Lisa Ridzéns debut novel is a moving story about Bo and the ageing man’s struggle to remain master of his own life. He knows that he is running out of time. While his quiet days in a rural village in Sweden are only interrupted by his home care team, he reflects on life as it is, as it was, and how it will end. He is reluctant to visit his beloved wife in a hospice; wants to conserve the life they had – literally by keeping Frederika’s scarf in a screw-top jar. He finds comfort in his elkhound Sixten, but his son is insisting that the dog needs to be in a home with people who can look after him properly. He really wants to mend the relationship with his only son but losing Sixten releases emotions that take him back to his former life, his fatherhood and how he expresses his love.

This book is a poignant story of mortality, love and care. Simply told but highly effective.

Paperback €13