Books from Finland - A literary journal of writing from and about Finland.

Extracts from the novel Gud (‘God’, Schildts, 2006)

Side by side, wolves and antelopes graze on the juicy grass.

A deer playfully chases a lion through the bushes.

‘Can you do this?’

Adam crosses his arms in front of his chest and folds his hands back to front so that the right hand is on the left and the left hand is on the right. With his hands folded he twists them downwards and holds them out. Now they point to Eve, still folded, and still with the right hand on the left.

Eve tries. She succeeds, and laughs with delight.

A gentle breeze is blowing from the east, just strongly enough for the couple not to be troubled by the heat, but not so they would feel the need for clothes to keep them warm. More…