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Arvid Jansen #5
Benim Durumumdaki Erkekler
Parçalanan bir hayatın acımasız ama şefkat dolu portresi…
Karısı çocuklarını da alıp onu terk ettikten sonra Arvid Jansen, tutunacak çok az şeyinin olduğunu fark eder. Boş evini, yatağını, hayatını yadırgar; kim olduğunu pek de bilmediğini anlar. Gençlik günlerinin peşinde şehirde dolaşır, sarhoş olur, barlarda ısrarla peşine düştüğü kadınlarla yatağa girdiğindeyse ne yapacağını bilemez. İlk ayrıldığında neşeli bir zafer duygusu taşıyan karısı da ondan çok farklı durumda değil gibidir. Sadece üç kızlarından en büyüğü ebeveyninin kim olduğunu görüyor, ama ne onlara yardım edebiliyor ne de onlardan yardım alabiliyordur…
Norveçli yazar Per Petterson’un diğer yapıtlarıyla da konuşan Benim Durumumdaki Erkekler ele aldığı hikâye kadar anlatma biçimindeki inceliklerle de öne çıkıyor.
Karısı çocuklarını da alıp onu terk ettikten sonra Arvid Jansen, tutunacak çok az şeyinin olduğunu fark eder. Boş evini, yatağını, hayatını yadırgar; kim olduğunu pek de bilmediğini anlar. Gençlik günlerinin peşinde şehirde dolaşır, sarhoş olur, barlarda ısrarla peşine düştüğü kadınlarla yatağa girdiğindeyse ne yapacağını bilemez. İlk ayrıldığında neşeli bir zafer duygusu taşıyan karısı da ondan çok farklı durumda değil gibidir. Sadece üç kızlarından en büyüğü ebeveyninin kim olduğunu görüyor, ama ne onlara yardım edebiliyor ne de onlardan yardım alabiliyordur…
Norveçli yazar Per Petterson’un diğer yapıtlarıyla da konuşan Benim Durumumdaki Erkekler ele aldığı hikâye kadar anlatma biçimindeki inceliklerle de öne çıkıyor.
256 pages, Paperback
First published September 28, 2018
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1405 people want to read
About the author
Per Petterson
31 books820 followersPetterson knew from the age of 18 that he wanted to be a writer, but didn't embark on this career for many years - his debut book, the short story collection Aske i munnen, sand i skoa, (Ashes in the Mouth, Sand in the Shoes) was published 17 years later, when Petterson was 35. Previously he had worked for years in a factory as an unskilled labourer, as his parents had done before him, and had also trained as a librarian, and worked as a bookseller.
In 1990, the year following the publication of his first novel, Pettersen's family was struck by tragedy - his mother, father, brother and nephew were killed in a fire onboard a ferry.
His third novel Til Sibir (To Siberia) was nominated for The Nordic Council's Literature Prize, and his fourth novel I kjølvannet (In the Wake), which is a young man's story of losing his family in the Scandinavian Star ferry disaster in 1990, won the Brage Prize for 2000.
His breakthrough, however, was Ut og stjæle hester (Out Stealing Horses) which was awarded two top literary prizes in Norway - the The Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature and the Booksellers’ Best Book of the Year Award.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/perpet...
In 1990, the year following the publication of his first novel, Pettersen's family was struck by tragedy - his mother, father, brother and nephew were killed in a fire onboard a ferry.
His third novel Til Sibir (To Siberia) was nominated for The Nordic Council's Literature Prize, and his fourth novel I kjølvannet (In the Wake), which is a young man's story of losing his family in the Scandinavian Star ferry disaster in 1990, won the Brage Prize for 2000.
His breakthrough, however, was Ut og stjæle hester (Out Stealing Horses) which was awarded two top literary prizes in Norway - the The Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature and the Booksellers’ Best Book of the Year Award.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/perpet...
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May 16, 2020
Norveç’li yazar Per Petterson’un “At Çalmaya Gidiyoruz”, “Reddediyorum” ve “Lanet Olsun Zaman Nehrine” adlı romanlarını okumuş ve geleceğin nobelistlerinden biri olduğunu yazmıştım. Bu yeni romanı ise sanki “Lanet Olsun Zaman Nehrine” romanına bir devam veya eklemlenme gibi geldi bana. Her iki roman kahramanı da aynı karakter; Arvid Jansen.
