The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven

In 1916 Sven Ormston decides to leave Stockholm to take up mining near Svarlbard. Unfortunately there is an accident when an avalanche impacts the mine and he is seriously injured. In time he recovers physically but his face in particular is severely disfigured. He leaves the mine to find a job as a steward at another camp further north for part of the year and learns to be a trapper during the winter.

When he writes his memoir later in his life Sven recounts not just his experiences and the harsh environment in which he lives but his relationships with the few people that he befriends - Scottish geologist Charles MacIntyre, a Finnish trapper Tapio, his niece Helga and her daughter Skuld plus Ludmilla and his sister Olga. But his greatest friends are his dogs, Eberhard and Sixten.

In The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven, Nathaniel Ian Miller has based the character of Sven on a real Spitsbergian hunter. Unfortunately little is known about the person who inspired the character of Sven but  what is known about him allowed the author to create this story about Sven and his challenges. The novel also sets the story in the historical context of Russia moving into other European countries as well as the impact of war, even on the lives of people living in isolation.

This is a story not only about pain but also about various forms of love as people strive to survive in difficult circumstances. As the plot is revealed we come to know, respect and enjoy the company of the characters as they attempt to make the most of what life offers. Certainly a book worth reading.

The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven - Marmalade and Mustardseed