Book Review: Pylväinen, Hanne, WE SINNERS, Picador, 2012, 189
Pages.
By Harry Siitonen
Not many
Americans, including American Finns, know about a smallish fundamentalist
branch of Nordic Lutheranism, called the Laestadians. A first novel
by Hanna Pylväinen, who at one time belonged to that church, has written
a fine work of fiction about a large Finnisl Laestadian family in current
-day Michigan with a family name of Rovaniemi. It gives us a good picture
of this religious denomination through the trials of this family as
their children grow up.
The Laestadian
religion, founded by Lars Levi Laestadius, a Swedish Sami reindeer herder
in the mid-Nineteenth Century, consider the following as sins of worldliness:
remarital sex, alcohol (except in a religious context), dancing, TV,
movies, rythmic music, cosmetics, caed playing,earrings, school sports,
tattoos and cursing. Neither do they approve of birth control, so many
true believer Laestadian families have numerous children,who they celebrate
as gifts from God.
The Rovaniemis
are one such family, with nine children,seven girls and two boys.The
novel traces their lives from children into adulthood, The father, Warren
Rovaniemi, in the course of the story is elected minister of their church
in the small community in which they live and the mother of the brood
is the caring and loving Pirjo. They all know Finnish at least to some
extent. As teenagers in a crowded household the kids squabble like those
of any large family. often torn betwen their faith and the world looming
around them. Eventually some of them reject the church and live secular
lives and become college students which influene raises their sense
of skepticism about their creedal upbringing. The oldest Brita stays
in the church marries a carpenter whith whom she hasb sux sons through
cearian section, and almost loses her own life and that of her seventh
infant, again a boy.
One of the
prime tenets of the religion is forgiveness. Anyone can confess theirsins
to anyother person, most often other familymembers as well as the minister.
THis is ofetn done daily as it's hard to resist worldly temptation.
"Believe all our sins are forgiven in Jesus's name and precious
blood" is the formulaic response that will give one grace. `
Tiina, the
second daughter, is the most irreverent of the family. She's a "party
animal" with her all-nighters, and is the first to break with the
family tradition and become an unbeliever. Pirjo discovers that one
of her sons Simon is gay and finds it impossible in her heart to fully
forgive him, and they become estranged. One of the younger sisters Julia
also declares her unbelief. Nels.the devout son strays from the rightous
path.and starts to drink heavily and is attracted to a sexy party girl
Bernie who eggs him on so he temporarily loses his beloved Tricia who
he wants to marry. Eventually Nels sees the error of his ways, gets
forgiveness from equally devout Tricia and they marry and raise a family.
Yet as the
younger Rovaniemis grow older and their differences grow larger due
to the disparate differences in their lives, the significance of the
earlier forgiveness factor in their religious training, helps hold the
siblings together. That love is never lost. A dramatic moment ensues
when Simon's lover and partner Christopher dies in a car accident in
Boston where they live.. Julia and her aloof wise guy boy friend Will
come to Boston to console Simon. Nels flies in from Minneapolis
but leaves Tricia and the kids at home, The irrepressible Tiina comes
from New York for the funeral. After the service the family members
gather at Simon's apartment to spend time wih him. All drink except
for Nels and get sloppy. Tiina says she hated her parents for not coming.
"I can't f*cking believe it. I always expected more of them,"
she blurted. Then Julia picked up the phone called home in Michigan.
Her mother was on the other end of the line. "Why aren't you guys
here?" she posed. "--- Julia shouted. Why do you have to be
such sanctimonious a**holes?"
Pirjo responds:
We love Simon Of course, we're so sorry to hear about his loss."
"Your
loss," Julia retorts.
"It
is never my job to make you comfortable about your lifestyle choices,
" Pirjo answered. ""We're here to remind you of what
is right. We know you know in your hearts what the right thing is. Of
course, you know that...."
"A**holes,"
Julia shouts as she slams down the phone.
This is
one bridge these two Rovaniemi generations will never cross.
The author Hanna Päiväinen hails from suburban Detroit. Her BA is
from Mount Holyoke College, her MFA from the University of Michigan.
She has earned a number of fellowship honors. She won the Whiting award
for "We Sinners." She is working on another novel about early
Laestadian history to be entitled "The End of Drum Time." She now lives in Brooklyn.
