Giants in the Earth - Read Jim Fulner

Paperback, 560 pages

English language

Published Aug. 1, 1999 by Harper Perennial Modern Classics.

ISBN:: 978-0-06-093193-3

First published in English in 1927, Giants in the Earth is the Norwegian novel by Norwegian-American author Ole Edvart Rølvaag, which relates the struggles of a group of Norwegian immigrants to the great plains of America in the 1870s. A Norwegian fisherman, Per Hansa convinces his wife Beret to move with their three children to the Dakota Territory in order to build a homestead on the American frontier. Accompanied by several other Norwegian immigrants, Per Hansa is excited by the opportunity to build a life for himself in this new land while his wife longs for her homeland. What follows is a series of struggles and misfortunes which ultimately prove to be tragic for Hansa. Giants in the Earth is the classic story of the pioneering spirit of America and the American dream, which brought so many European immigrants to America during the 19th century, and the often harsh realities …

First published in English in 1927, Giants in the Earth is the Norwegian novel by Norwegian-American author Ole Edvart Rølvaag, which relates the struggles of a group of Norwegian immigrants to the great plains of America in the 1870s. A Norwegian fisherman, Per Hansa convinces his wife Beret to move with their three children to the Dakota Territory in order to build a homestead on the American frontier. Accompanied by several other Norwegian immigrants, Per Hansa is excited by the opportunity to build a life for himself in this new land while his wife longs for her homeland. What follows is a series of struggles and misfortunes which ultimately prove to be tragic for Hansa. Giants in the Earth is the classic story of the pioneering spirit of America and the American dream, which brought so many European immigrants to America during the 19th century, and the often harsh realities that they faced when they arrived.

1 edition

Jim Fulner reviewed Giants in the Earth by O. E. Rølvaag

4 stars

I read this book because my aunt told me it was my grandfather's favorite book. It had been described as an adult version of little house on the prairie, and I think that's a fine description. Originally written in Norwegian Rolvaag writes in a very attractive manner quite different from his contemporaries. He writes a lot more how people talk a lot less of ":We need to harvest the potatoes,' said Per Hands" and a lot more "Per Hands said they needed to harvest the potatoes" sometimes it took 20 pages to describe events of an hour and sometimes 6 years passed in two paragraphs. I really fell in love with these characters and their struggle to make it on the edge of the prairie in North Dakota. I particularly felt for Beret the mentally ill wife of our PROTAGONIST Per Hansa, thought they didn't call he mentally ill back …

I read this book because my aunt told me it was my grandfather's favorite book. It had been described as an adult version of little house on the prairie, and I think that's a fine description. Originally written in Norwegian Rolvaag writes in a very attractive manner quite different from his contemporaries. He writes a lot more how people talk a lot less of ":We need to harvest the potatoes,' said Per Hands" and a lot more "Per Hands said they needed to harvest the potatoes" sometimes it took 20 pages to describe events of an hour and sometimes 6 years passed in two paragraphs. I really fell in love with these characters and their struggle to make it on the edge of the prairie in North Dakota. I particularly felt for Beret the mentally ill wife of our PROTAGONIST Per Hansa, thought they didn't call he mentally ill back then. My biggest disappointment was the ending. Only further increased the predjudice that Norwegians can never be happy and have to find a way to be depressed. I also would have preferred if I had read the original first edition published as two separate books, the nearly 600 page omnibus became a bit unruly.

Subjects

Norwegian Novel And Short Story
Norwegians -- United States -- Fiction
Farm life -- Fiction
Frontier and pioneer life -- South Dakota -- Fiction
Characters and characteristics -- Fiction
Marital conflict -- Fiction
South Dakota -- History -- 19th century -- Fiction