Väinö Linna

In the beginning there were the swamp, the hoe – and Jussi.

— Väinö Linna

As we all know, the Lord is almighty – he knows all and sees far. And so, one day, he let forest fire burn a good swath of state land, laying waste to acres of the dry, pine forest around the town of Joensuu. The people did everything in their power to put a stop to his work, as they always did, but he burned the forest undeterred, just as far as it suited him. He had his own plans.

— Väinö Linna

The younger troops assumed their ranks. There they stood, bumbling into lines with a bit of difficulty: Mother Finland's chosen sacrifice to world history.

— Väinö Linna

Once Koskela saw that the guns were ready to go, he called out, 'Shoot for their nuts!'

— Väinö Linna

They made it to the swamp and Kaarna pounced immediately. 'What's going on here? What's this? Look here, you boys have made a mess of this whole thing. Ay-ay-ay! Boys, boys, this isn't how you fight a war. Noo-oo-ooo. Fighting like this isn't going to get you anywhere. Now, we're going to pull ourselves together and cross this little swamp. The others are already at the enemy positions.'

— Väinö Linna

'Are you motherfuckers deaf? Shoot here ... down here ... follow my voice ... my gun ... aaahh ...'

— Väinö Linna

'Koskela the Finn. Eats iron and shits chains.'

— Väinö Linna

'The battalion can operate very well without you. No man is indispensable in a war, no matter who he is.'

— Väinö Linna

Jorma Kariluoto had paid his dues into the common pot of human idiocy.

— Väinö Linna

'Finnish president Risto Ryti and the National Orchestra proudly present ... a polka: "Up Shit Creek Without a Fucking Paddle".'

— Väinö Linna

'The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics won, but racing to the line for a strong second place came feisty little Finland.'

— Väinö Linna

Rather dear, those boys.

— Väinö Linna