They Know Not What They Do

By Jussi Valtonen

A FAMILY UNDER THREAT. A FATHER'S WORST NIGHTMARE...

On the surface, Joe Chayefski has it all. A great job, a beautiful wife and two perfect daughters. But when the lab he works in as a neuroscientist is attacked, Joe is forced to face the past and reconnect with the son he abandoned twenty years earlier.

As Joe struggles to deal with the sudden collision of his two lives, he soon finds he needs to take drastic action to save the people he loves. 

Gripping and suspenseful, They Know Not What They Do skilfully weaves together the big issues of the day- the relationship between science and ethics, and people's increasing inability to communicate - into an ambitious page-turner of a novel.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Oneworld Publications
• Release date: Nov 2, 2017
• ISBN: 9781780749655

Reviews for They Know Not What They Do

[bettewhitley · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

They Know Not What They Do received outstanding critical praise, having won the Finlandia Prize for literature; for more than half the book, I was not entirely certain why. The protagonist, Joe Chayefski, an acclaimed neuroscientist, who is doing important but controversial work, begins his story by describing the circumstances that lead him to the decision to accept a teaching position in Finland, where he marries, has a child, divorces, and returns to the United States. His life in Finland and his "first family" figure prominently in the narrative, both as remembered events and in real time, intertwined with his second family and his current career.Back in the United States, Joe enjoys professional success, a good marriage and two young daughters. His older daughter is selected to be part of a test group for a cutting edge, but questionable, new technology that uses biofeedback to manipulate interactions and results, causing concern for her parents, but not enough to require her to stop. Joe's university laboratory where medical experimentation on animals is conducted is attacked, and he becomes a target, personally, for animal rights groups.For much of the novel, there are parallel narratives, and it took quite awhile for them to converge, although every reader will know that ultimately they must. At times, I found the writing a little stilted, possibly owing to translation issues, and felt as though I was dragging myself through parts of it. There are, however, significant contemporary issues around which the story progresses, and bu the end, it is compelling.

[brewergirl · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Maybe I just wasn't smart enough to "get" this book -- or maybe it just wasn't my cup of tea. There are several story lines here and eventually they all converge (or most of them do). One tells about a researcher being attacked because his work involves animal testing -- another is about his first marriage in Finland -- another is about his son from the first marriage -- another is about his daughter from the second marriage. The pace was a bit too slow to keep my attention. Other readers apparently like it, but I probably wouldn't have finished if it were not an Early Reviewer copy.

[katybee_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This novel takes some effort and thought to absorb but it's worth the time for the most part. The author does a good job with characterizations and plot although by page 400, I was ready for a more tightly edited version. Important themes include the possible insidious impact of technology in our everyday lives and on children, parenting challenges and divorce, the morality of animal research, truth and lies in media, and interesting views of life in the US compared to Finland. Yes, it's almost too much for one novel. But the book is 4 stars for those who are intrigued by personal technology issues or complicated family dynamics.

[cherylk_44 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I am not afraid to admit that this book was over my head. Yet, this is not a good thing as it means that the story can't translate to all readers. In the beginning, as I was reading this book, I was willing to forgive this aspect and keep reading. This continued on for about a hundred pages and than I could not let it go. There was nothing to grab me and keep me intrigued in the story or the characters. The voices of the characters were monotone and as were their personalities...one note. This book really could have worked if it had translated better for all readers. Additionally, this story needed engaging characters. Plus, the intensity knob needed to be cranked up to twelve. They know not what they do but I do and I am done with this book.

[drneutron_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Joe Chayefski is a top neuroscientist with a beautiful wife and two daughters. When he comes to the attention of animal rights activists, bad things start happening to him, his lab, his family. But the son he abandoned 20 years ago may be the worst thing he has to deal with. Valtonen's "ambitious" and "contemporary" novel won Finland's highest literary honor, and rightly so. It's a well thought out story that mostly deals with the uncontrollability of life and how choices we make ripple into our futures in ways we don't intend. The back cover blurbs compare him to Franzen and Eggers - the former I don't get, the later, oh yeah. There's commentary on our screen-obsessed culture, people caught up in oddness not of their own making, all the right elements. Well worth the read!

