THE SUMMER LAKE

DÄR VASSEN VIKER – THE SUMMER LAKE

By Linda Edgarsson

IN THE SUMMER LAKE, we follow Hilda, the crofter’s daughter, through her work, her falling in love and a grief passed down from mother to daughter. Hilda is a reserved person, weighed down by memories from her childhood. When her aunt Anna asks for help at the Sjölund farm, it is the first time Hilda has set foot there since that fateful winter’s day when her father and brother drowned in the lake. At Sjölund there is also Anna’s violent husband, August, who drinks far too much, and their foster son, Erik. He, who was just a boy the last time Hilda saw him and who was blamed for her brother’s drowning, is now a young man. Down by the lake, the reeds are turning from yellow to green, and at dawn the song of the blackbird can be heard. Something begins to blossom between Hilda and Erik, and it quickly grows stronger.

THE SUMMER LAKE is a moving piece of women’s history set in Småland in the late 19th century. In accessible and beautiful language, Linda Edgarsson depicts both the transformative power of love and the paralysing force of tragedy.