As his life becomes more and more entangled with Greta's, and his wife and son are dragged into the aftermath of this teenage romance, Olli is forced to make a horrible choice. But does he really want to know what the secret passages are? Can he be sure that Greta is who she seems to be? And what actually happen... continue
693.
The Beggar and the Hare by Tuomas Kyro EN
Description:
Vatanescu, a young Romanian construction worker, wants a future for himself and a pair of football boots for his son. So off he goes to a cold, dark country to beg. He knows a little about Finland from the novels of Arto Paasilinna, but he has no idea what he is letting himself in for and soon he is kneeling on the asphalt in Helsinki. The wretchedness of living on the streets is lifted when he and his fellow beggars throw a sumptuous feast from the contents of a dumpster. However, their employer, the Russian human trafficker Jegor Kugar, profoundly disapproves of this bacchanal. A conflict en... continue
694.
My First Murder by Leena Lehtolainen EN
Description:
After a student choir's practice session at a Helsinki villa turns deadly, Detective Maria Kallio finds herself in the middle of the action -- and her first murder case. Someone in the group wanted playboy Tommi Peltonen dead, but that's one song these suspects refuse to sing. Behind the choir's jovial facade lies bitter passion, and the victim's seemingly perfect life hid a host of sins that made him a target of almost everyone in the villa. As a young female -- and a redhead to boot -- Maria knows that solving this case will help her overcome her perceived shortcoming in the eyes of her coll... continue
695.
696.
Purge by Sofi Oksanen EN
Description:
A blowfly. Unusually large, loud, and eager to lay its eggs. It was lying in wait to get into the kitchen, rubbing its wings and feet against the curtain as if preparing to feast. It was after meat, nothing else but meat. Deep in an overgrown Estonian forest, two women, one young, one old, are hiding. Zara, a murderer and a victim of sex-trafficking, is on the run from brutal captors. Aliide, a communist sympathizer and a blood traitor, has endured a life of abuse and the country's brutal Soviet years. Their survival now depends on exposing the one thing that kept them hidden... the truth.
697.
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson EN
Description:
An elderly artist and her six-year-old grand-daughter while away a summer together on a tiny island in the gulf of Finland. As the two learn to adjust to each other's fears, whims and yearnings, a fierce yet understated love emerges - one that encompasses not only the summer inhabitants but the very island itself.Written in a clear, unsentimental style, full of brusque humour, and wisdom, The Summer Book is a profoundly life-affirming story.Tove Janssoncaptured much of her own life and spirit in the book, which was her favourite of her adult novels. This new edition, with a Foreword by Esther ... continue
698.
Description:
'Fair Play' portrays a love between two older women, a writer and artist, as they work side-by-side in their Helsinki studios, travel together and share summers on a remote island.
699.
Description:
Elsa is dying. Her husband, Martti, and daughter Eleonoora are struggling to accept the crushing thought that they are soon to lose her. As Elsa becomes ever more fragile, Eleonoora’s childhood memories are slipping away. Meanwhile, Eleonoora’s daughter Anna spends her time pondering the fates of passersby. For her the world is full of stories. But the story that will change her forever is the one about Eeva, her mother’s nanny, whom her grandparents have been silent about for years. Eeva’s forgotten story, which Anna first learns of when she discovers an old dress of Eeva’s, is finally reveal... continue
700.
Description:
In the summer of 1947, a young priest, Petter, his wife and baby daughter, arrive by mail boat at a tiny island. They are to take over its drafty homestead from where Petter is to minister to the scattered community. In this evocative tale, Ulla-Lena Lundberg draws us into the minutiae of an austere yet purposeful life where the demands of self-sufficiency - cows to milk and sheep to graze - are tempered by the kindness of neighbours. With each season, the family's love of the island grows and when the winter brings ice a new and tentative link is created. Told through the eyes of Petter, the ... continue