Greta Thunberg: "Scenes from the heart" | Books | '
In Sweden, "Scenes from the Heart" already appeared in August 2018 – at a time when Greta Thunberg had just begun her world climate strikes. And the book was not written by Greta Thunberg, but mainly by her mother Malena Ernman – even if Greta's name is mentioned on the cover of the German edition first and foremost, because that is probably better sell. In addition, the co-authors are the names of their parents and sister Beata.
"Scenes from the Heart" tells how Greta became what she is – which is likely to interest many people given her celebrity. On the Swedish original "Scener ur hjärtat", however, was not to see Greta on the cover, but her mother. Malena Ernman is an opera singer and represented Sweden at the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest. At that time she was a celebrity in the family.
Malena Ernman on the cover of the Swedish original edition (August 2018)
Abyss on the verge of luck
Since Greta started her school strikes, "many things have changed," writes Malena Ernman in the foreword to the German edition. "Both for Greta and for our family, on some days it almost seems like a dream." And she adds that she'll tell about it in the next book. So there will be a sequel.
But first, this book is about Malena Ernman herself, about her life with her husband, the actor Svante Thunberg, and her two daughters Greta and Beata. It tells of the years when the couple toured Europe with their children as a family of artists, the happiness of their parents and the crisis that hit them when Greta suddenly stopped eating in the fifth grade and continued to lose weight.
Malena Ernman describes scenes and fears that should appeal to many parents. It gives insights into the life of a family in which suddenly nothing works as it should.
Deficit or strength?
Finally, Greta is diagnosed with Asperger syndrome; with her younger sister Beata, who regularly has tantrums, ADHD. At some point, the family situation will stabilize again, but a new topic is driving them: climate change. Greta learned about it at school and is deeply shocked. She manages to sensitize her family and later on people worldwide for climate protection. Greta finds her mission and becomes the role model of many young people.
Today more famous than her mother: Greta Thunberg on the book cover of the German edition 2019
Her perseverance leads Greta back to Asperger syndrome. "If I did not have Asperger, that would not have been possible here," she said in February in an interview with Second German Television. "I just kept living and thinking like everyone else, seeing the world from a different perspective – black and white." As a result, she is not necessarily more radical, but definitely more realistic.
Exactly this leads her mother in the book to the conclusion that Asperger and ADHD "in itself no handicap", but sometimes a "superpower". One may find the phrasing and also the conclusions Malena Ernman draws in many places in the book. But there's no doubt that Greta's clear voice is a force.
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