Kristin Lavransdatter

Loved it! The Norwegian epic - written by Undset in 1920 and for which she received the Nobel price in 1928 - about the life of Kristin Lavransdatter, a kind and devout yet headstrong woman living in 14th century Norway. The 1100+ pages tell the saga of Kristin's life from early childhood to forbidden loves to marriage and motherhood to old age and up until her death. The thread running through is how our heroine and those surrounding her grapple with sin in a society that is deeply Christian and strict in its established morals and rule-sets.

The intertwining of Kristin's path with Erlend makes for the perfect epic romance, of two people who can't live with nor without each other. They are constantly battling and condemning each other, despite being eternally devoted to each other, yet in old age, when Kristin looks back at her life filled with joy and sorrow and also self-inflicted suffering, she wouldn't change a thing about it.

The book pulled me in immediately, as its storytelling has a magical gentleness to it, with its descriptions of nature and the simplicity of life, and its protagonists pleasure and joy in family and motherhood and small moments. It is a heavy volume, and it takes a while to get through it, but now that I finished, I almost wish I could begin again.