Introduction to the book:
The book starts in a mountain in Nepal, where Matti as an adult begins to tell about his childhood:
In Sweden, up near the border with Finland, live boys and Matti Niila. They face each other on a playground, as small children, and immediately becomes friends. They are by chance, along with a bunch of German tourists out and fly. They end up in Frankfurt. It is the start of a lot of episodes the two together experiencing. We hear about: the meeting with a pastor from Congo, where Niila finally have used his knowledge of Esperanto, best mother's death and funeral, sitting with rock music which leads to a life filled with music and performances. We are presented with different existences Society: The German author, the Scanian music teacher, russian transvestite, which is the area's shaman. We visit saunas, weddings and drinking. We hear about Mattis meeting with women.
The story ends when Matti think the boys are grown up.
Epilogue rounds of the book by telling the Niila is dead.
Area
Vittula or Vittulajänkkä which means pussy bog (an homage to female fertility, as there are born abnormally large number of children in the region), is a neighborhood in the small northern Swedish town Palaja. It lies at Tornedalselven near the Arctic Circle, on the border with Finland. Northern Sweden has a harsh climate, throughout the winter period we see almost no sun, but there is sun all summer. This is reflected in people's behavior, "We are very quiet and slow in winter. But in the spring we will be very active rush out on skis, flying around with snowmobiles and suggests gaps across the ice to fish "(Annex 1).
The area is populated by Finns, Sami, tornedalsfinner and Swedes. In Pajala are communists, alcohol, forest workers and Christians who mainly belong to the Christian sect "læstadianerne" who preaches abstinence and puritanism. As an old preacher læstadiansk asked about how he would describe to believe he replies that it is like you go uphill a lifetime. The reward comes when you die, then you can sit up on God's golden luggage baker and roll down into all eternity.
Industrialization has passed over the area and therefore are moving incredibly fast way is paved and symbolizing the start of a new modern society. Suddenly developments very strongly: electric saunas, rock music, racing bicycles, washing machines and televisions. The rapid conversion makes radical antagonism between the generations. Many older people see it as "knapsu" (female-like) in southern Sweden such vices.
It is in this society the two boys Niila and Matti grow up.
Matti growing up in a typical middle class home in Pajala. His mother is a homemaker and father are working with a form of manual labor (like all men in the area). As a child thinks Matti much of the world outside the Pajala, and he ends up as also, by chance, in an airport in Frankfurt. When he hears a single with Elvis at his sister's record player, he is also preoccupied with music. And he and Niila acting in school with the playback, and produces, after meeting with a Skåne music teacher, a band. He is altogether a very creative person.
Niila is a very taciturn boy whose childhood is marked by violence and silence. Tilgængel is he a good listener. The family lives well up to state the nature of Vittula the number of children is high. Big Brothers and toddlers is enough! The family lives on elk hunting and forestry work - that is hard physical work. Her mother is homemaker. Grandmother has a big role in the family, and exercising his death læstedianisme. Father, Isaac, the family patriarch, practice hard physical punishment for children drawers, which they always do. It will be too much for Niila and his brothers, who one day bitches father half to death. This causes roles in the family to change, suddenly, the risk of depression and the family, the eldest son. Niila is shy and, according to many, a "knapsu". As the only band in rates Niila the music, he travels from Vittula and you get the perception he is living a musician's life around Europe.
Music
The first episode which I will relate to me, is when Matti hear a rock album for the first time. This happens while the steam drum rolls through town to coat the roads with asphalt. "And now gravel road away, now it was crowned with shiny, black asphalt. Poverty should have a black leather jacket. It was the future that was far out there as smooth as a cheek. There were kids ride away from prosperity and engineering on their new bicycles. "(Page 12 middle) asphalt symbolize the evolution of society, on a personal level symbolize vinyl Mattis incipient interest in the world" That was the future. That was it. The music was like vejmaskinernes thunder: an endless spectacle, which ended the horizon purple sunrise. "(Page 14 top).
Since Niila receive a Beatles album from its American cousins, we are once again presented to the boys' enthusiasm for the culture of the outside world represents. "A bang! Lightning struck. A barrel of gunpowder futtede and got the room to explode. Oxygen disappeared and we were thrown into the wall and mast up in the tapestry, while the house whirled around at breakneck speed ... Rock 'n'roll music. Beatles. "(Side75 neders to 76 top).
Some years later the boys are still preoccupied with the music, and now they see the possibility of getting the girls attention. They have produced træinstrumenter and perform for the class with a playback version of Jailhouse Rock. "It rang in, and the students sat down to desks. Niila clung to masonite-shovel and then panicked out. The boys sat and hurled with erasers, even before we started. I grabbed jump rope and thinking of death. "Now follows a thorough and humorous description of the concert, which, despite fears become relatively successful. "Then the girls begin to clap," and the weeks following the show that music has brought them closer to the opposite sex.
After some years to form and Matti Niila and two other boys, with help from a Scanian music teacher, a real band. They will appear at a morning assembly at school. In the first three attempts to play number goes badly wrong, and all four play something different. But miraculously everything goes up in a higher unity fourth time, and they get even a applause.
