A Northern Light in Provence

Birkelund (The Runaway Wife) sets her enchanting tale of love and loss in exotic Greenland and sun-dappled Provence. Translator Ilse Lund, 35, has built a career on Greenlandic editions of French literature, despite never setting foot in France. When a publisher offers her a lucrative and prestigious job translating renowned poet Geoffrey Labaye, Ilse insists she needs to spend several weeks in Provence with the author. To her surprise, her publisher agrees. The trip for Ilse, who's never left Greenland, is life-changing. Labaye opens her eyes to afternoon aperitifs, the game of boules, and other aspects of French culture, and she learns how some things can't quite be explained in French until they're experienced. Then Labaye is diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and Ilse, realizing her work will be cut short and having fallen in love with the country, considers moving to France full time. Birkelund constructs a rich world replete with real emotional stakes and lovely insights on how translation relates to life ("Qaatsit ataasiinnaat naammanngillat," in Greenlandic, translates as "One language is never enough"). This sumptuous tale deserves a wide audience. (May)