An enticing story about life in Norway, back when horses were the primary transportation and country people did not travel far. The 2 older boys & a friend have adventures in the countryside. After a storm they rope a full tree that is coming down the river and manage to haul it to shore in order to sell the wood. Einar is quite a boastful and adventurous person, while the older Ola is more of a dreamer and likes learning. The younger girls primarily busy themselves playing with dolls, or making a pet of the new pig. In the summer the whole family packs up and moves to a mountain hut to tend the villages cows and goats on the fresh vegetation. The mother milks and makes cheese which the father carts back to the villagers. The boys are responsible for watching that the animals stay safe as they roam the mountain moors and return to the hut each evening. They meet another herder, a girl. Ola falls for her, and Einar has further adventures climbing a tree with her. Another family arrives to help make hay for a few weeks. Einar and their son take a raft out on a bog lake to go fishing when they should be watcing the cows and have a struggle returning to shore. They return to their farm in the fall and ski to school. Einar struggles with learning to read. Marta, tho too young for school, insists she will go and starts to learn her alphabet.
Another reviewer mentioned this must take place in Nordland because of the bitter cold, yet in fact the 'bitter cold' is described as 40 degrees below freezing, which means only 8 degrees below zero (as we measure in America). Yes, cold, but not any colder than Wisconsin!
A good book for historical flavor, but not the one I was looking for in which the girls in the Norwegian family had more of a role in the story. ( )

This is children's literature, but by no means should this be used to pigeonhole it. the innocence in this book is so charming and heartfelt it gives me supergoosebumps. it was such a relaxing read. it centers around, of course, a farm in norway, i am guessing nordland since that is where a good deal of knut hamsun's writings occur. there is talk of frozen ground and bitter cold so there you go. this is primarily the story of Ola and Einar, brothers. they have sisters as well that play supporting roles. Ingerid and Martha. Ola is ten and Einar is eight. Svarta was the oldest and most important of the cows. each of the kids owned a cow, Svarta belonged to Ola and they boys seemed to trade her back and forth for the other cow plus something extra thrown in, a red pencil, a dozen or so buttons, a reprieve from a bloody nose etc...the boys and girls all work on the farm in varying degrees each to their own abilities and temperaments. what makes this sweet is that the children find joy in such simple things, chasing squirrels, collecting buttons, herding, hunk of white cheese or sour cream on bread to them is a particular goodness. the problems in the book are easily solved, one of the boys is playing with a farm girl and she climbs a tree, falls out and breaks her collarbone, the boy after collecting his earnings from herding sends her 5 oer and this settles things. the boys befriend a poor old man and they give him wood that they had collected from a felled tree in the stream,he in turn makes them birch wood baskets,and one of the boys send him letters which a neighbor reads to him and it brings him great joy. simple simple simple.

another wonderful part of this book, which i am ASSuming is as autobiographically slanted as a lot of knut's works is the christmas masquerading where the family dresses up in masks and makeup, knut joining them as a milkmaid in undergarments and all, jesting along with the best of them, makeup, female voice and gestures....a grand time was had by young and old as they went from house to house fooling everyone...dressing up even the horse! it is not all that often we get to hear of the playful exploits of the great and serious knut hamsun himself. ( )