I gave this book four stars instead of five not because I didn't enjoy it for five stars' worth, but because I'm not sure if the book itself was the reason I enjoyed it so much. It could be that any other book that had similar themes and language would have been just as, if not more, fun to read, so I'm being wary here and only giving this book four stars.

The thing is, I don't read that much Finnish literature, so I'm not used to books mentioning places/things I have personal experience on. Then along comes a book where Latokaski, of all places, has several appearances, and Nöykkiö would have had too, had only the characters in the book remembered Selänne's childhood home correctly. That alone makes the book stand out from all the foreign books where things take place in cities I've never been in, and makes it a much more personal reading experience.

Sure the book is enjoyable to read, and possibly realistic, I have no idea if that truly is how those people lived in the past, but it also portrays quite well why the Swedish-speaking Finns have the reputation they have. No matter what they do, they never seem to have money problems. Several of the characters don't work for ages, yet still live near the center of the city and only worry about their relationships, not their finances. Everybody seems to know everybody, and jobs are gotten through mutual contacts etc. Finnish-speaking Finns are almost absent from the book, which is quite odd. Can they possibly live in Finland and not have actual contact with Finnish-speaking people? If so, all the more reason for abolishing the sacred position that the swedish language has in Finland. "One nation, one language" is a nice slogan. Now all we need to do is make it a reality instead of a fantasy. Who's with me?