Aslında yazarın bu romanı öncekilerine göre daha basit ve daha sıradan bir öyküye sahip. Ayrılma-boşanma, eski eş ve çocuklarla ilişki, boşluk hissi, yalnızlık, depressif ruh halinde olma gibi sıkça işlenen konular etrafında şekillenen bir öyküsü var. Tüm romanlarındaki ortak tema ise “hüzün”. Belki de P. Peterson’un kendi yaşamındaki hüznü anlatıyor olmasıdır romanlarında hüznü böyle başarılı yansıtmasının nedeni.
Per Petterson romanlarında otobiyografik öğeleri yerleştirmeyi ustaca yapıyor, örneğin ailesini bir gemi kazasında kaybetmiş olması, yazar olmadan önce bir fabrikada çalışması, yazarlık bursu alması gibi. Lanet Olsun Zaman Nehrine’de de anne ile olan ilişkisini, geçmişini veya kaygılarını anlatma biçimini bu romanında baba için kullanmış. Keza yaşamında eşyalara ruhen bağımlı olma hali bu romanında da var, steyşın Mazda’sı ve Blue Master sigarası gibi.
Per Petterson’un anlatımını, yazım tekniğini çok beğeniyorum. Kısa cümleler, basit tanımlamalar, monolog veya diyalog farketmez tüm konuşmalar metin içinde akıyor, ayrı bir cümle olarak değil, anlatımın bir parçası olarak. Norveç’in doğasını, soğuğunu, çok güzel anlatıyor. Oslo’yu bir gezi kitabı kadar ayrıntılı okuyorsunuz, adeta Oslo ve çevresini geziyorsunuz.
Son olarak şunu belirtmek isterim, dört romanı içinde en zayıf bulduğum bu oldu, biraz kolaya kaçmış, cepteki krediden yemiş gibi geldi bana. 4 ile 4,5 arası bir yerde konumlandırdım. Per Petersen ve Norveç Edebiyatına bir yerinden başlayın derim.
Aslında yazarın bu romanı öncekilerine göre daha basit ve daha sıradan bir öyküye sahip. Ayrılma-boşanma, eski eş ve çocuklarla ilişki, boşluk hissi, yalnızlık, depressif ruh halinde olma gibi sıkça işlenen konular etrafında şekillenen bir öyküsü var. Tüm romanlarındaki ortak tema ise “hüzün”. Belki de P. Peterson’un kendi yaşamındaki hüznü anlatıyor olmasıdır romanlarında hüznü böyle başarılı yansıtmasının nedeni.
Per Petterson romanlarında otobiyografik öğeleri yerleştirmeyi ustaca yapıyor, örneğin ailesini bir gemi kazasında kaybetmiş olması, yazar olmadan önce bir fabrikada çalışması, yazarlık bursu alması gibi. Lanet Olsun Zaman Nehrine’de de anne ile olan ilişkisini, geçmişini veya kaygılarını anlatma biçimini bu romanında baba için kullanmış. Keza yaşamında eşyalara ruhen bağımlı olma hali bu romanında da var, steyşın Mazda’sı ve Blue Master sigarası gibi.
Per Petterson’un anlatımını, yazım tekniğini çok beğeniyorum. Kısa cümleler, basit tanımlamalar, monolog veya diyalog farketmez tüm konuşmalar metin içinde akıyor, ayrı bir cümle olarak değil, anlatımın bir parçası olarak. Norveç’in doğasını, soğuğunu, çok güzel anlatıyor. Oslo’yu bir gezi kitabı kadar ayrıntılı okuyorsunuz, adeta Oslo ve çevresini geziyorsunuz.
Son olarak şunu belirtmek isterim, dört romanı içinde en zayıf bulduğum bu oldu, biraz kolaya kaçmış, cepteki krediden yemiş gibi geldi bana. 4 ile 4,5 arası bir yerde konumlandırdım. Per Petersen ve Norveç Edebiyatına bir yerinden başlayın derim.
