Bibliography
1990 Two Secrets
1991 Yellow Glow
1994 Turning Point
1997 Leaves of the Miracle Tree
2000 Teo
2002 Flood
2004 Birth of a Travelling Salesman
2009 Self help
2011 Red Whirl
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Author: Sami Parkkinen
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Sami Parkkinen (born in 1962) is a multi-talented writer. He studied dramaturgy at Theatre Academy, Helsinki. As well as prose, Parkkinen has written plays, opera and ballet librettos, and film scripts. He has also translated novels, songs and plays.
Red Whirl is Sami Parkkinen's ninth novel, and is the first installation in an extended series of books, each of which will describe one of the seven Chakras. Parkkinen explains that he has always been interested in spiritual matters, even though he does not consider himself to be religious. “The world of Chakras is endlessly fascinating and rich in mythology, spirituality, medicine and in a pure narrative sense,” Parkkinen justifies his choice of subject. Red Chakra, at the core of the first instalment of the series, is the Chakra for survival. Parkkinen explains that its energy is dark and has strong and violent shades. Stories depicting Red Chakra often deal with the end of the world and with remote, abandoned places, They focus on people and on milieus that are faced with the confrontation between life and death. Parkkinen reveals that the worlds of future instalments will be very different from the world of this first instalment. “For instance the Orange Chakra, depicted in the next instalment, contains the energy centre for sexuality, fear and money. The events of the first instalment take place at the darkest time of the year in a dreary landscape, whereas the events of the second instalment occur at midsummer,” Parkkinen explains. Parkkinen and his family lives in the small town of Sastamala, where they own an old early 20th century house. The hot summers and harsh winters so typical of the Nordic climate add extra colour to the author's life and writing. "With four wood-burning fires in the house, I have to chop lots of firewood, and this winter I had to shovel snow rather more than usual. Having to wait till the fires have gone out properly in order to close the dampers means that I often have only started writing late at night when everyone else is asleep." Prizes and nominations: Prize awarded by the Nuoren Voiman Liitto association, 1987 Literary prize awarded by the publishers Gummerus, 1995 Nominated for the Finlandia Prize, 2000 (title: Teo) Nominated for the Teosto Prize, 2006 Reviews: “Red Whirl by Sami Parkkinen deals with important issues. The novel is a critique of a world in which technology advances at a frightening pace. It questions the wisdom of modern man's blind faith in medicine; a faith that no longer seeks to improve man’s wellbeing, but instead tries to turn him into God. The novel is also a narrative of one man’s self-discovery, and of a meeting between East and West. We can therefore say that the novel’s building blocks are typical of Parkkinen, and are thus sufficiently substantial.” Satakunnan Kansa “Sami Parkkinen takes his reader straight to the point. The background to the characters and the action is given through flashbacks or momentary glimpses. The narrative is fluent and natural. The author’s masterful sense of rhythm manifests his understanding of drama, and the changing angles are kept skilfully together. In places, the novel is lightened by its cartoonish and cinematic qualities, such as its black humour. Red Whirl continues Sami Parkkinen’s familiar handling of ethical questions. On the surface, Red Whirl is a sci-fi novel. On another level, the novel describes an individual’s search for solutions in the battle for a decent life. It shows plenty of possibilities, but leaves the final conclusions to the reader.” Lapin Kansa “Red Whirl is an unusual combination of sci-fi, techno thriller and existentialist genres. The novel follows the pattern of techno-thrillers, but its storyline takes an unexpected turn. ‘What a strange book,’ I reflected when I finished reading the book, which is not such a bad thing.” Helsingin Sanomat |
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