In pussy bog is not called upon to deal with literature and music (not a musician or church music). It is therefore exogenous impact tests, which inspires the boys. Throughout their childhood, we see that interest in the topic grows. The music is an image of rebellion on their dream to live in a more civilized society. They are helped by people who symbolizes the city: Fætrene from America, from teacher to spare (as in geography hours've found is much larger and more important than northern Sweden). "Being an artist in this community is unheard and unseen, for" in Tornedalen creativity has always been mostly about survival. Therefore, there is little understanding of the boys because they are, heavily influenced by Elvis and the Beatles, they decide to form a rock band ."".( Pajala voice, almost the last page 5)
When reading the book one can learn that just Niila and Matti changing much, while their peers remain faithful to their fathers and grandfathers: they drink and can not be captivated by rock music.
Cauldron
In Pajala is a prohibited building, guarded by the look skolebetjent. Like all boys around age decade, Matti is attracted to the forbidden. One day, he ventures into the darkness, and discover too late that the policeman is after him. He hides in an iron kettle. "I was inside her, I was squatting in her round belly in a fetal position. I tried to trip me up, but ran head ... incarcerated. "
The kettle is by Matti, compared with an empty, thick and fat housewife. He disappears into her and can not get out. The story you sense he is incarcerated for many years. He is her fetus. When he jumps due to lack of space the bolts holding the boiler together, he is reborn. He runs onto the road and sees four men lie dormant in the unpaved road junctions. When he learns one is himself he lies down beside him. "I begin to wait. They would probably wake up. "This scene is repeated in the novel's ending, where we learn that they are now adults. So it was that they were waiting for. To get the time to go, and then select one of the four roads, and take away from Pajala.
Race
As Matti when puberty feel the danger that it is time for a man to man talk. Here one might be led to believe that the conversation would be about bees and flowers. But there is far more important things in Pajala. Race! He has some illegitimate cousins in the area, it must he stay away from to avoid indalv. Two family branches are their enemies, because some episodes in early 1900 - the figure. Them he must beware of, and if the opportunity presents itself: revenge. Race weaknesses: drunken violence as the side effects and dangers of unhappy love that the family could lead to schizophrenia. Mental disorders can also arise from musings "God and death and the meaning of life was all life-threatening issues for a young, vulnerable minds." (Page 187) It was dangerous to read books "A cold and a couple of days in bed. A beautiful book jackets had awakened their curiosity. Suddenly was unfit born. One book led the second with him. And the third and the springs as part of a chain that led straight down into insanity, eternal night. "(Page 187).
This episode shows that the development takes place in snatch it tornedalske community. One is either a boy or man. Many important issues are kept hidden from them until they are 12-13 years, here they are presented to the family relationship, as it is most important in the Torne Valley.
His father's monologue ends with "and I was no longer a child, his father accepted here that Matti is on the way into adulthood.
Girls / women
We share in the boys' interest in girls as Niila and Matti is seven years. When the Hand Labor School in the last hour is over is the two boys in wait and observe the 16-17årige girls "They actually had some interest already as seven. Calling the heat is entirely wrong it was rather spasmodic longing. I would have kissed them, been close to them and creep into them like a little kitten. "(Page 55). Here's interest is not sexual but the boys see girls as exciting and unattainable.
Later, we presented a new konfentration Mattis sister's friends to visit and the boys come into my room. "They had breasts in tight sweaters. Black painted eyes. They looked at me and Niila - little ones, snotvalpene - and tried to make us blush. They asked if we had girls. About us had kissed anyone. They told what they did with the tongue. It was pretty disgusting. It was almost hot, although there was a latent period and hardly knew what to with the opposite sex. "Page 80) Here's maiden interest changed character, it was natural. As one of the girls kissing Matti he feels happy and more adult. Niila also had part of the episode shows him Matti therefore how she did. "So I leaned forward and kissed his foot salts boy" (page 81). This episode ties the two boys together and they both feel more adult.
The next episode Matti has with women are at a wedding where there are drunk violently. An adult Finnish woman seduces him and he has, the influence of alcohol, his first sexual experience.
The last girl I will mention meetings Matti at the concert in the People's House. She has palæstinensertørklede and represents a part of youth rebellion. They followed the car to Pajala - she wears oozes urban, adventure and the future. It is the first woman Matti really want to have a relationship with, "I wanted to touch her, to kiss." (Page 220). She is experienced and she seduces him, which he is very satisfied. After sessions with his pants down on his heels, get a forest same wife brought him back down to earth "much ado about nothing," she said smiling "(side225). What was so special for him being in this society completely negligible done. The girl disappears and Matti when not to join. This shows that he must be in peasant society until a new opportunity presents itself. He is not ready to go out into the big world.
There is an evolution of the episodes having to do with women. As well really is a very natural development. First, he admired them from afar, later he will want to have a relationship with them. He will not be experienced in the book here.
Druk
Drinking is a big part of that tradition. You drink not to talk, but they drink themselves completely unconscious to mark the body. Drinking scenes are portrayed as positive, "it is a way to use your body, saying: Now we do not, now we are not talking, now we drink." (Pajala voice p. 7) The focus on body work in this culture, not loading and non modern music. But Matti and Niila and the other boys in the band is different. Since the band has been Mattis grandfather's birthday which degenerated into an incredible drink feast where they left four intoxicated and unconscious men on the floor, they go home along asphalt road. They lie down. This shows that there has been a development: the traditional, conservative drinking culture which represents the men sat in relation to the modern, as the band shows to belong to by placing themselves on the new asphalt road, from which their world should go. The old would have lain down on the earth / nature. Asphalt road is a symbol of development.
