An excellent ending and an epilogue to the story of the heroine of this trilogy. In this, our heroine has reached the last part of her life where she is requested to leave things to the new generation, but her character makes it difficult for her to let go of control and this brings her into conflict with her family. However, some tragic events, not unexpected at the time, make her understand and thus do what she must and her devotion to religion comes once again to show her the right path. All this happens in this book with the author giving us another realistic look at Scandinavian society, just before the black death disaster, showing us the cruelty and passions but also the sensitivity of the people of the time, especially the protagonist who I am sure is one of the most special literary characters. So I leave this excellent trio of books with the best impressions, this is a real gem of literature.

Ένα εξαιρετικό τελείωμα και ένας επίλογος στην ιστορία της ηρωίδας αυτής της τριλογίας. Σε αυτό η ηρωίδα μας έχει φτάσει στο τελευταίο μέρος της ζωής της όπου καλείται να αφήσει τα πράγματα στην νέα γενιά, ο χαρακτήρας της όμως την δυσκολεύει να αφήσει τον έλεγχο και αυτό την φέρνει σε σύγκρουση με την οικογένειά της. Κάποια τραγικά γεγονότα όμως, όχι μη αναμενόμενα εκείνη την εποχή, την κάνουν να καταλάβει και έτσι να κάνει αυτό που πρέπει και η αφοσίωση της στη θρησκεία έρχεται για άλλη μία φορά να της δείξει το σωστό δρόμο. Αυτά πάνω-κάτω γίνονται σε αυτό το βιβλίο με τη συγγραφέα να μας δίνει άλλη μία ρεαλιστική ματιά στην σκανδιναβική κοινωνία, λίγο πριν από την καταστροφή του μαύρου θανάτου, δείχνοντάς μας την σκληρότητα και τα πάθη αλλά και την ευαισθησία των ανθρώπων της εποχής, ειδικά της πρωταγωνίστριας που είμαι σίγουρος ότι είναι ένας από πιο ιδιαίτερους λογοτεχνικούς χαρακτήρες. Έτσι αφήνω αυτή την εξαιρετική τριάδα βιβλίων με τις καλύτερες εντυπώσεις, πρόκειται για ένα πραγματικό διαμάντι της λογοτεχνίας.

What a wonderful journey this trilogy has been. I had my doubts about the third book given that "The Cross" is the title. Set in the early medieval world; before the Reformation, the Renaissance, and, of course, feminism and secularism, I was fully prepared to be turned off by getting to a Nunnery.
Much to my surprise and delight, I was so completely pulled into the mindset, time, and place of Kristin Lavrensdatter that I not only understood the arch of her character intellectually, but was also profoundly moved by it. I have very rarely had a piece of literature actually take my breath away. The first time was when, as a girl, I came to the end of Steinbeck's "Grapes of Wrath." It could not have happened again, as it did with this book withou tmy having read the full thousand and sixty plus pages of the trilogy as one piece.
This complicated and powerful epic story of a woman's full life took me into a medieval world very distant from mine in both time and substance. On the emotional level, however, her life was much like my own. Here in the last book, Kristin loses her central place in her family and on her estates, yet, the last stages of her life are as profound and meaningful as what came before. There are delights, surprises, and growth as she endures to the end.

I have no idea how to summarize my thoughts on this series. I read these books on a recommendation along with an evangelizing article from Slate that compared them to the Neapolitan Novels, which I loved dearly.

I see why the two were compared, as Kristin Lavransdatter contains the same mysterious propulsive energy of Elena Ferrante's masterworks. The two have very different aims, settings, and writing styles though.

Kristin Lavransdatter constantly surprised me - each novel plunged deeper into headier topics, beginning with a childlike idyll, a somewhat conventional (in structure, not writing) middle chapter of a bildungsroman, culminating in a final novel that becomes something else entirely. I don't really know how to describe what that is, really. It's symphonic. All the threads that have been present throughout the novels reinforce the power of the narrative, and the ending of each of those threads becomes progressively more and more powerful until you reach the harrowing final chapter of that final book.

