Haymaker in Heaven
Translated from Norwegian, this book takes a compassionate look at the large number of people who were driven by economic conditions to emigrate from Norway to North America in the later years of the 19th century. For many whose family had been farmers for generations, the shortage of good farmland caused thoughts to turn to the vast prairies in North America. All it took was one person from a community discovering good acreage across the ocean for others to think about following. Or one person from a family.
This is not a novel in the strict sense of the word; it is stories and vignettes based on “vague memories of people who actually lived.” Each person had to decide whether or not to undertake the difficult and expensive journey across the Atlantic to face a whole array of different difficulties in a strange land. A common motivation was the desire for a better life for their children.
The prose demonstrates the writer’s insight into the emotional landscape of individuals and families making the choice to move. The words are simple and direct, portraying struggles, strong ties to family and the land, individual idiosyncrasies and hope for the future. The characters are both unique and relatable, developed with nuance and with down-to-earth directness. Together they bring an important part of history into focus in this unusual but intriguing book.
