The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
Sometimes I like to read books that have a “buzz.” Such is true for this month’s book, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was published in 2008 and its sequel, The Girl Who Played with Fire is already out, but the Dragon Tattoo book still has lots of people reading it and talking about it.
Here’s a hint. For me (and many people I have talked to about the book) it took about 30 pages to really get hooked. The first chapter is all about a libel trial wherein our protagonist, Mikael Blomkvist, is tried and convicted of libel due to a story he wrote and published in Millennium, the magazine Blomkvist co-edits. The tale of the trial and its results is rather dry reading, but, as the reader comes to find out, everything that happens in that first 30-page chapter is important to later developments.
There are many levels of plot. There is the libel trial and Blomkvists’ efforts to prove that what he said about ruthless industrialist Hans-Erik Wennerstrom was, in fact, true. There is the research (into the many generations of the Vanger family) and the investigation (into the disappearance of Harriet Vanger 23 years ago) that Blomkvists agrees to undertake for Henrik Vangar. There is the series of horrendous murders that Blomkvist accidentally stumbles upon in the course of his investigations. And then there is Lisbeth – the girl with the dragon tattoo, incidentally – her unusual (to say the least) life, her unusual appearance, her unusual outlook and her incredible talent for finding things out. (This is due in no small part to her photographic memory and hacking ability with any computer or program known to man – or woman.)
One of the things that kept me reading was the characters. Blomkvist is a really honest, likeable journalist with a passionate concern for Sweden, its politics and its economy. His co-editor, Berger, is also an honest and hardworking woman. Their relationship is a curious blend of the traditional and very modern. The Vanger family, from Henrik the patriarch, to his sisters and brothers, their wives and sons and daughters are all well-drawn and memorable. But Lisbeth is the character that, once met, held my interest and astonishment throughout.
And Steig is very clever, because he intersperses what are sometimes longish explanations of what Blomkvist is investigating with a single paragraph that keeps tabs on Lisbeth and her sometimes bizarre activities.
This book is not for the faint of heart or the squeamish. It is, however, a very good story, with some real suspense and dread. I highly recommend it. I am planning to read The Girl Who Played with Fire very shortly! Meg
Here’s a hint. For me (and many people I have talked to about the book) it took about 30 pages to really get hooked. The first chapter is all about a libel trial wherein our protagonist, Mikael Blomkvist, is tried and convicted of libel due to a story he wrote and published in Millennium, the magazine Blomkvist co-edits. The tale of the trial and its results is rather dry reading, but, as the reader comes to find out, everything that happens in that first 30-page chapter is important to later developments.
There are many levels of plot. There is the libel trial and Blomkvists’ efforts to prove that what he said about ruthless industrialist Hans-Erik Wennerstrom was, in fact, true. There is the research (into the many generations of the Vanger family) and the investigation (into the disappearance of Harriet Vanger 23 years ago) that Blomkvists agrees to undertake for Henrik Vangar. There is the series of horrendous murders that Blomkvist accidentally stumbles upon in the course of his investigations. And then there is Lisbeth – the girl with the dragon tattoo, incidentally – her unusual (to say the least) life, her unusual appearance, her unusual outlook and her incredible talent for finding things out. (This is due in no small part to her photographic memory and hacking ability with any computer or program known to man – or woman.)
One of the things that kept me reading was the characters. Blomkvist is a really honest, likeable journalist with a passionate concern for Sweden, its politics and its economy. His co-editor, Berger, is also an honest and hardworking woman. Their relationship is a curious blend of the traditional and very modern. The Vanger family, from Henrik the patriarch, to his sisters and brothers, their wives and sons and daughters are all well-drawn and memorable. But Lisbeth is the character that, once met, held my interest and astonishment throughout.
And Steig is very clever, because he intersperses what are sometimes longish explanations of what Blomkvist is investigating with a single paragraph that keeps tabs on Lisbeth and her sometimes bizarre activities.
This book is not for the faint of heart or the squeamish. It is, however, a very good story, with some real suspense and dread. I highly recommend it. I am planning to read The Girl Who Played with Fire very shortly! Meg
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