Pirkko Saisio

Following her father’s death, a middle-aged writer named Pirkko revisits her childhood in 1950s Finland, piecing together memories of family life, political convictions and the first stirrings of her identity. Growing up as the only child of communist parents in Helsinki, young Pirkko struggles to understand the expectations placed upon her. Her mother is lively and theatrical, while her father is emotionally distant and committed to his political ideals. During summers spent with her grandparents in the countryside, Pirkko discovers a world of freedom, imagination and unexpected revelations. Convinced that she will grow up to be a boy, she grapples with the distance between her inner sense of self and the roles others expect her to inhabit. Told through fragmented memories, fever dreams and moments of startling humour, the novel blurs the boundaries between autobiography and fiction. Ultimately, Pirkko discovers that language and storytelling can offer a refuge, allowing her to express an identity that the world around her struggles to recognise.

Set in 1960s Finland, Backlight follows a teenage girl named Pirkko as she navigates the frustrations of adolescence, the tensions of family life, and the gradual discovery of her own identity. She struggles with her relationship with God, her communist father, and the physical changes of growing up. At home, her overworked mother attempts to maintain peace, while her grandfather occupies the room Pirkko had long been promised. Books become an escape, and her rebellious spirit leads her into frequent trouble. When a Finnish teacher recognizes her potential as a writer, Pirkko begins to imagine a future shaped by words and imagination. The story shifts to the summer of 1968, when Pirkko travels to Switzerland to work at an orphanage. Away from Finland, she experiences homesickness, cultural isolation, and the difficulty of understanding her own sexuality. Against the backdrop of a Europe undergoing political and social transformation, she begins to make sense of the person she is becoming. The second volume in Saisio’s autobiographical Helsinki trilogy, this intimate, witty novel explores family, sexuality, artistic ambition, and the complicated process of growing into oneself.