[devlindusty · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Thoroughly enjoyed this Nordic Noir novel! Very well written and complex storyline. I received this book from librarything early reviewers in exchange for an honest review!

[pegmcdaniel · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Thanks to the publisher, One World, via LibraryThing, for an Uncorrected Advance Reader's Copy, in exchange for my honest review.This novel is the winner of the Finlandia Prize 2014. The author is a psychologist from Helsinki. He studied neuro-psychology as a Fullbright scholar at Johns Hopkins so he is well-qualified to write about the subject included in his book. This is hard to review without spoilers.The protagonist, Joe, is a top neuro-scientist involved in research using live animals which doesn't sit well with animal activists and Joe and his family become targets. I was relieved to find no gruesome details on the research. There is an extreme amount of technology regarding futuristic mind applications which, at times, left me feeling scared and trying to digest the meaning of it all. Ethics in scientific publishing are covered as well. The author succeeds in getting a specific message across in how important it is to listen to others who have a different viewpoint from yours. We could use some of that in our American culture today.There are many layers to this novel with its well-developed main characters. American and Finish cultures play a big part and that includes both the negative and positive aspects. I feel this chilling novel is too long with the advance copy have 486 pages (Amazon lists it as having 656 pages), but I must admit there were times when the pages turned quickly, just not often enough for 5 Stars.

[hubblegal-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Joe Chayefski is a highly respected American neurologist. At the beginning of his career, he moved to Finland to marry the woman he loved. They had a child, Samuel. But Joe has difficulty adjusting to Finnish life and work. When his marriage falls apart, he returns to the US, leaving his ex-wife and child in Finland. His work flourishes in the US and at the present time, he’s married with two daughters. Animal activists start targeting Joe and his family and it appears that his estranged son, Samuel, may be involved.This is a many-layered novel which I can’t praise enough. There are all of the social issues it addresses – animal testing and activism, the dangers of social media and internet news and the futility of trying to fix the world but still the need that steps must be taken. And then there are the in-depth characterizations that Mr. Valtonen has created. He bares his characters’ hearts and souls to the world. As Joe struggles to save his work reputation, to protect his family from the violence directed at them by animal activists and to protect his daughters from the internet dangers they’ve been exposed to, the author then turns his readers’ attention to Samuel and his mother, showing the other side of the coin. To watch these characters’ actions that lead them deeper and deeper into misunderstanding is absolutely riveting.Animal testing is an issue close to my heart and I find it hard to read bout. Thankfully, this novel, while it delves deeply into both sides of the issue, doesn’t go into specifics about the testing being done.This is the first of Mr. Valtonen’s novels to be translated into English and I am now longing for his others to be translated.Most highly recommended. This may well be my top read of the year that has been filled with wonderful books.This book was given to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.

[5eva5 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When Professor Joe Chayefski’s lab in Baltimore is attacked by animal rights activists and he receives a phone call from his ex-wife about their son being in legal trouble, the two at first don’t seem related, but when it turns out the son is a known ecoterrorist, Joe will have to change his whole life around to keep his new family safe. This part social commentary and part science fiction novel starts out quite slow, describing years and years of the characters’ relationships with each other and the disappointment they all feel. It’s not a feel-good story, this, but rather a barrage of criticisms about modern society and its very many negative aspects. Fair enough, Valtonen does not preach one way or another, but does deliver a multitude of points of view without judging one more moral or correct than another. The novel eventually picks up a little in speed and becomes an almost-pageturner, albeit one with the brakes applied occasionally; Valtonen is very fond of inserting pages and pages of side discussions in the middle of cliff-hanger portions – it is somewhat effective in that it delays the suspense (and, theoretically, creates more suspense), but I have to admit that, after so many times of this, I ended up turning ahead to read the “plot portion” and then went back and read the “side” parts. It was a good read and made a huge amount of interesting points, but in the end, the characters is what lets it down – they are mostly idea and not a lot of personality and I never felt I got really close to any of them; I prefer a writer who lets me get under the characters’ skins and makes me care about them, whether they are good or bad. Interesting read for the ideas, but underwhelming as a novel.