
audiobook
In a remote, windswept corner of Finland, a modest homestead clings to the edge of Ätsäri Lake. Inside the cramped cottage, the aging couple Kustavi and Kaisa tend a fire while their son Kalle pores over a book, dreaming of a life beyond the endless pine forest that surrounds them. When the village announces the upcoming timber‑cutting season, the family’s desperate need for food and new shoes pushes Kalle toward his first hard‑won labor away from home.
The story follows Kalle’s uneasy departure, his packed provisions, and the bittersweet farewell to his parents who warn him of the forest’s dangers. As he steps onto the snowy road, his youthful curiosity battles the weight of responsibility, offering a vivid portrait of rural hardship, hope, and the quiet courage required to face an uncertain future.
Language
fi
Duration
~2 hours (115K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Release date
2015-10-16
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects
1862–1895
A Finnish journalist and fiction writer from Ostrobothnia, he wrote vivid stories about working people, rural life, and the tension between old ways and change. Though he died young, his short novels and newspaper fiction left a distinct late-19th-century voice.
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