Book notes | Italian Shoes
Henning Mankell is a Swedish author most known for his Wallander detective stories. In Italian Shoes, Mankell tells the story of Fredrik Welin, a former physician who lives in self-exile on a small, remote island off the Swedish coast in the Stockholm archipelago. He lives there with an old dog and an old cat. There is an ant hill on a table in his living room that he allows to keep growing.
Every morning during the winter Fredrik lowers himself into the frigid Baltic Sea through a hole in the ice next to his dock. This, he says, is to make sure he is still alive.
There is an understandable reason why this once successful surgeon isolated himself on the island.
His life changes when a former lover whom he abandoned more than 30 years earlier shows up outside his cabin to confront him about their past. Harriet re-enters his life and takes him to meet their daughter, Louise, whom Fredrik was never told about. Soon, he finds that he cares about them both, and they become very important to him.
One day the now-changed Fredrik watches some ice-skating children jump up after they fall, and he finally admits to himself that he must not let the regrets of the past ruin his life. He decides to make amends for the tragic mistake he made during an operation by looking up the patient who was involved. Thus, Agnes becomes part of his life along with Harriet and Louise.
Where do the Italian shoes fit in?
Louise has an old shoemaker friend named Giaconelli who is a master craftsman well known for the beautiful shoes he makes. Louise has Fredrik fitted for a pair, and the shoes are finally delivered to Fredrik at the end of the book.
Although finding it initially depressing, UMRA Book Club members universally enjoyed this book. As the quirky characters who enter Fredrick’s life emerge, their actions engage the reader more deeply in the story.
Readers with Swedish heritage enjoyed the descriptions of the country. And many readers saw the story as one of redemption in that when Fredrik let people into his life he experienced personal growth.
—Pat Tollefson, UMRA Book Club member
Book Club to meet July 17
Fri, Jul 17 2020, 2pm
Pat Tollefson will lead the discussion of Italian Shoes by Henning Mankell when the UMRA Book Club meets via Zoom at 2 p.m. on Friday, July 17.
Our August book is The Girl with Seven Names: A North Korean Defector's Story by Hyeonseo Lee.
The UMRA Book Club currently has 16 members, a number that works well for our discussions. Contact Pat Tollefson at [email protected] for more information, including suggestions for starting a new book club.
Upcoming Events
We are fortunate to have UMRA member and former Minnesota Landscape Arboretum director Peter Moe to lead this approximately 3.7-mile hike at the Arboretum on Monday, May 6. Plan to have lunch together after the hike at the Eatery café inside the Oswald Visitor Center.
This session will continue the discussion begun in the May 8, 2023 session. See that article for details.
If you currently live in your own home or apartment, have you looked ahead to when you might want to consider a senior living option? Do you have any idea what those options might be? How much they cost? What they provide? UMRA’s May 14 workshop will provide an overview of the world of senior living and the basic information you need.
You’re invited to join the final Family History Interest Group meeting for 2023–24. This will be an opportunity to ask questions related to family history, share insights, talk about recent projects, and suggest topics for next year.
Stephanie Daily will lead the discussion of Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law by best-selling author Mary Roach when the UMRA Book Club meets via Zoom at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 17.
The May 20 hike will start at the Historic Lift Bridge in Stillwater and go along the river to the new bridge, cross over and then back on the Wisconsin side, a total of approximately 5 miles. Most of the route is paved. We will eat lunch after at Brian's Bar and Grill in Stillwater. Car pooling will be available.
Climatologist and meteorologist Mark Seeley joined the U of M faculty in 1978 and has been a weekly commentator on Minnesota Public Radio since 1992. We are honored to welcome him as our guest speaker for UMRA’s May Luncheon Forum and 2024 Annual Meeting. He is always entertaining and informative.
UMRA’s Fourth Friday Book Club welcomes back, for the second time, author Julie Schumacher, U of M Regents professor of creative writing and English, for a conversation about her novel The Shakespeare Requirement.
We are in for a treat on June 3! Lynn Anderson, will lead us on trails at two parks near her Monticello home. Bring a bag lunch and we will gather in Lynn's yard along the Mississippi River for eating and socializing after the hike.
Get out to the ballpark with fellow UMRA members for the annual U of M Day at Target Field as the Minnesota Twins take on the Oakland Athletics on June 14 at 7:10 p.m.
Please join us at 9:30 on June 17, 2024 for a walk around Lake Como in St. Paul before attending the UMRA Summer Social and Picnic starting at 11 at the Como Pavilion. A perfect opportunity to get in a walk before we gather to celebrate summer.
Picnic under the covered, open-air Como pavilion, gaze at the water, spy some birds, catch up with friends and former colleagues, and meet new members. We’ll have lunch with plenty of time for visiting and then compete in teams as we are challenged by our Quiz master(s)!
Healthy aging, mindfulness, fighting ageism, and more will be the focus of the third annual Age-Friendly University Day to be held on the U of M Twin Cities campus.