Werezi Books

‘Grandpa says everyone should leave me alone. If I want to be a boy, then I’m a boy: simple as that.’

Writing in the wake of her father’s death, the narrator of Pirkko Saisio’s autofictional novel transports us to the 1950s Finland of her youth, where she navigates life as an only child of communist parents. Convinced she will grow up to become a man, a young Pirkko keeps trying and failing to meet the expectations of the adults around her.

With wit and style, Saisio captures the heart-wrenching intensity of childhood feeling, merging fever dreams with sensory-laden memories as each formative experience – with the Big Bad Wolf, a bikini-clad circus announcer, and Jesus Christ himself – drives her further and further from her family and others. Struggling to understand her place in the world around her, it’s in language that she discovers a refuge and a way to be seen at last.

An unforgettable story of transformation, Lowest Common Denominator is the first volume in a trilogy that has been celebrated in Finland as the best work of the century.

'Playful and profound... a captivating glimpse into twentieth-century Finland through the eyes of a charismatic child narrator. I loved it' Fiona MozleyIn this charming patchwork of fever dreams and memories, Pirkko Saisio transports us to the 1950s Finland of her youth, where she navigates life as an only child of communist parents. Convinced she will grow up to become a man, a young Pirkko keeps trying and failing to meet the expectations of the adults around her. But as she discovers that she can be the narrator of her own story, it is in language that she finds a refuge and a way to be seen at last. In a world where mascara-streaked mermaids dodge tennis balls, a beloved green cap is stolen by the Big Bad Wolf, and the first tugs of infatuation are inspired by a swimsuit-clad circus announcer, Saisio captures the heart-wrenching intensity of childhood as it floods back in the wake of her father’s death. Deeply moving and disarmingly funny, Lowest Common Denominator is the first volume in a trilogy that has been celebrated in Finland as the best work of the century.

'Playful and profound... a captivating glimpse into twentieth-century Finland through the eyes of a charismatic child narrator. I loved it' Fiona Mozley‘Grandma made me take lots of naps. She believed sleep was the most important thing in the world for children. And that adults should be allowed to drink their afternoon coffee in peace.’ In this charming patchwork of fever dreams and memories, Pirkko Saisio transports us to the 1950s Finland of her youth, where she navigates life as an only child of communist parents. Convinced she will grow up to become a man, a young Pirkko keeps trying and failing to meet the expectations of the adults around her. But as she discovers that she can be the narrator of her own story, it is in language that she finds a refuge and a way to be seen at last. In a world where mascara-streaked mermaids dodge tennis balls, a beloved green cap is stolen by the Big Bad Wolf, and the first tugs of infatuation are inspired by a swimsuit-clad circus announcer, Saisio captures the heart-wrenching intensity of childhood as it floods back in the wake of her father’s death. Deeply moving and disarmingly funny, Lowest Common Denominator is the first volume in a trilogy that has been celebrated in Finland as the best work of the century.

‘Grandpa says everyone should leave me alone. If I want to be a boy, then I’m a boy: simple as that.’

Writing in the wake of her father’s death, the narrator of Pirkko Saisio’s autofictional novel transports us to the 1950s Finland of her youth, where she navigates life as an only child of communist parents. Convinced she will grow up to become a man, a young Pirkko keeps trying and failing to meet the expectations of the adults around her.

With wit and style, Saisio captures the heart-wrenching intensity of childhood feeling, merging fever dreams with sensory-laden memories as each formative experience – with the Big Bad Wolf, a bikini-clad circus announcer, and Jesus Christ himself – drives her further and further from her family and others. Struggling to understand her place in the world around her, it’s in language that she discovers a refuge and a way to be seen at last.

An unforgettable story of transformation, Lowest Common Denominator is the first volume in a trilogy that has been celebrated in Finland as the best work of the century.

Lowest Common Denominator

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