Ingmar Bergman is, with his father, one of Sunday's children. In America, it is said that the child born on Sunday is happier than other children. Not so in Sweden--they are said to be sensitive, holding special gifts that include the ability to see the dead. Bergman, a true genius, writes a tale of a summer spent in a run down old house, but as a novel. He is referred to as Pu as a child, Ingmar as an adult; I will use the separate names to distinguish in my review.

Pu is a small child, eight years old, profoundly afraid of his parents separating. He witnesses conversations that confirm his fears, freezing him. His brother Dag is rather cruel to him, and he prefers to hold his sister or play dolls with her. He is a sweet, sensitive child who doesn't want his world to fall apart. He wants to use his gifts as Sunday's child to go to a spot where a watchmaker committed suicide and ask him when he will die. This actually happens in a dream; the answer is "Always."

Death is a common theme in the book. Maj, a sort of nanny/maid that Pu is very fond of, kills herself in a river a few years after the book takes place; Pu also sees another dead body float up. Pu often wishes people are dead, but when he thinks they are he is panic stricken. It goes deeper than simple events, though. Ingmar's father is dying in a "flashback to the future." As a priest, he should put his faith in God, but he seems to have lost his faith; he is afraid, and Ingmar is also a bit afraid.

Faith also plays an important role. Pu goes on a trip with his father, who is to give a sermon on the Day of Transfiguration. Pu states angrily that anyone who believes in God is stupid, because he feels God has been cruel to him. Perhaps he really thinks this, but it is more likely a small, childish outrage he doesn't mean. And, perhaps most importantly, as old Mr. Bergman is dying, he takes his son's hand and tries to bless him, the living and well.

Sunday's Children is really about Pu/Ingmar and his relationship with his father. Pu loves his father, and it is clear his father at least likes him more than his other son. He is fond and smiling, but suddenly he will violently hit his children, terrifying them in his rage. It makes Pu want to cry. Ingmar tries to tell his father this when he asks what he had done wrong, but his father insists he was quite mild-tempered. Perhaps because of this, Ingmar feels very little when the man dies, despite some truly tender moments together as Sunday's Children.

For such a little book, Sunday's Children really packs a punch. It's a bit slow in the beginning, but it sets the mood properly. The writing style is so easy to visualize that you can picture the book as an Ingmar Bergman film. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys deeply touching literature, or books about faith or family.