June 12, 2020
Abszolút véletlen, de pár napon belül két olyan könyvet is olvastam, melynek címében szerepelt a „férfiak” kifejezés. Az egyik Kötter Férfiak fegyverben c. frontnovellagyűjteménye, a másik pedig ez itt: Férfiak az én helyzetemben. Szóval, mondjuk így: ez két férfikönyv. Ugyanakkor két annyira eltérő szerepfelfogást sugároz, hogy amellett nehéz szó nélkül elmenni. (Mondjuk nem is nagyon igyekszem, az igaz.) Kötternél a férfi helye a bajtársak között van. Nem szeretnék ebből olyan messzemenő következtetéseket levonni, hogy ott, és sehol máshol, és azt sem állítom, hogy szerinte a nő helye akkor viszont praktikusan a konyha. De az elég világosnak látszik, hogy a „férfiasság” fogalmának Kötter világában van valami agresszív, kemény felhangja.
Petterson más. Nála adott egy író, aki súlyos tragédiát élt meg, ráadásul a felesége is elhagyta, és magával vitte három lányukat. Ez a fickó eleve introvertált, de most úgy fest, végérvényesen magára maradt. Neki ez a harctere: a magány. És ezen a harctéren semmi haszna sincs azoknak a fegyvereknek, amelyeket Kötter bakái bőszen puffogtatnak. Itt nem menekülhetnek a bajtársiasságba sem – alighanem csak az segítene, ha ki tudnák fejezni az érzelmeiket. Ha ki tudnák mondani, mit gondolnak, mit szeretnének, ha tudnának sebeket gyógyítani, nem csak előidézni azokat. De ha a katonaságnál meg is tanulja valaki, hogyan kell szétszerelni egy Mannlichert, azt nem, hogy kerülje el, hogy magára maradjon. Vagy ha nem tudta elkerülni, akkor legalább azt, hogyan éljen benne. Pedig lehet, ezt kéne megtanulni. Ez az, ami a „férfiak” (ezt most így óvatosan idézőjelbe tettem) igazi tragédiája, nem valami régvolt háború.
Különben meg a szokásos Petterson. Erős, tiszta, pontos, személyes. Megint egy norvég bravúr.
Petterson más. Nála adott egy író, aki súlyos tragédiát élt meg, ráadásul a felesége is elhagyta, és magával vitte három lányukat. Ez a fickó eleve introvertált, de most úgy fest, végérvényesen magára maradt. Neki ez a harctere: a magány. És ezen a harctéren semmi haszna sincs azoknak a fegyvereknek, amelyeket Kötter bakái bőszen puffogtatnak. Itt nem menekülhetnek a bajtársiasságba sem – alighanem csak az segítene, ha ki tudnák fejezni az érzelmeiket. Ha ki tudnák mondani, mit gondolnak, mit szeretnének, ha tudnának sebeket gyógyítani, nem csak előidézni azokat. De ha a katonaságnál meg is tanulja valaki, hogyan kell szétszerelni egy Mannlichert, azt nem, hogy kerülje el, hogy magára maradjon. Vagy ha nem tudta elkerülni, akkor legalább azt, hogyan éljen benne. Pedig lehet, ezt kéne megtanulni. Ez az, ami a „férfiak” (ezt most így óvatosan idézőjelbe tettem) igazi tragédiája, nem valami régvolt háború.
Különben meg a szokásos Petterson. Erős, tiszta, pontos, személyes. Megint egy norvég bravúr.
February 1, 2020
Što sam se nadala, to sam i dobila: Petešun u svoj svojoj korektnosti.
3+
3+
August 8, 2023
And then all the records, and all the bookshelves, and all the years with all the books, my only real friends besides Audun, and behind every spine there was an open door onto a life that was not my life, but perhaps might have been, and in a way already was because I had moored them all to a buoy in my heart, every single one of them, yes, all the way throughout the years from high school and here I had kept them with me, and who would I have been without them, who would I have been without de Beauvoir, without Sandemose, Cora Sandel, Hamsun, who would I have been without Jan Myrdal, Hemingway and Jayne Anne Phillips, without Jean Rhys and Melville, Isaac Babel, Strindberg. All of them and more. Yes, who would I have been. I didn’t know. I would have been someone else, someone I would rather have been, perhaps I would have traded it all for a little more love. No. Yes.
