Original title: Henkeni edestä
Author: Hanna Brotherus
Published: 2022
Publisher: WSOY
Genre: Literary Fiction
Pages: 287
Reading material:
English sample and synopsis
Finnish PDF
A brave, honest, and touching story about a point of no return
For My Life is a story about the aging of a woman. The novel contemplates the essence of independence and one’s own body, the connections one creates with family and friends, and the transience of life.
A woman’s life as an artist and the mother of four children has kept her in motion incessantly. She’s found meaning in the needs and hopes of others. Once her children leave their childhood home, she needs to find purpose for her days once again. Freedom is difficult to grasp, the future is hard to see.
When the old family summer villa is sold, it’s time to dispose of things. Important memories. The clear fall air sees the woman set out on her own for the villa where no one is waiting for her – no one except inevitable change. She goes through her life and, amidst the silence, she finds a path to follow.
For My Life is a bare, brave, and honest novel. Its tone is easily recognizable as having the same beauty as Hanna Brotherus’ debut novel My Only Home, which gained immense popularity within an exceptionally large readership.
Hanna Brotherus has written a furiously honest narrative about an older woman’s exploration within herself.
– Heidi Lakkala, Kaleva newspaper