Perhaps it's a maudlin comparison, but when I was 19, I started obsessively watched Six Feet Under in a few short weeks. The show became the entirety of my internal life, all of the scenes became the only metaphors I would reach for. Then the show reached what was, at least to me at the time, as powerful and suffocating a conclusion as I've ever encountered in art. These book had a similar effect on me. You should read them!

I liked this last book of the trilogy best. Kristin’s marital life, her protective love for her sons as well as her constant spiritual struggling, spiced up with dramatic turns, is beautifully narrated. I’m so glad I finally read this epic trilogy!

“After you had a child yourself, Kristin, I thought you would understand,” her mother had once said. Now she realized that her mother’s heart had been deeply etched with memories of her daughter, memories of her thoughts about the child from before she was born and from all the years the child could not remember, memories or fears and hopes and dreams that children would never know had been dreamed on their behalf, before it was their own turn to fear and hope and dream in secret.”

4.5 Stars

The trilogy is complete. Incredibly good read!

The best hardest book to read. I don't know how Sigrid Undset does it, but she makes you love all the flawed characters. They mess up — their contrition is sometimes overmuch, sometimes insufficient. I ached over Kristin's sorrows regarding her husband and sons, while wanting to shake her for her pious stubborn hard-heartedness, her pride in not verbally reproaching her husband as her body spoke the reproaches silently.

She wished she could forget her sorrows and be gentle and grateful, fearing and loving God as her father had done. She remembered her father had said that the person who recalls his sins with a humble spirit and bows before the cross of the Lord need never bow his head beneath any earthly unhappiness or injustice.

Sigrid Undset's nature writing is a little-noted aspect of these books. Clouds, grass, rivers, forests are bits of the mosaic of medieval life that Undset crafts. And these sections bring calm and beauty. I wish the younger me had started a notebook solely devoted to descriptions of milking a cow. Kristin's time in the cowshed would be included.

Another tiny delight was Kristin remembering her father's vast knowledge of every patch of his land. It dovetailed with Joel Salatin's and Wendell Berry's vision.

The whole epic ends with a meal shared by the priest and a family relative. I think a meal is the best way to end a book. (That could be another dedicated journal: Stories That End in Meals!) It's a type of communion.

Kristin's children mature and her circumstances alter significantly. She endures many losses as she grapples with her fall from grace. Her reckless husband, Erlend, narrowly escapes death after his treasonous acts against the king, owing his survival to the intervention of Simon, Kristin’s former betrothed. To appease the king, Erland and Kristin lose their estate and prestige, forced to return to inferior land with their seven sons.

As Kristin ages, she experiences the deaths of many loved ones, including some very close to her. She contends with Erlend until the end, left with a sense of regret for not appreciating him more. As her world shrinks, she becomes an old lady whose values are deemed outdated. She retreats to a smaller world and focuses on her relationship with God. The novel's threads converge, culminating in a powerful and harrowing final chapter.

The historical Norwegians confront religious guilt, exile, death, sickness, insanity, imprisonment, and obsession. The novel subtly touches on the intricacies of religious practice and the impact of Christianity on 14th-century Norway. It serves as a fitting conclusion to a remarkable trilogy, unveiling the complexities of maternal love and the conflicts that arise as children forge their own identities. It also explores the influence of Christianity on a world still emerging from paganism and the significance of the Church's teachings during the Black Plague.

After taking almost two years to read the first books in the Kristin Lavransdatter trilogy, I read the third book, The Cross, in less than a week back in January! I very intentionally waited until the first of the year so it would count for the Classics Challenge. I read it so quickly that I wondered if it was as long as the others, but it would have been 366 pages in paperback compared to 305 for The Wreath and 402 for The Wife. I enjoyed the Tiina Nunnally translation on the Kindle version.

I don’t feel that I can say anything about the third book in this trilogy without massive spoilers, so suffice it to say I highly recommend reading Kristin Lavransdatter. Although the story is told chronologically, the reader learns details of earlier times through Kristin’s recollections. These added details shifted my impressions of Kristin and made me reevaluate her character throughout the final book. I despised Kristin in the first book, tolerated her in the second, and came to love her in the third. I hope I can also grow more love-able as I grow older!

