The Finns

By Tarja Moles

What makes the Finns FINNISH: A guide to understanding the Finns that terminates the typical.

The Finns revel in hardship. They are at their best when circumstances are at their worst.

Reviews

‘This is how a guide book should be written. It won’t tell you where to catch a bus in Helsinki, but it will give you a very sharp insight into the mind of the guy who drives it. It tells me things I want to know about the people; things which other guide books avoid mentioning. The first time I read it was to learn about the Finns. The second time was simply to enjoy again the brilliantly funny prose.’
Review in The Guardian
‘This is about as far as you can get from a dry, dusty old guide book. It is refreshing and honest and a wonderful read. If you buy no other book about the Finns, buy this one. It is superb.’
Reviewed by Avid Book Reader (England)
‘Finland is one of my favourite places and this charming book helps to explain why. The text delightfully evokes the character of the people. Smuggled into the string of amusing anecdotes and tongue-in-cheek stereotypes is a surprising amount of genuinely useful information. As well as being thoroughly entertained I learnt quite a bit. Since I’ve just booked my sixth trip to the country that’s particularly welcome and will make my stay there richer.’ Review from ‘Stephen H’, UK
‘I can warmly recommend this book to anyone who has contact with Finnish people, or anyone who has Finnish origins (and may be wondering why he is the way he is).’ Reviewed by “Kati”
‘As a Finn, I can recognise lots of the characteristics described in this book in myself, especially after living abroad for nearly a decade. Love the witty humour and detailing in all the important aspects of Finnish lives. The book is quick to read, so it does not take too much time from our busy lives. I will definitely give the book to my partner (Englishman) to read and hope he will understand me better. Highly recommended!’ Review from ‘Loved it!’

If you would like to comment or submit a review on the Xenophobe’s Guide to the Finns please do so in the box to the right.

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Links to make you laugh

Try these Finnish tongue twisters

Finland Will Become the First Country in the World to Get Rid of All School Subjects

School’s Out
In autumn 2016 Finland’s comprehensive schools will adopt a new core curriculum which has in some critical circles been described as the downfall of the world’s best education system. Educational experts respond to these claims, to explain if there is any truth in them. Click here.

To see how the Finns celebrate Christmas, click here.

Here are ten more facts that make the Finns FINNISH. Click on the image below to read more.

When the future heir to the throne of England, Prince William, and his wife Kate had their first child, they were sent as a gift what every new born child in Finland receives by birthright, a baby box.

Xenophobes_FinnsBabyBox

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About the author

A former careers information officer, English teacher, youth leader and conference host, Tarja Moles now works as a freelance writer and researcher.

A native of Savonlinna (Nyslott in Swedish), Eastern Finland, she was lured into settling down in the UK after an encounter with an English dentist at the British Museum café. She warned him that she had a history of biting dentists’ fingers, but he merely shrugged his shoulders, smiled and bought a pair of gauntlets.

She is a typical Finn in that she loves the sauna, misses plunging into frozen lakes and is allergic to everything. But she believes the genes for endurance sports must have skipped a generation since gentle horse riding on Dartmoor is about as much as she can handle.

You can check out Tarja’s author page on Amazon here: Tarja Moles

Or visit her website here: http://www.tarjamoles.com/