When the Doves Disappeared(Kun kyyhkeset katosivat, 2012; tr. from the Finnish by Lola Rogers, 2015) is a smart-paced, suspenseful novel that explores the life defining consequences of choosing loyalty over betrayal, authenticity over self-preservation.
Sofi Oksanen examines the contrasting literary histories of Finland and Estonia and how they have shaped their distinct historical paths and the impact of those legacies on their approaches to current geopolitical challenges in a speech delivered in Riga, Latvia.
Sofi Oksanen: ‘We know about British colonialism. Russian colonialism is not well known’
This article is more than 9 years old
Interview byLuke Harding
On the eve of her latest novel’s publication in English, the Finnish publishing sensation talks about divided families, the double occupation of Estonia and ‘Putin’s poodles’
Luke Harding
Saturday 18 September 2015
For a Finnish writer to be translated into English is an unusual event; over the last decade, only 40 or 50 Finnish novels have appeared in the US and UK – a “strange” state of affairs, according to Sofi Oksanen. But Oksanen isn’t merely a Finnish writer who has broken through. The author ofPurge(2008), which sold over a million copies, is an international publishing sensation, frequently likened toStieg Larsson. Only one Finnish author outsells her, Oksanen jokes: the lateTove Jansson, creator of the lovable, bohemian Moomin family.
Iknew Samuel Beckett’s reputation. He didn’t like photographers. He didn’t want them around really. It’s hard to believe I took so many photographs of him. During the 1970s, I photographed him and his rehearsals at the Royal Court theatre in London, and eventually did a book with his biographer James Knowlson called Images of Beckett. In 2015 my photographs of him and his plays were projected on to the chapel of King’s College Cambridge as part of its 500th anniversary celebrations. It’s been a long, unexpected association.
Want to get stuck in to the work of the Breakfast at Tiffany’s author? Here are some good ways in
Sam Moore
Monday 30 September 2024
Today marks 100 years since the birth of Truman Capote, the author of quietly devastating novels, charming short stories, and pioneering works of creative nonfiction. Though known primarily for one novella – Breakfast at Tiffany’s – as well as his colourful personal life – earlier this year Ryan Murphy’s film Feud: Capote vs the Swans explored the fallout when the writer and bon vivant betrayed his friendship group of Manhattan socialites – there are plenty of ways to better understand Capote as a man, a myth and a writer. Here are some good places to begin.
From the eternally enthralling tale of Dracula, to femmes fatales spooking in the name of feminine sexuality, horror author Lauren Owen selects her favourite vampiric tales
The vampire is naturally versatile: as a literary figure, it has taken on many forms, adapting for new generations and successfully making the jump into film, television, and comics. Modern readers can now find vampires in every conceivable genre, from paranormal romance to gritty horror, from contemporary humour to historical pastiche. But the vampire is also versatile in what it signifies. Dracula, of course, is the prime example – it can be read as a story of sexual transgression, invasion fears, resentment of women’s increased freedom, repressed homoeroticism – with many other interpretations besides.
It’s New Year’s Eve in 1965. A jaded cop is in no mood to hear the deluded ramblings of a woman who’s just confessed to a murder. In the hands of multimedia theatre maestros IMITATING THE DOG at LEEDS PLAYHOUSE this is just the start of a surreal and nightmarish journey into the past. RICHARD HORSMAN went along for the ride.
“Dracula” by Bram Stoker is a Gothic novel that tells the terrifying story of Count Dracula, a vampire who travels from Transylvania to England, unleashing a wave of horror and mystery. Through diaries and letters, the novel follows a group of characters led by Professor Van Helsing, who desperately struggles to stop Dracula and his evil influence. This classic work of horror explores themes of superstition, science, and the nature of evil, leaving an enduring mark on popular culture and the horror genre.
The Italian star is having a late career renaissance, including a powerful turn in acclaimed Vatican thriller Conclave. She talks about the serenity of being single, enjoying farming in later life – and what it means to be a nepo baby
GUY LODGE Sunday 24 November 2024
Most great female actors get to play a nun at some point in their career: a kind of thespian rite of passage that comes to many in their grande dame years. Isabella Rossellini, however, checked off that box in her very first screen appearance, aged 24: in 1976’s little-remembered Vincente Minnelli musical A Matter of Time, in a bit part opposite her mother, screen legend and three-time Oscar winner Ingrid Bergman.
Tortured soul ... Rossellini opposite Kyle MacLachlan in David Lynch’s Blue Velvet, 1986. Photograph: Pictorial Press/Alamy
Interview
Isabella Rossellini: ‘Ageing brings a lot of happiness. You get fatter – but there is freedom’
This article is more than 4 years old
The actor’s latest project is about the joy of sex, as well as its capacity to exploit, control and kill. She discusses the pleasure of life after being written off by Hollywood and the beauty business Simon HattenstoneTuesday 13 October 2020
Isabella Rossellini is a busy woman. It is hard to know how the model, actor, writer, animal behaviourist and farmer finds so much time to talk about sex. But she does. In recent years, she has made numerous tiny films about the sex lives of animals under the umbrella titles Green Porno and Seduce Me. Now she hopes to take them to a larger audience – or, to be more accurate, she hopes to bring a larger audience to her farm.