*
I didn’t want to hear about it, didn’t want to be a part of it, and everything turns into dust and comes to nothing, I thought, it all comes to nothing this way, and then I thought, come on, it’s not that bad. But it was, and I didn’t know what to do with myself, if there was a place for me, if there was anything I could hold on to, and it all comes to nothing, I thought, and everything turns into dust, everything vanishes, and the self in me can’t hold anything fast, and everything’s untied, one thing after the other flung out with a sickening swish and is loose and never comes back, as in Yeats’s poem, where the falcon cannot hear the falconer calling, but instead sails over the next stony crag and is gone somewhere between the peaks of Mongolia, or to the west of Ireland, near the Blasket Islands with their roofless houses and the tumbledown stone fences I once had seen through the rain from the tall cliffs at the coast.
*
You can look back, [...], you can long to go back and make yourself believe things, but you can’t go back.
*
I didn’t want to hear about it, didn’t want to be a part of it, and everything turns into dust and comes to nothing, I thought, it all comes to nothing this way, and then I thought, come on, it’s not that bad. But it was, and I didn’t know what to do with myself, if there was a place for me, if there was anything I could hold on to, and it all comes to nothing, I thought, and everything turns into dust, everything vanishes, and the self in me can’t hold anything fast, and everything’s untied, one thing after the other flung out with a sickening swish and is loose and never comes back, as in Yeats’s poem, where the falcon cannot hear the falconer calling, but instead sails over the next stony crag and is gone somewhere between the peaks of Mongolia, or to the west of Ireland, near the Blasket Islands with their roofless houses and the tumbledown stone fences I once had seen through the rain from the tall cliffs at the coast.
*
You can look back, [...], you can long to go back and make yourself believe things, but you can’t go back.
March 15, 2020
Norveçli yazar Per Petterson’dan okuduğum ilk kitap. Kuzey edebiyatının kendine has duygusallığını, sakin çarpıcılığını gayet iyi yansıtan bir eser. Karısının terk ettiği (Murathan Mungan’ın şu dizelerini hatırlatırcasına: Aslında giden değil/Kalandır terkeden/Giden de/bu yüzden gitmiştir zaten) üç çocuklu orta yaşlı bir adamın bu zor dönemi atlatma süreci (aslında öyle bir çabası da pek yok, kendini akışa bırakıyor demek daha doğru belki) anlatılıyor. Konu kolay klişeye kayabilecek nitelikte ama işte yazar ustalığı burada devreye giriyor. Karanlık bir kitap tabii. İçinize işleyen, ama öyle bunaltmayan, edebiyat zevki yaşatan bir karanlık. Babasına değindiği bir bölüm epey etkileyici. Eski mahalle arkadaşıyla yıllar sonra buluşması da keza öyle. Otobiyografik özellikler barındırdığı (ana kahraman bir yazar, yakınlarını Petterson gibi bir kazada kaybetmiş ve bunun travması atlatabilmiş değil... vs) anlaşılıyor. Yazarın diğer kitaplarını da okuyacağım. Çeviri de - Banu Gürsaler Syvertsen - çok iyi. Şu küçük denebilecek Norveç ne kadar zengin bir edebiyat kaynağı, buna da şaşmamak, takdir etmemek mümkün değil.
March 12, 2020
“Artık hiçbir şeyim yok diye geçirdim içimden, bu doğru değildi, bir sürü şeyim vardı. Ama neydi onlar aklıma gelmiyordu bir türlü.”
Arvid Jansen’in hikayesi bu. Tüm gidişlerin ardından sağ kalabilmesinin.
Ölüm ve ayrılıklardan sonra yoluna devam edebilmenin hikayesi.
.
Önce şaşkınlık. Ardından dibe vuruş. Tutunabildiği şeylerin teker teker ellerinde kalması.
Üç kızı var aslında Tone, Tine ve Vigdis. Ve yazmaya devam ettiği bir kitabı. Ancak içindeki boşluk öyle derin ve karanlık ki.. Işığı henüz düşünebilecek durumda değil Jansen.
Onun durumundaki erkekler gibi.
Onun durumundaki pek çoğumuz gibi.
.
Per Petterson ile tanışma kitabım oldu Benim Durumumdaki Erkekler. Yazarın iki kitabı daha mevcut kitaplığımda. Neden bu kadar bekletmişim diye hayıflanmadım değil.
Ama bu kitabıyla tanışmalıymışım, Arvid Jansen’i dinlemeliymişim.
Petterson’un zaman atlamalı anlatımını, okuyucuyu karakterle bir yola çıkarmasını, sokakları beraber arşınlatmasını kendime çok yakın hissettim.
