The English translation
of this very good Swedish thriller has the same name: Stallo, and,
though I cannot comment on the translation, the original - all 592
pages - is definitely worth reading. Stefan Spjut's writing,
especially his descriptions, is magnificent. He paints detailed
pictures of small everyday, almost unessential, things and actions,
and the reader has no choice other than to be physically drawn into the
story.
Stallo (a Lappish word) describes a troll that can 'hide'
using animal forms, and the book is basically about trolls, elves,
goblins and other supernatural creatures - some of them kind, others
completely the opposite. The story revolves around a lost child and
the three people - Susso, her mother, Gudrun, and her ex-boyfriend,
Torbjörn - who criss-cross over the length and breadth of Sweden,
trying to find out what happened and why. Not all questions are
answered, but I feel that the author's main goal with this book is to
make people think about how the supernatural affects our everyday
lives, how we relate to nature and animals (so much part of our
lives), and the parent-child relationship. Consequently, there must
remain some questions without answers.
If I am to criticize
anything, it would have to be the use of real people: John Bauer and
Sven and Barbro Jerring among several. All these people are now
deceased, so it is difficult to know if their viewpoints and
experiences actually paralleled those described in the book. It is,
of course, possible that Stefan Spjut is privy to special information
about these people, but if this is not the case the inclusion of
such people creates not only
question marks and raised eyebrows but also a weak point in an
otherwise masterfully executed story.