In Transit review

Taivassalo’s works span drama and prose, but always with a poetic touch, and In Transit is no exception. At almost 500 pages, the novel takes a little time to get going and even when in full flow takes a winding, meandering approach, with no detail spared in the flowing, poetic descriptions of the lives and thoughts of its three main characters, often eschewing action in favour of delving deep into an analysis of a particular detail. The book follows the paths of Galadriel, Sem and Vera, three members of the same family with wildly different lives but much in common. Sem’s chapters, written, like the others, in a mixture of first and third person, focus primarily on his contemplations on death, as it draws ever closer, and his youth in rural Finland and Stockholm. Vera, Sem’s sister-in-law, is also often drawn back to her youth, to forbidden and lost love and the paths not taken. In contrast, Galadriel, Sem’s granddaughter, takes full advantage of her youth to make sure she explores every path, travelling around the world at will and creating new relationships – conventional and forbidden – with carefree abandon.

The narrative has a tendency to flit haphazardly between past and present, action and reflection and from character to character. Whilst this is undoubtedly intentional, it can make the already loose plot somewhat difficult to follow at times. The characters take in their stride all manner of major events and phenomena that might warrant entire books of their own – from miscarriage and unfaithfulness to lost love and death – often reflecting on them in a somewhat detached way. In Transit features relatively little dialogue, with thoughts, ponderings and actions providing the bulk of the narrative, meaning that some situations only become clear some time after they are first mentioned, as the character returns to reflect on and replay events in their mind.

Galadriel’s story, in contrast to those of Vera and Sem, takes place primarily outside Finland, offering glances into her life as she travels between Los Angeles, London, Mumbai and Svalbard, and more in between. Seemingly unencumbered by practicalities such as visas, expensive flights and language barriers, she flits between jobs, countries and people at a whim, as she pleases. As with the book in general, the destination is very much secondary to the journey itself, and any supporting characters who appear are liable to disappear without a trace as Galadriel, and to a lesser extent Vera and Sem, lose interest and the story moves on to the next tangent.

For those who prefer their books with a clearly defined beginning, middle and end, and with a relatively clear and chronological plot, In Transit may not be the ideal choice. However, those who are willing to surrender to the flow of the narrative, twisting and turning as it goes, and those who prefer their prose deeply descriptive, verging on the poetic, and with a great deal to read between the lines, may find this a rewarding read.