Hani bilirsiniz bir yazar olur ve şöyle düşünürsünüz ‘ne kadar yazarsa yazsın sıkılacağımı ve kitabını yarım bırakacağımı sanmıyorum’. Bu eser bana bunu söyletti.
Jansen daha yürüseydi, Vigdis babasının gözlerine hiçbir şey söylemeden bakmaya devam etseydi de sıkılmaz eşlik ederim yazılanlara..
.
Norveççe aslından çeviride Banu Gürsaler Syvertsen yer alırken (ki çok sevdim!), kapak fotoğrafı Leif Ørnelund’a ait.
February 22, 2021
geçtiğimiz sene çok beğenilen iki ayrı roman okudum boşanma sonrasını anlatan. erkeklerin gözünden. ikisi de beni erkeklik bakış açısıyla rahatsız etti. hiç çaktırmamaya çalışsalar da.
oysa per petterson bu kitapta o kadar güzel bir ayrılık, boşanma, dibe vurma, suçlama, kopma hikayesi anlatıyor ki. kendini sorgulayarak kendini yargılayarak boşanma sonrası geçen 1 yılı anlatıyor arvid jansen ki kendisini önceden tanıyoruz :)
karısını suçladığı yerlerde bile dönüp dolaşıp kendine ve yaşadığı trajediye geliyor. çocuklarıyla arası bozuluyor -klasik- suçlayacak kişi arıyor ve yine kendisine geliyor. erkek gibi erkek. olması gereken :)
ayrıca kurgu, geriye gidiş ve oslo’nun bir ana karakter misali romanda yer alması çok iyi.
çeviri ise mükemmel.
* üç ayrı roman hakkında erkekliğe dair bir yazı yazmıştım oggito'ya. romanlardan biri de bu.
https://tembelveyazar.blogspot.com/20...
oysa per petterson bu kitapta o kadar güzel bir ayrılık, boşanma, dibe vurma, suçlama, kopma hikayesi anlatıyor ki. kendini sorgulayarak kendini yargılayarak boşanma sonrası geçen 1 yılı anlatıyor arvid jansen ki kendisini önceden tanıyoruz :)
karısını suçladığı yerlerde bile dönüp dolaşıp kendine ve yaşadığı trajediye geliyor. çocuklarıyla arası bozuluyor -klasik- suçlayacak kişi arıyor ve yine kendisine geliyor. erkek gibi erkek. olması gereken :)
ayrıca kurgu, geriye gidiş ve oslo’nun bir ana karakter misali romanda yer alması çok iyi.
çeviri ise mükemmel.
* üç ayrı roman hakkında erkekliğe dair bir yazı yazmıştım oggito'ya. romanlardan biri de bu.
https://tembelveyazar.blogspot.com/20...
August 30, 2021
I cannot remember exactly the first time I took the bus down to Oslo city centre to walk the streets of an evening, go to bars, visit pubs and cafés, but it must have been shortly after Turid marched out, the same month, most likely, and therefore one long year after the ship burned with my loved ones in it, as they put it on the news, his loved ones perished onboard a burning ship, in a cabin, in a corridor, they vanished at sea, they fell out of this life not far from a duty-free shop.
Men in My Situation is the latest novel from Per Petterson (see below for a bibliography), this time translated by Ingvild Burkey.
A recurring character in much of Petterson's work is 'Arvid Jansen':
An Arvid Jansen character features, albeit not always with an identical history (these novels are not sequels), as a 6yo in Ashes in My Mouth, Sand in My Shoes, turning 12 years old in Echoland, aged c.13 in It’s Fine By Me (although the story is told from the perspective of Arvid's friend), aged 37 but looking back to his late teens in I Curse the River of Time, and aged 43 in In The Wake.
He is absent from To Siberia, albeit this is based on Petterson's mother who has a similar background to Arvid's, and from the novels Out Stealing Horses and I Refuse.
Peterson has explained that the choice of whether a novel features Arvid or not is dictated by the story, rather than his own volition:
(from a 2019 interview at the Frankfurt book fair)
The Arvids in In the Wake and this novel also have one crucial event in common with Petterson, the tragic loss of family members in a ferry fire. In 1990, when the author was 37, Petterson's mother, father, brother and nephew died in April 1990 on the MS Scandinavian Star.
