The light in the birches

This audiobook is like a hot, unforgettable summer – one hopes it will never end. An old farm between heath and moor, surrounded by birches and bee fences, becomes a new beginning for three strangers who become friends. Thea returns to her northern German homeland from Portugal after more than twenty years. She settles on a farm at the edge of a nature reserve, where her two goats also have space. A new beginning at fifty-five? Although there is a reason for her return, she doubts her decision. Memories resurface, especially a longing to reunite with someone from her past. Benno has no choice but to rent out the apartment in the old boiler house; he urgently needs money to maintain his farm. Since a tragic event, he has been living in seclusion, needing only his animals, fixed routines, and time for his passion: cooking with everything his garden provides. He senses during his first encounter with Thea that living together will be challenging. The energetic tenant turns everything upside down. When Juli, a young woman wandering to Amsterdam, appears, the chaos seems complete. However, Thea and Juli pitch in to help save Benno's life's work. To his surprise, a wonderful friendship begins to blossom between them, and in the end, this may just be the best summer of their lives. Tessa Mittelstaedt is a theater and film actress who became known to a wide audience through her role in the Cologne "Tatort." As an audiobook narrator, she skillfully expresses temperaments and moods ranging from Nordic coolness to heartfelt warmth.