The Emigrants: The Emigrant Novels: Book I

I completed all four books and cherish the experience. My local library had only a very old copy of the first book. Luckily I could pick up #2, #3, and #4 in ebook form and read them on my tablet. What a shame that the library doesn't have the complete collection. These are books that keep you fully engrossed AND inform and educate you. They are even page-turners at times, because you come to care so much about the people, and you worry about them when they face hardship and danger. Frankly, I cried last night when I finished the 4th book in the set. The four books cover what life was like in rural Sweden, what it was like coming across the ocean on a long slow crowded voyage, arriving in the U.S., traveling to Minnesota, and homesteading on virgin land. Sure puts my travails and troubles in perspective. . . and gives greater depth to my understanding of what made the United States special.Other books I plan to read soon: Giants in the Earth by Rolvaag; I think maybe I did an oral book report on this in 10th grade and got an A+. And I picked up used copies of two books by Trygve Gulbranssen about Norway: Beyond Sing the Woods was one I bought approximately 15 years ago and LOVED, and more recently I bought his next book The Wind from the Mountains. Now I will read the pair. Wish these Gulbranssen books were available in ebook format; i invite you to click on the link on Amazon to tell the publisher to digitize them. If you are fond of reading about days gone by, try Lorna Doone, which is another one on my "should read it again" list.

I found this book to be wonderfully interesting, providing an insight to what my own great grandfather must have felt in his journey to North America (though 32 years after the setting of this novel). While fictionalized, it made the decision and hardship of emigrating to a largely unknown land, quite real.Having stood on the actual farm of my forebears in Sweden, this past summer, the descriptions of the land and places was so much more real to me and I gained a better appreciation for the hardships that existed. The place is idyllic in and of itself, but obviously the pressures of the church and system of inheritance which left families impoverished, explains why anyone would "give it all up" for the great unknown.The only reason for four stars rather than five is the propensity of the author to sometimes wander into long, somewhat irrelevant narratives. But they are easily recognized and skimming quickly through those passages made them more tolerable.I highly recommend this to anyone with Swedish ancestors who came to America in the second half of the 19th century. It will help you understand why they came here and just how hard it was.

This is a revisit for me. I first encountered the Emigrant tetralogy when I was in Sweden in the 1970's on a sabbatical. After seeing the films based on the novels, I bought the Swedish versions of all four books. Though my Swedish was far from fluent, I could easily recognize an extraordinary prose style. Reading was more like listening to the stories being recited by a master storyteller. I can best describe the style as possessing the gravity and resonance of the King James bible with an addition of affectionate humor over the foibles of the vivid characters.On my return to the US, I looked in my university library to see if English translations existed. They did, but in two volumes rather than four, and with extensive omissions from the original text, evidently intended to protect the sensitive reader from the frank speech of the characters in matters of sex and bodily functions. All in all, a pale reflection of the robust original. I blamed the translator for these depredations, but recently found that the culprit was Moberg's original American publisher, whose censorship Moberg had unsuccessfully fought.The present editions date from the 1990's and show that the translation is in fact an accurate, complete, and eloquent reflection of the Swedish original (I have made spot comparisons). Read not only The Emigrants but all four of the novels in these Minnesota Historical Society versions. You will learn much of American history and the factors that shaped the American character, as well as becoming acquainted with an unforgettable set of characters and their iconic experiences.

This is a fictional story, based on the reality of the conditions of the poor in 19th century Sweden. At that time, Sweden was ruled by a king, aristocrats, and a corrupt Church. The peasant farmers were struggling to stay alive when famine and disease were rampant. They hear about America and decide to book passage on a sailing ship in hope of a better future. I'm sure that the peasants in other European countries faced similar hardships. The author, who has also published a history of Sweden, has carefully researched the living conditions in Sweden at that time, as well as the conditions encountered on a sea voyage. I would compare this book to "The Grapes of Wrath" by Steinbeck, with the same brutal emotional impact.

I ordered this book on the recent news of Max von Sydow's death, which brought to mind one of his early movies, also named "The Emigrants". The movie was extraordinarily good, if sometimes a bit grisly in detail, and follows the book very closely.The novel is close to five-star, but the only downside (for me) was the overly detailed descriptions of each phase of Karl and Kristina's lives. There were sections of text where I merely scanned entire paragraphs to get to the meat of the story. Nevertheless, the actual story is gripping and heartening.I'd apply the same review to Books II and III of the series. Well worth your time, as is the film.

Just love these books by Vilhelm Moberg. Have all four, but currently half-way through 'Unto a Good Land'.I better now understand how things were in Smaland - my husband is Swedish (from Smaland) and we lived there a while. Now I understand why the 'Smalanningars' are so tight!! Am disturbed about the cruelty and suffering of animals which comes up from time to time. Owing to time constraints, I'm reading these books slowly and they have consequently 'become part of my life'. I am on the journey with these folk. A wonderful experience.

The Emigrants paints an absolutely fascinating story, especially when you consider it's all based on real events and real people's lives. If you have any interest in Scandinavia or Scandinavian culture, this is definitely required reading.However, I've had the fortune to read the book in Swedish as well as in English and it is shockingly clear that the English language translation has not aged gracefully and is in dire need of an update...

I won't do a full book review here - suffice it to say that when I finished this book, I immediately ordered the second item in the trilogy! Marvellous.

Very authentic depiction of history in Sweden and America

Yes!.... Met my expectations!