The Winter War

THE SCANDINAVIAN GOOD LIFE?

Philip Teir’s first novel, translated by Tiina Nunnally, is a winter’s tale set in a mild Finland and an even more temperate England. The novel describes a family struggling with identity during the winter of 2011–2012 at the time of the Occupy London protests at St Paul’s Cathedral. The story revolves around the family members, their needs, interactions, and relationships.

Max is a sociology professor turning 60 and trying to write a book on his hero, the late Edvard Westermarck, also a sociologist. His wife Katrina, increasingly unhappy, describes their marriage as a ‘highly functional totalitarian state’ without many options other than keeping to oneself. Eva, their youngest daughter, is studying art in London, and Helen, their eldest has a husband Christian and two children, Amanda and Lukas.

When Max has an interview about Edvard Westermarck with an ambitious attractive former student-turned journalist, this leads to the inevitable conclusion of the book and his marriage. Eva is having a relationship with her art lecturer, Malik, but Russ, a fellow student is also in love with her.

The setting and style are more minimalist and intimate than grand or demonstrative; the wars are gentle skirmishes and the winter a light snowfall; these are not the majestic landscapes evoked by Sibelius’ Finlandia or the great Scandinavian battles of the Napoleonic Wars. From a medical perspective we see the effect of bipolar disorder on behaviour and the use of yoga as prophylaxis for premature ejaculation. There are also some comical touches from the children and animals in the story. Blixten, the grandchildren’s hamster ends up in the freezer. The family dog, also named Edvard, often appears in the action from nowhere. Amanda manages to provoke Max into losing his temper.

Although Teir’s novel does not compare with Zadie Smith’s On Beauty in its depth of characterisation, intensity of plot, and tale of struggle in an academic family, he nevertheless manages to create a natural narrative and characters authentic enough for this to be a great read.