Hanna's Daughter by Marianne Fredriksson

Synopsis :

 Sweeping through one hundred years of Scandinavian history, this luminous story follows thre generations of Swedish women - a grandmonther, a mother and a daughter - whose lives are linked through a century of great love and great loss.  

 Resonating with truth and revelation, this moving novel deftly explores the often difficult but enduring ties between mothers and daughters, the sacrifices, compromises and rewards in the relationships between men and women, and the patterns of emotion that repeat themselves through generations.  If you have ever wanted to connect with the past, or rediscover family, Hanna's Daughter will strike a chord in your heart.

 Hanna's Daughter did not strike a chord in my heart.  It however gave me a heartburn after digesting it over a few weeks.  It was a rather slow digestion and I wasn't really keen to partake of it but having made m commitment and having paid for the book, I really want to see it through and thus get my money's worth.

The only relief I got was from the wonderful cover of embroidered linens of casings which are so antique looking but yet still so stylish.  However, that's where the relief ends.   However, there's no regrets as Hanna's Daughter allowed me a glimpse into lives of women from culture that's totally different from mine. Yet, no matter which culture you are exposed to and how different it might be, there are similarities that cannot be ignored nor denied.

Readers can't help but felt sorry for Hanna who was raped at thirteen and gave birth to her first child. Johanna wasn't really her mother's daughter as she can't really relate to her and felt more close to her dad who lost his life when she's still young.  Following the same pattern, her daughter Anna can't really understand her and thus begins a life long conflict between women who are forever linked and whose tie cannot be broken.

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