Brightly Shining

A moving Christmas tale narrated by ten-year-old Ronja. It's almost Christmas and Ronja's father is out of work again. But now she finds him a new job selling Christmas trees.  

Quote

It's always hope that ruins everything.

 

Excerpt from the Book:

When I got home, Dad was sitting at the kitchen table. Looking up, he shielded his eyes with his hand.
“Is that the sun coming up?” he said. “Where are my sunglasses?”

He smiled, I smiled too. Then he stopped smiling.

“Come and sit here for a minute,” he said.

He rubbed his forehead. But I didn’t want him to start up. This is no way for kids to live, he says, tarmac and all this shit, and afterwards he says, but you’re not stupid, you two, nobody can say that, and you’ve had good times too, remember the tent that summer? Remember the cabin that winter? and I answer yes and no and yes, but I didn’t want him to start up again, so I unrolled the flyer and put it on the table.
“Christmas Tree Seller,” said Dad.

The flyer rolled up by itself. I rolled it flat again and held it down. He looked up.

“But a Christmas tree seller,” he said. “That’s a job for country bumpkins, Ronja.”

“But anything is better than nothing,” I said.

Details:

• author: Ingvild H. Rishøi
• full title: Brightly Shining
• genre: literary fiction
  
• format/type: bookfiction
• country: Norway
• topics: #christmasstory
• publisher: Grove Press
  
• publish date: November 19, 2024
• pages: 92

Literary Awards:

• Brageprisen Nominee for Fiction (2021), 
• Ungdommens kritikerpris Nominee (2022)

My Rating of the Book:

• content: 💙💙💙💙

About the Author:  

Ingvild H. Rishøi was born and raised in Oslo and hers is a wildly willful voice in fiction. She has consistently wowed readers with her pared down yet powerful storytelling, with an acute eye for the wonder of everyday life and for vulnerable characters at the fringes of society, not seldom children.

Her literary career began in 2007 with the release of the short story collection, Do Not Erase, which introduced her as a promising new voice in Norwegian literature. Her second collection of short stories, The Tale of Mrs Berg, published in 2011, was shortlisted for the prestigious Brage Prize.

In 2014, Rishøi received widespread acclaim and popular recognition for the short story collection Winter Stories. The book won the Critics’ Prize for best adult fiction as well as the Brage Prize for best work of short fiction. It was also nominated in the Brage adult fiction category, which was the first time ever a book had been nominated in two categories.

Rishøi’s debut novel, Brightly Shining, was published in 2021 and was instantly deemed a modern classic, solidifying her position as one of the Nordic’s most revered literary voices. The book is published or forthcoming in 29 territories, was selected as one of Oprah’s Best Books of 2024, and is being adapted for film.

In May 2024, Ingvild H. Rishøi received the Dobloug Prize, awarded by the Swedish Academy, for her contribution to Norwegian literature.