In this novel, Arvid is 39, the novel begins in September 1992, the ferry fire two years previously. Arvid’s wife Turid walked out a year earlier, taking their three daughters. Arvid's story begins:
It was Sunday, September 1992, a little before seven. I had been out the night before, the last hour in a bar that was once a pharmacy on Tollbugata, but I hadn't left with anyone. That was almost unusual at the time, during that year, for more often than not I would head into Oslo city centre and against my own nature go to bars and cafés and walk through the doors into the smoke-filled loud premises I suddenly felt so at home in, and still against my own nature would take a close look around and think, where shall I spend the night. When I left the café or pub or bar a few hours later, I was rarely alone. When those months lay behind me, I had been to more bedrooms, in more houses, in more parts of the city than I would have thought possible for a man like me. But it stopped of its own accord, I'd wanted to be like a fire, but there were more ashes in my fire now than there were flames.
Arvid's ex-wife Turid has called him, in some emotional distress, not clear where she is, and in need of help. From her description, Arvid recognises the town as a remote one over an hour outside of Oslo and goes to pick her up.
But the main part of the narration has Arvid looking back on the proceeding year after Turid walked out: his own self-pity mixed with the residual grief from the family tragedy; his life (one fitting more for someone in their early 20s, rather than a nearly-40yo-father-of-3) that alternates between taking the bus to drink and seeking one-night stands in city-centre bars, and driving around the Norway of his childhood and even over the border, often sleeping the night in his car; and his increasingly difficult relationship with his three pre-teen daughters.
Memories of the time before the tragedy also make him (and us) realise that Turid had fallen out of love with him even before then, indeed really only her concern for his well-being made her stay a year after the ferry fire. And we see that his habit of sleeping in the car dates back to the troubled latter dates of their relationship, when he would often spend the night outside in the vehicle rather than in their marital bed.
Arvid describes in street-by-street and landmark-by-landmark detail both Oslo and his wider journeys, although I couldn't help feel passages such as the typical one below would be more resonant for a reader familiar with the setting than it was for me:
I got off the train at the Central station and walked out on to Jernbanetorget by the neon-lit Trafikanten clock tower. Now I felt strangely sober, perfectly clear, as if I was exactly where I was supposed to be, in a welcoming calm. Everything suddenly behind me. Turid behind me. The girls too, behind me. Cleansed, totally alone.
I walked up Karl Johans gate, up past Kirkegata, Kongens gate, and after the next block to the left on Nedre Slottsgate and down along the Steen & Strom department store to a bar that was once a pharmacy at the intersection with Tollbugata.
There is a lot of sadness in Arvid's life and in the novel. And indeed, like Petterson, Arvid himself is a novelist, increasingly one recognised in public, this a scene from his first visit to his family's graves, where he encounters another mourner:
When I came abreast of her, I stopped. It may have looked a bit dramatic with the dirty trouser-knees, and embarrassing that she had seen me kneeling before the gravestone, but what's done is done. Hello, I said. Hello, she said. You're Arvid Jansen, she said. Yes, I said, that's me. I've read your books, she said. I like them. But why are they so sad. I don't know, I said, they just turn out that way, it's not really something I can control. iiaLodd, she said. Yes, I said, it's a bit odd. And then she nodded towards the graves, towards hers, and towards mine. Is it from the ship that burned. She said the name of the ship. It was a little difficult, hearing its name spoken. Yes, I said. That was terrible, she said. Yes, I said. Is that why your books are so sad. I'm not so sure, it started before that, I think, it really isn't that long since it happened, two years, a little more. Oh, that's true, she said, I wasn't thinking.
And despite the graveyard setting, Arvid, being who he is, and deducing that she has likely lost her lover, attempts, although without full conviction, to seduce her.
And this Arvid of graveyard assignations wasn't one who I really had much resonance with or interest in. The novel was for me more resonant in the passages where he tries to maintain the relationship with his daughters, perhaps not suprisingly as I have three daughters of a similar age, but more generally this showed a more human side to Arvid that the benumbed loner seeking (and failing to find) comfort in one-night stands.
The novel also has a coda set c.4 years later when his eldest daughter is 16, which felt a little tacked-on, although I assume was designed to show the effect of the parents' estrangement on their children.
