I am on sabbatical and that means I can spare some time to read for pleasure! I am not sure of reading books by Nobel Laureate Sigrid Undset is only pleasure. Her books feels like an education in feminist theory, history, geography, aesthetics, psychology, and literature. She is an amazing author! Start with the trilogy Kristin Lavransdatter if you have any interest at all. How she can write as such a knowledgeable Norwegian historian AND have her novels feels so contemporary regarding the "human conditions" is masterful, or mistrissful;>)

A brutal and unsentimental story of a woman who perseveres through great hardship, largely on her own, in a time when that was not widely accepted. This was written in the early 1900s, but is clearly grounded in the sagas of the Nordic people, in terms of both content and writing style. Undset crafts a wonderful tale of family, revenge and how encounters in our youth can shade our whole lives and change our and others paths with barely any forethought. I was worried that the Christian influence would lead to a warm ending, but this offers nothing of the sort, and the lead character stays true to her nature. Wonderfully written, very descriptive and austere. Highly recommended.