Mari Ahokoivu

This is a Finnish creation story. What I can say is it is beautiful and it’s interesting and it’s heartbreaking. But I cannot say I understood it. There are the spirit gods, the bears, the offspring, the shadows. All living together, and for lack of a better term, hating each other. There is this black flame that thinks it’s a bear until it comes to find out it’s not a bear but the flame. It always thinks it’s a bear and it’s only the bear mother that says no you’re not go away. They are extremely sad points like when our poor fire learns how to make meat. Or when characters, die, and then die some more, and then even more die. This book is highly interesting, and the artwork is amazing. I could see literature classes, dissecting this book in the decades to come.… (meer)

There’s a lot going on here, and it gets dark despite the cute art style. I was confused at Poorling’s origin, but, if I have this right, Emuu, the mother of creation and the bear's momma went through an elaborate scheme to get her daughter to cut her ties to Earth and her cubs, so she could be with her again on the other side/afterlife. Poorling, the main character, is unnatural but an innocent child, so many plot points come with emotional implications.

The artwork is lovely and the way scenes are framed, like trees being the actual borders or no borders at all, was an interesting design choice. I liked the touches of gold but the golden font was a bit unreadable. Whenever there’s a splash of color, it makes an impact. 5 stars for the artwork!

I liked seeing Finnish folklore, especially the shadow creatures, but I think knowing the actual story is essential for maximum enjoyment. Without having that background, the story felt erratic. I'm sure those familiar with the folklore will appreciate the story in this form.

What I think some of the themes were… being tricked by the “devil?”/deity/moral-less entity, the strong bond of motherhood, turbulent mother-daughter relationships, not fitting in, God’s creations rebelling, should a God give his creation free will, death, etc

[rating from enjoyment: 2.5]… (meer)