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Liked It “Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name, tells the haunting story of Clarissa Iverton's discovery that her recently-deceased father was not the man whose name appears on her birth certificate, and her subsequent search for her biological father in Lapland. It is here that she becomes acquainted...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It “I found the main character irritating, the writing choppy, and no real cohesive plot. This writer seems sophomoric at best, and could use a good editor.” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“Meh”
Toranse wrote this review 14 hours ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name, tells the haunting story of Clarissa Iverton's discovery that her recently-deceased father was not the man whose name appears on her birth certificate, and her subsequent search for her biological father in Lapland. It is here that she becomes acquainted with indigenous people known as the Sami, and comes to term with the past of her mother, who abandons her when she is fourteen. When Clarissa plans to meet her mother at the store and is fifteen minutes late, she is informed by the woman at the counter that her mother has left because she "got tired of waiting." Vida's prose is simple and matter-of-fact as her narrator grapples with issues of identity, writing that "When you believe anyone could be your mother, you begin to believe anyone could be your brother, your lover, your son." Her distanced perspective captures perfectly the sense of loss and anger plaguing the narrator, and her detachment not only to her home but also to the people around her. She writes, "Disappearing is nothing. I learned this from my mother," a line which not only echoes her willingness to take this journey without so much as notifying anyone of where she will be, but also reflects the narrator's eventual coming to terms with her mother's disappearance. Sprinkled throughout this novel are also vivid descriptions ("Outside my window, dusk was already settling in like a bruise") and dry wit to offset the darker moments. Toward the beginning of the novel when Clarissa is in New York and in a fight with her fiancée, she blocks her bedroom door with her hamper and when he asks her about it, she responds, "To hamper you." What is perhaps most remarkable about this novel is Vida's ability to fully immerse her readers in the mystical world of Lapland as she shows us everything from reindeer herding to a hotel made entirely of ice. Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name is a moving page-turner that I enthusiastically recommend. ”
Book Lover wrote this review Saturday, April 4 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Clarissa is a rather unlikeable narrator at first, but if you can overlook her prickly personality, and allow yourself be drawn in by her haunting story, you will find yourself entranced. After her father's death Clarissa learns that he was not her biological father, and she sets off on a quest to find her parents - the man whose genes she shares and the mother who left her 14 years earlier. She travels from the U.S. to Lapland, the land of the reindeer herders called the Sami. The atmosphere and the landscape as Vida describes them have a surrealistic quality, but the inhabitants of these northern lands are very down-to-earth. The people she meets, including Henrik the reindeer herder and Anna Kristine, a traditional healer, transform the way she thinks about her life. Clarissa is at times tough - she can be cruel - and at other times vulnerable. I learned about the Sami way of life and the threats to it. This novel is a treat.”
Suzanne F wrote this review Saturday, January 24 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
0 of 65535 members found this review helpful“Lulled by the words of Vendela Vida I brought into the questioning and sometimes angry world of Clarissa. Her story reaffirmed that when we search for answers we cannot predict the outcome. Distinctive and captivating read.”
Anita S wrote this review Friday, August 15 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I highly recommend this book set in Lapland. One of the best books I've read in 2008.”
Molly (Restless Reader) wrote this review Saturday, September 6 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“A painful, beautiful novel.”
sfdcnj wrote this review Sunday, July 20 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“I found the main character irritating, the writing choppy, and no real cohesive plot. This writer seems sophomoric at best, and could use a good editor.”
badcat wrote this review Wednesday, July 9 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
0 of 1 members found this review helpful“Don't bother. Too many swear words. I stopped at page 5. Are ther any authors who can write intelligent novels without resorting to the crudest and most vulgar language? Yes, - JK Rowling, JRR Tolkien :)”
Vickie P wrote this review Tuesday, July 8 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“This was a nice read. I've never read anything and didn't know a thing about the native people or Lapland and now I want to learn more. The story kept me interested and I cared about what would happen to Clarissa, who is the central character.”
Michele C wrote this review Tuesday, June 24 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
