, translator = , image = The Sheep Eaters.jpg , caption = , author = Veikko Huovinen , illustrator = , cover_artist = , country =

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

, language =

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

, series = , genre =

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

, publisher = WSOY , release_date =

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...

, english_release_date = , media_type = Print (

Hardback A hardcover, hard cover, or hardback (also known as hardbound, and sometimes as case-bound) book is one bound with rigid protective covers (typically of binder's board or heavy paperboard covered with buckram or other cloth, heavy paper, or occa ...

) , pages = 168 , isbn = 951-0-01837-6 , oclc = 636233007 , preceded_by = , followed_by = ''The Sheep Eaters'' ( fi, Lampaansyöjät) is a humorous Finnish novel written by Veikko Huovinen in 1970, subtitled “Finnish Outing Story.” It tells the story of two men, Sepe and Valtteri, who embark on a special car trip in August. The intention is to hunt

sheep Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated ...

, although towards the end of the book they get enough sheep meat and otherwise only

camp Camp may refer to: Outdoor accommodation and recreation * Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site * a temporary settlement for nomads * Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to descri ...

, also in neighboring countries. That part reflects on the way the world is going, and in fact the events only serve as a framework for the essential content of the book, that is, the discussions of “

male Male (symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilization. A male organism cannot reproduce sexually without access to ...

people” marked by the humor typical of Huovinen, which mixes the boundaries of

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fo ...

and

high culture High culture is a subculture that emphasizes and encompasses the cultural objects of aesthetic value, which a society collectively esteem as exemplary art, and the intellectual works of philosophy, history, art, and literature that a society con ...

. The novel has appeared in a Swedish translation, ''Fårätarna'', 1977, but not in English language. The book was made into a film by the same name directed by Seppo Huunonen in 1972, starring Leo Lastumäki (Valtteri) and Heikki Kinnunen (Sepe). According to Leo Lastumäki, after the film there were cases where a model of Sepe and Valtteri's sheep hunting had actually been taken. The film was a success, it got viewers more than all the other domestic films of the year combined. ''The Sheep Eaters'' play was seen in 2006 at the

Pyynikki Summer Theatre Pyynikki Summer Theatre ( fi, Pyynikin kesäteatteri) is an open-air theatre operating in Tampere, Finland, known especially for its revolving auditorium. It is one of the largest summer theatres in Finland and has been running uninterrupted lo ...

Tampere Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city in the Pirkanmaa region, located in the western part of Finland. Tampere is the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries. It has a population of 244,029; the urban area has a population o ...

, starring Kai Lehtinen and Antti Raivio. The novel made famous '' rosvopaisti'' (

lit. ‘robber’s roast’) that Sepe and Valtteri made from their prey.

References

External links

Lampaansyöjät
at Kirjasampo (in Finnish) {{DEFAULTSORT:Sheep Eaters, The 1970 books 20th-century Finnish novels Finnish comedy novels Finnish novels adapted into films Novels adapted into plays Novels set in Finland