The End of Drum-Time by Hanna Pylvainen

 The End of Drum-Time explores the cultural clashes among the Nordic people. Sami people, also called Lapps, kept being pushed up north above the Arctic Circle as no one wanted to bother with them and wanted them out of the way. Sami received some freedom in the north as they crossed the borders with their reindeers. But with time, the Christian settlers started dominating even this most norther land. With their domination, they were suppressing Sami traditions.

Set in the middle of 19th century Sweden. The characters are superbly developed. We meet an array of very interesting characters.

Lars Levi is the pastor, who seems to be affected by the death of his son. His sermons have become wild, supposedly affecting some people with sickness. Curiosity got hold of some people filling the church as they wanted to see who’d go crazy next.

Henrik in his store sells alcohol illegally. He came to this remote area and would have left the same day if he had money. But he got fooled by his uncle who promised it’d be easy to make a fortune off of Lapps’ drinking.

Ivvar is the main character, and the love attraction for some women in this story. With his father, Biettar, they’re both Sami herders. Biettar has a religious awakening and afterwards absorbing Christian values. As a result, more and more Sami people abandon their traditions and beliefs.

When it comes to plot, what drives it are the love connections to Ivvar and the change his father experiences. 

There is a lot to praise about this story: rich in character development, culture exploration and the way of life, and beautiful prose. 

Release date: 24 January 2023

Source: Henry Holt & Co