This by far is my favorite novel we have read this semester. I found it so easy to get sucked into the story and into the characters in it. I think part of this may be because I had seen the swedish version of the film in class a couple weeks before starting to read the book. But part of me is surprised because I thought the film went on forever and I found myself wanting it to be over but I'm sure that's mostly because it was the last class of the week and I just wanted to be done. The novel is somehow different for me. However, so far in the book, not much is really different from the Swedish version of the film. Some of the story lines with some of the characters were removed from the film, like Tommy and his group of friends, along with his mom and her relationship with the police officer Staffon. Because I had seen the film ahead of time, when I'm reading, I have a clear vision of what the characters look like. It may not be exactly what Lindqvist saw the characters to be but I see them now as they are in the film. I think the relationships Eli has with Oskar and Harkan are very different from each other. To Hakan, Eli was an adult, his equal, his beloved. “He had looked into Eli's eyes and seen an ancient person's knowledge and indifference... Samuel Beckett's eyes in Audrey Hepburn's face” (Lindqvist 108). She was not a child to him, at least her soul wasn't. He lusted over her child like figure “but did not have to feel guilt for his desire; his beloved was older than he” (Lindqvist 108). Eli was all Hakan had to live for. Oskar on the other hand saw her differently. She was his friend, the only true friend he had. He could count on seeing her almost every night outside their building where they would talk. He felt protective of her and wanted to keep her safe. Eli was the kind of friend Oskar hadn't had lately, not since elementary school. Eli also felt protective of Oskar. She told him to fight back those that hurt him so they wouldn't do it any more. If he couldn't do it alone, she promised to help him.
I also saw the film first before reading the novel, and so it's hard for me to not think about the film as I read the book. I'm wondering if you or anyone else reading this blog has considered the atmospheric nature of the film, how it juxtaposes light and dark and claustrophobia and expansive spaces? I also think the presence of the government high rises is so important, and I'm wondering if you or other people could talk about the "setting" of the film/novel and how this manufactured space could produce such a creature as a vampire?
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I have never seen the film version of this novel (although I've been meaning to for quite some time), so I can't really comment on that.
ReplyDeleteHowever, one part of your post that caught my attention was how much you said you were drawn to this book and how it sucked you in. While I agree with you that the story and characters are very interesting to read about, I'd have to say that I wasn't exactly "sucked in" by this book. While I enjoyed it a lot, I found myself having to force myself to keep reading because I was often somewhat repelled by the creepier aspects of the book, such as the relationship between Eli and Hakan. Do you think that seeing the film first maybe helped to prepare you for these themes? Because I didn't know what to expect with this book, and I felt as though I was a little unprepared, mentally, to read such a dark story. I kind of have to get myself in a good mindset to read books like "Let the Right One In", because I am very much a product of what I read or watch, so if something is very dark and creepy, it makes me feel kind of gloomy and uneasy. Is that just me?
I find it interesting that Lindqvist mentions "Samuel Beckett's eyes in Audrey Hepburns face". I'm taking a theatre class and we've looked at a few of Samuel Beckett's plays and they're all very jumpy and minimalist. There isn't a lot of extra stuff on the stage and the characters sometimes don't even move, just talk. I think that says a lot about Eli. Her mind has gone minimalist and bleak. She only thinks of the things that are necessary, which is why she doesn't understand emotions. She doesn't deem them necessary, therefore she doesn't take the time to try to understand them. This would explain her general attitude and why she seems somewhat lost whenever Oskar talks to her. And why she doesn't understand how love works when she's talking to Hakan. Beckett himself had a very bleak outlook on society which could also account for Eli's distant nature.
ReplyDeleteActually, the film didn't include the fact that Hakan was a pedophile. I think why I am sucked into the book is because I'm looking for the differences between the novel and the film. When we were talking in my film class after watching the movie my teacher mentioned that in the book Hakan was a pedophile which really surprised me. I am definitely creeped out by Hakan and this aspect of the book but somehow I still enjoy the rest.
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