About this title: In the bitter cold of Danish Jutland, where the sea freezes over and the Nazis have yet to invade, a young girl dreams of one day going on a great journey to Siberia, while her beloved brother Jesper yearns for the warmer climes of Morocco. Their home, with a pious mother who sings hymns all day and a silent father, is as cold as their surroundings. But the unshakeable bond between brother and sister creates a vital warmth which glows in spite of the chill and the dark clouds that threaten to overtake their dreams.
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Description: Good. Former Library book. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Description: Acceptable. Former Library book. Shows definite wear, and perhaps considerable marking on inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Graywolf Press
Date Published: 2008-09-30
ISBN-13:9781555975067ISBN:1555975062
Description: New. New, unread, unused & in perfect condition with no damaged or missing pages. This is a pre-release collectible paperback with same cover. This book is the same isbn, but is a paperback. Great Copy. Ships Lightning Fast. read more
Description: Reader copy. Ex-Public Library. SPINE IS COCKED. Covers show some wear. Usual library stickers and stamps. Save a tree-buy used.. read more
Description: Good. Former Library book. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Edition: First edition. FIRST AMERICAN EDITION/FIRST PRINTING.
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Graywolf Press, St. Paul
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9781555975067ISBN:1555975062
Description: Fine in fine dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 245 p. Audience: General/trade. Beautiful mint condition book & dust jacket. Just like new. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Harvill Press
Date Published: 1999-04
ISBN-13:9781860464607ISBN:1860464602
Description: Very Good. Light wear on cover. Pages clean. Reliable seller. Fast shipping from central Texas. All international orders ship by airmail. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Picador USA
Date Published: 2009-09-01
ISBN-13:9780312428990ISBN:0312428995
Description: NEW. Softcover. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9780312428990. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Picador
Date Published: 2009
ISBN-13:9780312428990ISBN:0312428995
Description: New. Brand New! Buy with confidence-your satisfaction is guaranteed at B-Logistics! Due to the large scale of our operation, we do not have access to the specific contents/condition of our items. Please note that Expedited shipping is not available at this time. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Graywolf Press
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9781555975067ISBN:1555975062
Description: Fine in fine dust jacket. Clean and unmarked. Light edgewear to jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 245 p. Audience: General/trade. Ships from US-NE. Support Independent Booksellers! Omahabooks offers same or next day shipping-satisfaction guaranteed. APO, International may require additional postage-contact seller. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Graywolf Pr
Date Published: 2008-09-30
ISBN-13:9781555975067ISBN:1555975062
Description: NEW. Hardcover. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9781555975067. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: VINTAGE Country = UNITED KINGDOM
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9780099523444ISBN:0099523442
Description: BRAND NEW PAPERBACK. 256 pages. In the bitter cold of danish jutland, where the sea freezes over and the nazis have yet to invade, a young girl dreams of one day going on a great journey to siberia, while her beloved brother jesper yearns for the warmer climes of morocco. their home, with a mother who sings hymns all day and a silent father, is as cold as their surroundings. (Paperback) read more
Edition: First Edition
Binding: Hardcover; First Printing
ISBN-13:9781555975067ISBN:1555975062
Description: Fine in Fine dust jacket. Hardcover. Graywolf Press, 2008. 1st Edition/1st Printing. Fine Book in Fine Dust Jacket. Price clipped. Overall, a clean and tight copy to add to a collection or read and enjoy. Dust Jacket protected with a new archival cover. Bubble wrapped and shipped promptly in a box. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Graywolf Press
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9781555975067ISBN:1555975062
Description: New. Brand New! Buy with confidence-your satisfaction is guaranteed at B-Logistics! Due to the large scale of our operation, we do not have access to the specific contents/condition of our items. Please note that Expedited shipping is not available at this time. read more
Edition: First edition
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Graywolf
Date Published: 2008
Description: Very close to fine and bright in very close to fine dustjacket with crisp bright text throughout. Lovely copy. Translated from the Norwegian by Anne Born. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Wheeler Pub Inc
Date Published: 2009-01-21
ISBN-13:9781597228855ISBN:1597228850
Description: NEW. Softcover. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9781597228855. read more
"OUT STEALING HORSES was one of my top picks when it was released here, and so I began reading TO SIBERIA with much excitement. Per Petterson is a writer of rare ability. His prose is so clear and crisp, so precise, as to be a sort of metaphor for the northern landscapes of his literary visions. The lyricism comes not from flowery word choices... on the contrary, Petterson eschews all such flourishes... but from his images and his tone. His voice is restrained, somewhat elegiac, and unmistakable. Pick any paragraph, they are all a pleasure to read.
