The Flight of the Swallows
“Did it begin with the mean Mr P? Or with the feisty Ms Z? Or the aloof Mrs C?”
Psychologist Christel has received a new patient: Molly Andersson, 16 years old. At least that is what the papers state. But Molly claims that Molly is a dog’s name and that she would rather be called Zadie Moonbeam. The reason she’s ended up at Christel’s is that her parents, whose violence and addiction has forced her in and out of different foster homes throughout her childhood, are finally out of the picture. Now Molly is getting her own apartment, under the condition that she is deemed mature enough for it. And the one to pass the judgement is Christel.
Christel feels a kind of kinship with Zadie but is at the same time struggling with her own problems. She’s been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, but would rather not admit it, not to herself nor to her best friend, her cousin Lisbeth, who has recently retired after a life as an obstetrician. Coincidentally, one of the children Lisbeth has delivered into the world is Zadie Moonbeam. And then one day Christel finds out that Lisbeth has received an anonymous letter. It is deeply terrifying.
In her new novel The Flight of the Swallow, Majgull Axelsson poses questions about humanity, guilt and responsibility, and about how authorities affect the courses of our lives. It is also about the relationship between body and mind, the right to live one’s own life and take power over one’s own destiny.
Majgull Axelsson is a journalist and author with several bestselling works behind her. She started out writing documentary novels set in developing countries, most famously Rosario is Dead (1989), about child prostitution in the Phillipines. Her major literary breakthrough came with novel April Witch (1997) which was awarded the August Prize that same year. Majgull Axelsson’s books have been…
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About the book
“Did it begin with the mean Mr P? Or with the feisty Ms Z? Or the aloof Mrs C?”
Psychologist Christel has received a new patient: Molly Andersson, 16 years old. At least that is what the papers state. But Molly claims that Molly is a dog’s name and that she would rather be called Zadie Moonbeam. The reason she’s ended up at Christel’s is that her parents, whose violence and addiction has forced her in and out of different foster homes throughout her childhood, are finally out of the picture. Now Molly is getting her own apartment, under the condition that she is deemed mature enough for it. And the one to pass the judgement is Christel.
Christel feels a kind of kinship with Zadie but is at the same time struggling with her own problems. She’s been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, but would rather not admit it, not to herself nor to her best friend, her cousin Lisbeth, who has recently retired after a life as an obstetrician. Coincidentally, one of the children Lisbeth has delivered into the world is Zadie Moonbeam. And then one day Christel finds out that Lisbeth has received an anonymous letter. It is deeply terrifying.
In her new novel The Flight of the Swallow, Majgull Axelsson poses questions about humanity, guilt and responsibility, and about how authorities affect the courses of our lives. It is also about the relationship between body and mind, the right to live one’s own life and take power over one’s own destiny.
