12 July (BNS) - According to July 12 issue of the Times, Sofi Oksanen, a Finnish writer of Estonian roots, is becoming as popular a writer as the Swede Stig Larsson.

The Times wrote that although Oksanen has sold only a few hundred thousand copies of her books compared with Larsson's millions, her popularity is increasing. The paper mentioned her last book, “Purge”, which has been published in 29 countries, adding that in Finland the writer's status was similar to that of a rock star.

The Times said that despite her age (33), Oksanen has achieved a lot and, among other things, has won the coveted Nordic countries' literature prize of about EUR 47 000 that would be handed over to her in November in Iceland.

“Purge”, Oksanen's third novel, which speaks about Estonian history from the 1940s until today, tells the story of one family's women through their tragic experiences. “Purge” was first born as a play whose first performance in Finland's National Theatre was a great success. In 2008 the novel won Finland’s highest-rated Finlandia literature prize, and in 2010 the Runeberg prize. Last year “Purge” was also published in Estonian and this spring in English.

This year Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves decorated Sofi Oksanen with the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana IV Class.

Oksanen was born in 1977 in Jyväskylä; her mother is Estonian and her father Finnish.