The best book for the autumn

I’ve always loved to read. I’ve been a bookworm ever since I can remember. I love the emotions that a book can evoke. I love the fact that by reading I can move far, far away, without getting out of bed. I love unobvious things in books, specific atmosphere and, above all, a writing style which, although not overdrawn, goes right to my heart and soul. 

Unfortunately, I have less time to read recently. But I would still like to write about one book...

I read it a little more than a year ago. I mostly read it on the train when I was coming back from the mountains. That trip was absolutely unique and magical, but I didn’t expect the book I had with me to be like this, too. 

I’m referring to the book “Dwunaste: Nie myśl, że uciekniesz” written by Filip Springer, Polish reporter and photojournalist. This book talks about the dark side of seemingly the happiest countries in the world. It’s about the Janteloven (the law of Jante) which is commonly known in Scandinavia. This concept was invented by a Norwegian writer, Aksel Sandemose, in his book from 1933 and consists on eleven rights governing the individual in a fictional town Jante. This law should be treaded as an ethnic stereotype, but more and more people have started to identify it with a behavior typical for all Scandinavians. 

Let’s stop for a moment. In my humble opinion, it’s impossible to describe this book properly. It’s not a normal, regular reportage; more like great mixture of different genres. Different stories interlace with beautiful photographs taken by the author himself. We come across fragments of letters, fragments as taken out of a novel, various information, statements of the inhabitants of Denmark. All this makes this book so engaging and fascinating. 

Actually, where is Jante nowadays? What is its law, in fact? The conclusions of the book may seem surprising, because Jante is... everywhere and can be present in each of us. But for understand it better, read the book. I will find something new in it every time. 

My evaluation: 10/10 

All published photos are mine.