"So much to relish here . . . the plot is gripping, there's a beautifully handled thread on reading and writing, and the writing is just lovely!" DIANE SETTERFIELD, author of Once Upon A River
"The year's most memorable narrator . . . An unusual and intriguing crime story" SUNDAY TIMES BOOKS OF THE YEAR
"Niemi succeeds in constructing a story that works as a murder mystery and as a compelling study of a dangerously inward-looking community" SUNDAY TIMES
"A riveting, psychologically astute mystery . . . It is not to be missed" BOOKLIST
"An original and gripping crime story" THE TIMES
**NOW SHORTLISTED FOR THE CWA INTERNATIONAL DAGGER**
It is 1852, and in Sweden's far north, deep in the Arctic Circle, charismatic preacher and Revivalist Lars Levi Lęstadius impassions a poverty-stricken congregation with visions of salvation. But local leaders have reason to resist a shift to temperance over alcohol.
Jussi, the young Sami boy Lęstadius has rescued from destitution and abuse, becomes the preacher's faithful disciple on long botanical treks to explore the flora and fauna. Lęstadius also teaches him to read and write - and to love and fear God.
When a milkmaid goes missing deep in the forest, the locals suspect a predatory bear is at large. A second girl is attacked, and the sheriff is quick to offer a reward for the bear's capture. Using early forensics and daguerreotype, Lęstadius and Jussi find clues that point to a far worse killer on the loose, even as they are unaware of the evil closing in around them.
To Cook a Bear explores how communities turn inwards, how superstition can turn to violence, and how the power of language can be transformative in a richly fascinating mystery.
"Superb suspense . . . Simply a great literary experience!" V.G. (Sweden)
"A masterpiece of narrative" La Vanguardia (Spain)
"A philosophical novel, a crime novel, a historical novel and a coming-of-age story complement one another" La Stampa (Italy)
"One is transported into a strange time and a fascinating world that is both beautiful and brutal" Politiken (Denmark)
"Formidable delivery . . . Unlike anything else you have read . . . An incredible novel" Adresseavisen
Translated from the Swedish by Deborah Bragan-Turner
Mikael Niemi was born in 1959 and grew up in Pajala in the northernmost part of Sweden, near the Finnish border, where he still lives. Before the publication of To Cook A Bear, his breakthrough novel was Popular Music From Vittula (2000), selling more than one million copies. It won the Swedish August Prize and has been translated into more than thirty languages. To Cook A Bear has now been sold for translation to fifteen territories.
Deborah Bragan-Turner is a translator of Swedish literature, and a former bookseller and academic librarian. She studied Scandinavian Languages at University College, London, and her translations include works by Per Olov Enquist and Sara Stridsberg.
