Representing the best
Finnish authors abroad
Finnish authors abroad
Mauri Pertuska, a principal and PE teacher, falls ill with lung cancer. He doesn’t have long to live. And in that short time, he has a lot of loose ends to tie up. Pertuska finds his Jewish father’s diary. It chronicles his colourful years as a businessman and circus artist in Germany in the 1930s, when fascism was on the rise. Mauri hands in his resignation and travels to a small town in former Eastern Germany, vengeance on his mind. He acquires an illegal pistol, but in the end, the instrument of his revenge is the cut-off tail of a German pig dog. Mauri is shot with his own pistol – and unexpectedly gets his life back.
Schweinehund is classic Katz: multilayered, ironic, sceptical of official truths and institutions. With a virtuoso’s skill, the novelist observes everyday life and tackles ideological problems – and shows that laughter can be the best weapon. Katz has a stunning sense of history and brings a timely perspective to the table in a world of polarised opinions.
Estonian (Varrak)
French (Gaia Editions)
German (Luchterhand)
Hungarian (Belvarosi)
Slovakian (Slovart)
Finnish edition
French edition
German edition
An introduction and an excerpt in English available in Books from Finland online
