AshehougAgency

The Story of Holger Hansen

Holger Hansen was born in a military area in Vestfold some time late 50s or early 60s. His parents were children from the north of Finland who were sold to farmers in the north of Norway. Holger spent his childhood years in Ramsund where his father, Captain Hjalmar Hansen, was stationed.

Holger Hansen is a neurotic man in his forties, who every morning at 8:45 am shows up at the local pub where he sits and drinks. Why did life turn out the way it did for Holger Hansen? A resilient and funny historical novel, which takes place in the years from 1860 to 2004.

Praise for The Story of Holger Hansen:

”Highly readable, written in an appropriate blend of historical sensitivity, tart humour and open desperation … a fascinating novel”
(Aftenposten)

”Trond Davidsen’s fourth novel covers about 150 years in about 150 pages and is still a contemporary novel. That impresses me!”
(Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation)

” The Story of Holger Hansen shows new, bold and surprising sides to the author, who has found himself a solid position in Norwegian literature … Davidsen manages the trick of telling the story of a family through three or four generations in a sort of extended sort story form … With this novel, Davidsen proves he can have many strings to his bow – simultaneously.”
(Dagsavisen)

”Technically elegant … There is a dark, almost wicked humour between the lines, which proves some of Davidsen’s strength as a storyteller: He displays images and situations and lets the reader draw their own conclusions.”
(Klassekampen)

”Exemplary historical contemporary novel … A novel which proves Davidsen’s place in the upper layers of literary Norway”
(Dagbladet)

”Davidsen has a subdued power which implies without explaining. The Story of Holger Hansen is a world of loneliness and insecurity – marked by constant change, everything we don’t know about each other and the decisive power of coincidence. It is and incredibly strong story.”
(Bergensavisen)

”Holger Hansen’s story separates itself both in precision and composition … It’s good to have Trond Davidsen back. He writes very different books, where the plot can go anywhere, surprising and unreliable, but at the same time within a controlled logic, where Davidsen is always one step ahead of the reader. Books like this deserve an audience larger than the number of copies printed.”
(Dag og tid)

First Published: 2006, Forlaget Oktober
Trond Davidsen: Biography and bibliography