posted on 05 Dec 2019

A Postcard to Ollis by Ingunn Thon, illustrated by Nora Brech

The cover picture of a jolly looking hairy man cradling a tiny baby in his huge arms really appealed to me for some reason. I was very pleased to see that there were plenty more illustrations throughout the book which added to the rather surreal atmosphere of the novel. The narrator of this unusual story is the baby, now grown to be a rather cross but feisty ten year old girl who is finding life very challenging. Ollis has been named by her mother for five women who played an important role in Norwegian history: Oda, Lise, Louise, Ingrid and Sonja and details about these real women appear on the inside back cover of the book. The man in the cover photo is her long gone father who she misses bitterly but she has kept him at the forefront of her mind, romanticising their history so well that she almost believes it is real herself.

Her mother now has a relationship with a new boyfriend, Einar and they have a much adored baby son together. Ollis is very impressed with her little brother Ian, but finds that she cannot abide Einar with ‘his stupid clucking laugh’ , especially as he has recently moved into their home. The bottom line is that she is jealous and very insecure about the newly figured family and so goes out of her way to be as sulky and un-cooperative as possible. Luckily she has a very close friend, Gro who helps her to still enjoy life and have adventures. One day as they are exploring in the nearby birch forest together, they come across a postcard in mysterious yellow mailbox. The plot thickens when they see that it is addressed to Ollis and seems to be a birthday greeting from her dad! After other visits, the pair are no closer to solving the mystery. They have a breakthrough when they spot a tall strange looking woman collecting lots of letters from the letterbox.  She is not at all pleased to meet them at first, but eventually tells them that her name is Borgny Klokk. I liked this intriguing, eccentric and garrulous character who describes herself as:

 ‘a singer. And a poet. And a painter. And a professor. Outdoor enthusiast, outdoor critic and botanist’. 

Who on earth is she and why is she living alone in the forest? In a rather Alice in Wonderlandish, matter of fact way, she explains to the two girls that she reads all the letters and postcards that arrive in the letterbox every day and then files them away safely in her basement because:.

‘All I know is that the letters that come here are the ones that don’t have anywhere to go’.

Ollis understandably becomes fixated on tracking down her father and when she discovers that there are lots more from him stashed away in the basement, she is keen to find him and to start a new life with him. This becomes even more urgent when she discovers that her mum and the dreadful Einar are planning to get married.

Her subsequent quest to find her dad reveals her determination and bravery and also makes her reflect on the importance of family and friendship. I won’t spoil the story by telling you what happens when she tracks him down – I found it quite affecting and surprising. This is the beauty of this emotional story - there is a nice mix of magic and reality which somehow defines childhood. The fact that it is set in Norway gives it something of a special fairy tale atmosphere.

This charming novel about complex family relationships and personal courage is a debut for both author and illustrator, and I am very much looking forward to their future creative collaboration. I will certainly be recommending it to children with big imaginations.

Karen Argent

December 2019