
RÄMEISSÄ
VÄINÖ PIETILÄ
I.
II
III
IV
V
VI
VII
VIII
A quiet summer afternoon in a modest Helsinki home sets the stage for a slice‑of‑life portrait of Finland’s working‑class underbelly. The listener is drawn into a lively, colloquial exchange between Eino, a traveling painter, and his host, a pragmatic housewife who keeps the household afloat while juggling gossip, health worries, and the ever‑present specter of poverty.
Through their banter, the story reveals a world of small‑town shops, bicycle couriers, and the fragile hopes of people like the Heikki brothers who strive to make a living despite seasonal hardships. Eino’s lingering cough hints at a looming illness, while the housewife’s sharp observations expose the social hierarchies and personal ambitions that shape everyday survival.
The opening paints a vivid, intimate picture of a community bound by duty, humor, and the relentless search for stability—a compelling entry point for anyone curious about the human side of early‑20th‑century Finnish life.
Language
fi
Duration
~3 hours (195K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Release date
Dec 16, 2017
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
1888–1917
A Finnish working-class writer whose life was brief, restless, and hard, he brought unusual firsthand feeling to stories about poverty and life on society’s margins. His writing grew out of real experience, giving it an immediacy that still stands out.
View all books
by Vinceslas-Eugène Dick

by Philippe Aubert de Gaspé

by Abraham Cahan

by Eliza Fowler Haywood

by Lady (Sydney) Morgan

by Laure Conan

by Emma Dorothy Eliza Nevitte Southworth