Welcome to the new season of English Book Club!
The first meeting of this fall takes place on 22nd of August at 2pm in Sello library, upstairs in the Cultural space. For the first meeting we’ll be reading Purge by Sofi Oksanen. Come and join the flourishing conversation and have a cup of tea. Don’t worry if your English isn’t perfect – neither is ours! You can pick up the book of the month from the information desk on the second floor in Sello library.
Purge is a historical novel written by Sofi Oksanen, published in 2008 in Finnish. It is set in Estonia and covers years from 1930s to 1990s. The years hold many significant events in Estonia’s history, such as World War II, the collapse of Soviet Union and the re-independence of Estonia in 1991. It’s a story of two women whose paths cross. The themes of the novel are for example sexual violence and nationalism.
Sofi Oksanen is an award winning author, who received the respected Finlandia-prize for Purge in 2008. She is an active voice in Finnish literary scene, who does not fear bringing up taboo subjects, such as violence against women and the human rights violations by Soviet Union in Estonia during the occupation, which ended when Estonia gained independence.
Sofi Oksanen was born in 1977 in Finland. Her mother is Estonian.
Review of Purge in the Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/aug/21/purge-sofi-oksanen
Sello library is located in Leppävaara, Espoo in Sello shopping centre.
For more details you can contact tatu.helander[at]espoo .fi .