Individually and even more so when taken as a whole, the Kristen Lavransdatter novels are breathtaking. The scope of the novels is unreal; by the end, I felt like I knew this woman inside and out even though she never stopped being a mystery to me. The author follows her life from late childhood to death in sometimes overwhelming detail. The writing is weighty and challenging; Undset dives into her time period flawlessly and doesn't wait for the reader to catch up. It's hugely rewarding in a way that beach lit can't even touch.

Through 1000+ pages I never really understood Kristen's devotion to Erlend, but I believed it completely. She hated him only a fraction less than she loved him, and it was a fascinating, if painful, thing to experience. I constantly ached for the ability to shake him until his head rattled; he poisoned everything and everyone around him.

Kristen's sons in turns left me cold and broke my heart. I loved Naakve for his name and poor Orm, the stepson, best of all. But I felt like there were so many children, it was hard to feel for them all; interestingly, I think this may have been on purpose since the author implies Kristen lost track of a few of them as well.

The most sympathetic character of the novels is undoubtedly Simon Darre. I was wrecked by Simon and he really develops into something wonderful in the final book. Of course you know that he's always loved Kristen, but the admitting of it is so horrible to watch. And Ramborg's quiet, seething envy and bitterness toward Kristen is heartbreaking. The Simon/Kristen/Ramborg triangle was definitely my favorite of the many, many story arcs.

Finally, I have to mention the religious thing. I was in awe of the way Undset captures the aura of Catholicism of the 13th century. It's on nearly every page, but it's seamless and fascinating; this aspect of the story alone is enough to distance it from modern life in a very fundamental way. It was so interesting to see the play between strict, practically-felt medieval Christian ideals expressed in the novels and the actual lives of the people she portrays.

So, if you didn't get it yet, I'm highly recommending this series. It's well worth the extra effort and time. Also, I understand that this translation by Tina Nunnally is much better and smoother than some previous efforts, so I am also recommending this edition in particular. Plus I think the covers are very pretty. Read these books!!

My fourth time reading this trilogy - it never loses its beauty to me.

I am in minority opinion on this classic because I did not love this third book in the trilogy or the trilogy as a whole. I am accustomed to not needing to like the protagonist in a novel, but reading over 1100 pages and not liking the main character is a lot to ask. I only liked Kristin somewhat in the first book but she was young and immature so she made bad choices which I made allowances for. In book 2, she was dealing with an impetuous and irresponsible husband and the stresses of many children so even though I liked her even a little less, I tried to give her some leeway.

In this final book, she was no longer a young wife and mother and was the mistress of her inherited family property. I kept thinking about how much I disliked Kristin now. She was frequently sulky and quiet around her husband and sons. Her husband, Erlend, was unsuited to running a farm, her sons were growing older and all but one were uninterested in running her farm, and they clearly were more keen to spend time with their father than with her. She seemed like a silent martyr regarding all the work she had to do because her Erlend was little help and her sons mostly helped grudgingly. I understand why all of this happened since Erlend lost his family lands, but Kristin never talked to him about how he felt losing his property or how hard it was for her to shoulder so much of the burden. She just made it clear how unhappy she was with him and seemed shocked when he left after she finally blew up. And finally she had her ideas about the best future for each of her sons and none of it panned out as she wanted. Actually none of her life panned out as she envisioned and finally near the end, she thought about her propensity for always wanting her own way. I found that ironic because she was frequently unhappy about Erlend and her sons wanting to do what they wanted, all the while reserving the same right for herself.

Surely she had never asked God for anything except that He should let her have her will. And every time she had been granted what she asked for --for the most part. Now here she sat with a contrite heart--not because she had sinned against God but because she was unhappy that she had been allowed to follow her will to the road's end.

My final gripe about Kristin is how much she took two of the men in her life for granted. She disappointed both her father and Simon Darre by choosing Erlend. She disgraced her father and Simon but they both treated her with such grace and forgiveness. While it is understandable that her father continued to treat her well, it is the mark of a wonderful man how Simon behaved to her. She cheated on Simon when they were betrothed but he treated her as a sister for the rest of his life. Simon and Lavrans were the two characters I liked most in this trilogy and they are the two Kristin needed the most and took for granted no matter how much they did for her. She knew that but she never stopped and I hated her for that..

Simon...and her father. They held on to their loyal love for her, even as she trampled on them for the sake of this man whom she no longer had the strength to endure.