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Ditte

Girl Alive!

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Pages: 181

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About this book

On a Danish coast where the sea steadily eats away farmland, Ditte belongs to a family whose hard work has brought little security. Martin Andersen Nexø opens this novel with an account of her ancestors, moving from a playful family legend to the depleted holding of Sören and Maren. Fishing, field labour, service and emigration shape the family's prospects. Their pride in the land survives even as their means of living grow smaller.

Ditte's own concerns bring that history into the household. She longs to be near her grandmother, but doubts her mother Sörine's plans to take charge of the older woman and her belongings. Lars Peter's affection for his poor soil offers another view of attachment and need. Available in English translation, the story gives readers a close look at childhood under financial pressure, where a small kindness can soften distrust without removing its cause.

About the author

Martin Andersen Nexø

Martin Andersen Nexo (1869-1954) was a Danish novelist and a leading voice of European proletarian literature. Raised in poverty in Copenhagen and on the island of Bornholm, he drew on that hard early life in Pelle the Conqueror and Ditte, Daughter of Man. He remained a lifelong socialist.