Growth of the Soil
by Knut Hamsun
published
September 25th 2007
(first published 1917)
by Penguin Classics
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binding
Paperback, 352 pages
literary awards
Nobel Prize for Literature 1920
isbn
0143105108
(isbn13: 9780143105107)
description
The epic novel of man and nature that won its author the Nobel Prize in Literature—the first new English translation since the novel's original publication ninety years ago ...more
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 449)
Read in June, 2008
recommends it for:
readers
The amazing part of this book is its simplicity. I don't often use the term 'yarn' seriously but that's what this story is, starting with one small end and raveling up into a large ball that seems to signify the globe. It begins in the slow and steady manner that Isak begins to till the soil, putting down roots with Inger, his loyal woman, disfigured from birth by a harelip. From there, the plot becomes more complicated as their lives and relationships increase in complexity. The reader senses t...more
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Read in May, 2006
Despite the fact that this book won Hamsun a Nobel Prize in Literature, it is often Hamsun's most misunderstood novel. Not much seems to happen in the 400+ pages of Isak (a mysterious, near god-like figure) building his farm. Even when things do happen, Hamsun's writing is surprisingly calm despite the possibility of disaster. What I believe it comes down to is this: This books is not so much about Isak changing as it is about the "modern world" encroaching on Isak's life. From the...more
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Read in May, 2008
The author demonstrates his opinion that modern, city, business types like Brede, Aaronson, and Isak's son, Eleseus, and are inferior to farmers. The city types are basically, lazy, greedy, and short-sighted. The farmers are hard working and living side by side with nature, helpful to each other, and not interested in trying to make a profit at another's expense. He classifies the business types as "the Jew and the yankee," and is clearly anti-american and an antisemite at the time h...more
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Read in June, 1986
When I was growing up, collections for a book resale took place in our garage. People would just leave boxes of books on our doorstep. I was always the first one to go through the boxes and see what might be interesting. You may be figuring out that I adore books.
This book was different from anything I'd ever found. A teenager in a small town in the midwest. There were things underlined in this book which, made it even more interesting. I always wonder what caused a person to underline a pa...more
This book was different from anything I'd ever found. A teenager in a small town in the midwest. There were things underlined in this book which, made it even more interesting. I always wonder what caused a person to underline a pa...more
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Read in December, 2007
recommended to John by:
karolina.Beautiful book, that is so full of living and real experiences. I fully appreciate finding this in a bookstore in vancouver. Growth of the Soil is an interesting narrative and meditation on the idea of the country. Specifically Norwegian country life. It includes the good and bad, the hopeful and funny. All the in betweens that make the characters especially Isak so fresh and nice sounding.
I can not give enough respect to the Author Knut Hamsun. I really enjoyed this book.
I recommend ...more
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2 comments
Read in January, 1970
A book of profound and epic scope, it is a story of a lonely man who with his own hands builds a house, a family and ultimately a whole township in the bleak north of Norway...it is a story of the essence of man, of simplicity and stubbornness in the face of nature's ravages, it is a story of the essential character of man himself.
When I see a potter lovingly shape a bowl out of earth, a tiller in a lonely field who leaves behind an endless track on the soil, or a jogger on his lonesome ques...more
When I see a potter lovingly shape a bowl out of earth, a tiller in a lonely field who leaves behind an endless track on the soil, or a jogger on his lonesome ques...more
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Read in March, 2008
An engaging read, and an interesting style, because of its simplicity. It did leave me wondering, though, about what might have been lost in translation. Also, while the plain language seemed to fit around the central character Isak, it falls short in describing the actions/sentiments of other characters (something similar to my feeling about most of the Philip Roth novels I've read). In the end the moralizing gets pretty heavy-handed, but overall this was an enjoyable read.
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Read in March, 2008
I'm not really sure what to say about this book, except that it was strangely compelling. The pace is both slow and fast, endlesssly describing the minute details of life on the farm while also glossing over the span of a year in a paragraph. There's no question that the story is a metaphor for industrialization and urbanization, which would normally put me off, but, as I say, I didn't want to put it down.
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Read in January, 2006
I enjoyed the stark simplicity of the landscape the author draws for the reader. This is a rags to riches story set in the harsh realities of Northern Europe. I imagine the protagonist to be an ogre of a man, but very tender and loving as well. This book made me want to travel back in time to a simpler and harder sort of life.
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Read in June, 2008
recommended to Pam by:
bookstore
Also set in Norway and written in the 1917s this gives the story of first settlement in a very rural area. It won the Nobel Prize for Literature and I would recommend it. Very interesting to read something published 90 years ago and then translated from Norwegian to English. Writing has definitely changed.
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Read in July, 2008
The unparalleled history of the family of Isak - a sublime experience, with moments of eminence only to be recognized in portions of Walt Whitman's Song of Myself. Hamsun is a complete master and I love this book freely and without reservation.
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recommends it for:
Everyone
The first time I finished this book I purchased five more copies and gave them to my closest friends. The straightforward story telling was intoxicating. I found myself feeling nostalgic for a time and place that I never experienced.
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Read in October, 2004
Picked this book up at the immortal City Lights books in SF, CA. After Hunger, this is Knut's masterpiece. One of the best and most fully realized aggrarian(did i spell that correctly?) novels...EVAH.
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in May, 2007
A Norwegian born author writing about late 19th century/early 20th century Norwegian life. A dry English translation, but a good look at the typical life of the traditional Norwegian.
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This was an incredible book. I had two days off work and read the entire thing, (which is quite a feat at 700+ pages.) I found it captivating, beautiful, and true.
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ayah. herregud.
roughly translated: uff da.
roughly translated: "dang".
reading this book was like coming home. these are my people!
roughly translated: uff da.
roughly translated: "dang".
reading this book was like coming home. these are my people!
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recommends it for:
everyone
If you haven't read this book before it is mandatory that you put it on your to read list. It is a classic and beloved by all who open it's pages!
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1 comments
unimpeachable writerly gifts. A seamless concoction. Which culminates in an affable, yet solemn philosophy that oozes obsolescence.
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Dreadfully disappointing after reading _Hunger._ Noble peasants betrayed by conniving urbanites. Beware civilization and education!
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Second favorite Hamsun book. The felling, the toiling, the nourishing crops...why is this so pleasant to read about?
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