The Sami Problem
Sameproblemet
Marie has just become a mother for the first time. She lives in France, far away from her roots. When her áhkku – her mother’s mother – dies, she travels alone home to Finnmark, Norway’s northernmost county, to attend the funeral.
On her way back to her hometown, she decides to write áhkku’s story. It quickly turns into a story about the women in her family, about how oppression has marked the lives of her great-grandmother, her grandmother, her mother and herself, and about how her Sami background has shaped her worldview.
The Sami Problem is an investigation into what it means to be a Sami, a woman, a mother, daughter and granddaughter. It is a powerful novel about Sami culture, language and identity, and a both furious and clear-eyed reckoning with oppression, discrimination and bigotry towards one of Europe’s major indigenous peoples.
Nominated for the 2024 Brage Prize
‘Fearless and furious. Kathrine Nedrejord’s new novel is a Sami indictment against the Norwegian majority society’s oppression, invisibility, mockery, and racism […] Marie Engmo’s narrative voice is sometimes subdued, but just as often intense and furious […] With this novel, Kathrine Nedrejord once again demonstrates her insistent will to analyze the difficult issues surrounding victim and perpetrator. She convinces, both in language and temperament.’
Dagbladet, 6/6 stars
‘She describes the northern Norwegian nature so closely that we almost feel the cold, clear air on our skin … Nedrejord does not let us forget. The novel is both a manifesto and a valuable informative book that should be read by everyone’
NRK, 6/6 stars
