A slow but immersive historical novel with strong writing and deep themes regarding womanhood, faith, and romantic love. The leisurely pace is livened up with strangely compelling domestic dramas. ( )

Oh, Kristin. You really did make all the wrong choices in life, didn't you?Probably the best part about this book for me was the focus on the relationship between Kristin and her father. The love between them was so intense; everything Lavrans did was so clearly for Kristin's benefit, but she could not bring the family honor. Still pretty upset about how things went down despite reading this half a year ago, but deep down I can't find it in me to blame Kristin. She was a child really, and Erlend...Well let's just say this wasn't Erlend's first rodeo. Undset is a master at expressing the emotions, desires and regrets of her characters. Though this one was truly heartbreaking, I think I'm going to have to read the sequel. ( )

"I've done many things that I thought I would never dare to do because they were sins. But I didn't realize then that the consequence of sin is that you have to trample on other people."

On the surface this story can seem a bit melodramatic, but it's really a very deep book. It's beautifully written, but it's heartbreaking as well. The descriptions are on point. It follows Kristin from a child to her wedding to Erland. I love the Catholicism of it. This culture of Medieval Norway is very Catholic, but still steeped in paganism. They praise God, yet utter curses. Pray to the Saints, but believe in Fae. They believe in trusting God's will for them, but they are also superstitious. Many priests are good, but Undset does not hide the fact that there are evil ones as well, and even the good ones are shown to have sinned and have flaws. The people do not expect them to be perfect. They realize that they are human. This is the culture she grows up in. She is seduced by a much older man, when she is a teenager, who had been excommunicated for adultery, and still has his mistress live with him off and on. This sin causes great trouble in her life. As soon as she gave into him she felt she was his possession, and not in an entirely romantic way. She is passionate about him, but she also feels trapped. It takes her peace away, leads to more sin, and she must struggle with her guilt and the consequences. She still wants to be right with God and the Church, but she wants Erland, and she has her pride. She lies, and hides her sins, and prolongs them until she gets her way. She goes about it backwards. Instead of confessing, and doing things above board first, and then getting married to Erland. She hides, and works sneakily, she wants to marry him first and then deal with her sin, but it festers, and more people are hurt in the process. There is so much going on in this novel, and so many ways to look at it, but I think it's primarily about the struggle between sin and grace, hatred and love, forgiveness and resentment. This book ends on her and Erland's wedding night, but there is a sense if foreboding that their marriage will not be a happy one. I will be reading book 2 for my next category.

"I've done many things that I thought I would never dare to do because they were sins. But I didn't realize then that the consequence of sin is that you have to trample on other people."


CAWPILE Rating:

C- 9

A- 10

W- 8

P- 7

I- 9

L- 9

E- 9

8.7 = ⭐⭐⭐⭐

#backtotheclassics (classic by a woman author)
#mmdchallenge (three books by the same author) ( )

This terrific hundred year old novel set in the 14th century. translated from the original Norwegian was a revelation. I loved reading this book and will read others by Sigrid Undset. ( )

I found the book relatively light on life-pain, but on the other hand, it’s quite careful too, so it preserves carefully what material it does use. It may be just a little observational comedy, but in a way it is something more too.

I think it’s true what the monk says, that people only give God what they consider broken. And I go further and say, for some crazy reason, it can’t be any other way on this earth. I know it’s that way for me. When I ruled the world, I had no need of God. ‘Seas would rise when I gave the word’—although that’s not *quite* a good song if you actually get all the words, I guess because the seas really do rise when Chris Martin gives the word, and he can’t imagine it any other way; he can’t imagine himself healed, and free of himself. I think it was Aldous Huxley who said, “‘Thy kingdom come’, means ‘my kingdom go’.” It’s like that for me now. I am broken, so I have given Him myself.

…. People think about the Middle Ages: there was Religion. You had to follow, The Rules! But the reality is more mixed. There were rules, but the rules were sometimes relaxed for some people, and anyway people often got away with breaking the dreaded rules, you know.

Some people lived to be pious, some people guarded their money, and some people got drunk when nobody was looking (who cared).

…. “Yes, I see that you’re smiling, Kristin. But don’t you realize how badly things stand with you now? For you would rather hear about other people’s frailties than about the deeds of decent people, which might serve as an example for you.”
~ on the state of Fox News during the Middle Ages ^^

…. Of course, I’m more like the approval-seeking nun.

Oh, I see why you bother with all this shit. You ought to be recognized! All hail King Janemma, the Recognized One!

I was proud of my virtue like sinners are proud of their sin…. I thought I was cutting God a deal.

Because wow, you ask God to work on your character defects, and the Bastard goes to work like you asked him to! How rude! How provoking!

Rumi Jr: To the Most-Rude, the Most-Provoking!

…. If it were anyone else, it would be boring, but if it were anyone else, I wouldn’t approve of it.

…. How strange the normal person’s life must be, to drift from little sin to little sin, and never to feel a choice between real virtue and terrible vice. To gossip about, or be gossiped about. To a bird like me they are like the strange life of the ocean depths, the Mariana Trench; they are like foreigners—how can they not know that their speech is strange? How can they understand their life?

…. However, (although this is the speaker and not Kristin herself), I admire the ability to pay such close attention to nature and simple things; perhaps I am only halfway between Kristin and the speaker, and not the speaker herself.