High-Rise

Original title: Kerrostalo

Author: Hanna-Riikka Kuisma

Published: 2019

Publisher: Like

Genre: Literary Fiction

Pages: 333

Reading material:

English sample & synopsis

Trainspotting meets City of Gods in a suburban apartment building. Critical success and Finlandia Prize nominee in 2019.

When the high-rise was new it was the pride of the city, an example of modern living, a beacon of a brighter future. But today you won’t find happy homes, stylish decorations or successful people in this building. It has become the residence for those who struggle. In this concrete jungle, everything is connected and lives are fragmented, memories shattered by violence and substances.

With multiple narrators, Hanna-Riikka Kuisma paints a hyperrealistic picture of a modern slum - mesmerizing the reader like the best kind of thriller. And not far from Dostoyevsky’s nightmarish and dreamy basement writings.

– Satakunnan Kansa newspaper

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FINLAND: Like (orig.)

Hanna-Riikka Kuisma

Hanna-Riikka Kuisma (b. 1978) is a writer, art critic and columnist from Pori. Her latest novel, High-Rise, was nominated for the Finlandia Prize, and was awarded the Art Prize of the Satakunta Arts Council in 2019. Block of Flats is Kuisma’s sixth novel.

Kuisma’s works explore the dark sides of modern society and the human mind. The intense atmosphere, black humor and the surgically accurate descriptions are balanced by the colorful visuals and poetic language.

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About author

Hanna-Riikka Kuisma

Bibliography

High-Rise