This book was written in 1996, before 2003's OUT STEALING HORSES, and it is interesting to see the writer's development. Whereas OUT STEALING HORSES takes place in Norway, this book is set in rural WWII-era Denmark. The narrator is an unnamed girl and explore her relationshp with her older brother, Jesper. Jesper dreams of escaping to Morocco; the narrator longs for the cold clear openness of Siberia. And so Petterson hints that no matter how deeply these two are connected, their futures will separate them. The family is fractured -- the parents negligent at best, the grandfather commits suicide. And then the Nazi's arrive and all their lives are inevitably altered.
The first half of the book is splendid, with profoundly moving scenes -- intimate and unforgettable. The second half, wherein the narrator wanders through various Scandinavian towns, is somehow less appealing, and I found myself thinking something was missing, some focus lost. Perhaps it was because, when the siblings separate, the book losses its central metaphor. On the other hand, the girl's loneliness and isolation, her inability to form human relationships, is well crafted and effective, even though, for me, it doesn't hold the power of the book's beginning.
The end is one of those literary moments that feel achingly real, in that one wishes there was more to say and yet there simply is not. Petterson's enormous talent makes beauty out of the smallest details and tiny moments. It's a pleasure to read. If this book doesn't accomplish quite what OUT STEALING HORSES did, I can't fault it for that. It's still better than most books out there, and I can't wait to see what he writes next."
"I was left feeling desolate! The author beautifully describes the cold, harsh landscape of Denmark, reflecting the narrator's dreary life. She survives, but what's the point? She's reflecting back on her life from the vantage point of an old woman, so when the book ends abruptly I wanted answers to all the pregnant questions--pregnancy included! Was her existence futile and entirely without gratification? The last line is: " . . . I was so young then, and I remember thinking: I'm twenty-three years old, there is nothing left in life. Only the rest." I turned the page, anticipating some resolution, and discovered that was THE END."
"So much of the world around "Sistermine" is cold, wet and white. The snow and the sand and even the milk. Her brother Jesper wants to escape their cold and harsh home and parents by getting himself to the warmth of Morrocco. But the heroine thinks she'll find happiness somewhere even colder, wetter, and whiter, so she dreams about getting herself "To Siberia." I'm a fast reader, but I found myself deliberately slowing down as I read to better savor the language - so evocative of the time and place. I don't think I've ever read a novel that actually made me feel the cold so deeply. The relationship between Jesper and his sister is lovely and real, given the distance between the children and their parents. I didn't like quite as well as "Out Stealing Horses", but this was still a very good read."
"To Siberia broke my heart. Not because of any particular character or event, but rather more because of the overall tone and cadence. The language left me with a feeling of desolation. The actual events of the book are almost rendered moot as a result, as the reader is often already feeling anger or sadness when a situation arises that is meant to evoke such reactions. Especially by the end, I felt like I pretty much knew what was coming but that it hardly mattered because my chest was already appropriately tight by that point. There's this sense of the entire story being surreal, even when the scenario being discussed is a terribly normal one, because surreal is how everything feels when one has lost hope, considers happiness virtually unattainable, and life meaningless.
Truly, I've never read a book that captured the feeling of being lost and rudderless so perfectly. Rarely have I read something that focused so completely on idleness and stagnation that was this compelling. As I closed the back cover, I found myself simultaneously wanting more but questioning whether I could actually handle it if more were offered. I have no complaints about this book -- only cautious praise."
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