Astrid and Veronika is a story of friendship and its power to change lives.  Astrid is a reclusive older woman, known as “the witch” by locals in her remote Swedish village.  Veronika, a young woman mourning the loss of a loved one, moves into the house directly across the street from Astrid. It takes a long time for the two to meet face-to-face; at first Veronika simply waves at the house as she passes on her daily walk, not sure whether she is even noticed. Their initial meeting is a tentative encounter, but sows the seeds of a friendship develops over the course of the novel.

 

The two women spend a lot of their time together on walks, or having dinner. And as is the case with most female friendships, they spend a lot of time talking. They begin sharing their personal stories; Veronika has spent her life searching for love and a sense of place; Astrid’s life has been solitary, full of loss and devoid of love. Entire chapters are devoted to one woman recounting a significant event in her life.   I experienced Astrid and Veronika as an audiobook, and this format worked quite well, especially for the “storytelling” chapters where it felt as if I were right there at the kitchen table with them. 

 

Linda Olsson’s language is quite deliberate. She provides tremendous detail in setting each scene. The simplest acts are embellished with visual details. For example, where one author might write, “She sat down on the grass,” Olsson would write something like, “She sat down on the grass, her legs stretched out in front of her, hands folded in her lap.”  This same technique was used time and again, whether the women were sitting, standing, walking, driving, cooking, etc.  This resulted in some repetition: Astrid seemed to fold her hands across her chest a lot; Veronika was often naked in front of a mirror! 

 

While it’s clear that Olsson wants the reader to see how the friendship changed the lives of both women, Veronika’s impact on Astrid came across more clearly than Astrid’s influence on Veronika.  Veronika seemed a bit shallow throughout. Nevertheless, I found this a poignant and beautiful story that I can easily recommend to others.  ( )