I commented in my review of I Refuse that although Petterson had (at that time) 7 works in English translation, only 2 of them had actually been originally published after his breakthrough novel Out Stealing Horses, and that each of those did seem to advance his writing, I Curse the River of Time via more complex language, and I Refuse through a more complex narrative style. Here I didn't see any particular progression, except perhaps in terms of the subject matter of the relationship with his daughters.
Overall, not my favourite of Petterson's works (I've read all of them in translation) so 3 stars, albeit this is partly by comparison to my expectations of his writing.
Only I Curse the River of Time, and this book, I Refuse
Bibliography
Per Petterson bibliography with English translations:
1987 Aske i munnen, sand i skoa (short stories), translated as Ashes in My Mouth, Sand in My Shoes (2011) by Don Bartlett
1989 Ekkoland, translated as Echoland (2016) by Don Bartlett
1992 Det er greit for meg translated as It's Fine By Me (2011) by Don Bartlett
1996 Til Sibir translated as To Siberia (1998) by Anne Born
2002 I kjølvannet translated as In the Wake (2002) by Anne Born
2003 Ut og stjæle heste translated as Out Stealing Horses (2005) by Anne Born
2008 Jeg forbanner tidens elv translated as I Curse the River of Time (2010) by Charlotte Barslund
2012 Jeg nekter translated as I Refuse (2014) by Don Bartlett
2018 Menn i min situasjon translated as Men in My Situation (2021) by Ingvild Burkey
The 2004 non-fiction Månen over Porten (which could be rendered 'The Moon over the Gate'), is as yet untranslated into English, but contains Petterson’s observations about reading and writing novels, where he discusses his favourite authors.
Publisher
The novel is the latest under the Vintage / Harvill Secker revival, from 2020, of the wonderful translated series branded with the Leopard logo, one that brought us so much wonderful translated literature in the 1990s and early 2000s.
Men in My Situation is the latest novel from Per Petterson (see below for a bibliography), this time translated by Ingvild Burkey.
A recurring character in much of Petterson's work is 'Arvid Jansen':
He's not my alter ego, he's my stunt man. Things happen to him that could have happened to me, but didn't. He has my mentality.(from the Guardian in 2009)
An Arvid Jansen character features, albeit not always with an identical history (these novels are not sequels), as a 6yo in Ashes in My Mouth, Sand in My Shoes, turning 12 years old in Echoland, aged c.13 in It’s Fine By Me (although the story is told from the perspective of Arvid's friend), aged 37 but looking back to his late teens in I Curse the River of Time, and aged 43 in In The Wake.
He is absent from To Siberia, albeit this is based on Petterson's mother who has a similar background to Arvid's, and from the novels Out Stealing Horses and I Refuse.
Peterson has explained that the choice of whether a novel features Arvid or not is dictated by the story, rather than his own volition:
When I wrote the opening scene in my last novel, I Refuse, I quickly realized that the main character, Tommy, had borrowed some characteristics from a guy I knew, and that this was so unlike Arvid Jansen that it couldn’t possibly be him. On the other hand, picking up his ex at an abandoned railway station – something we experience in the first chapter of Men in My Situation – is typical Arvid. I know this because I’ve gotten to know him so well over time.
(from a 2019 interview at the Frankfurt book fair)
The Arvids in In the Wake and this novel also have one crucial event in common with Petterson, the tragic loss of family members in a ferry fire. In 1990, when the author was 37, Petterson's mother, father, brother and nephew died in April 1990 on the MS Scandinavian Star.
In this novel, Arvid is 39, the novel begins in September 1992, the ferry fire two years previously. Arvid’s wife Turid walked out a year earlier, taking their three daughters. Arvid's story begins:
It was Sunday, September 1992, a little before seven. I had been out the night before, the last hour in a bar that was once a pharmacy on Tollbugata, but I hadn't left with anyone. That was almost unusual at the time, during that year, for more often than not I would head into Oslo city centre and against my own nature go to bars and cafés and walk through the doors into the smoke-filled loud premises I suddenly felt so at home in, and still against my own nature would take a close look around and think, where shall I spend the night. When I left the café or pub or bar a few hours later, I was rarely alone. When those months lay behind me, I had been to more bedrooms, in more houses, in more parts of the city than I would have thought possible for a man like me. But it stopped of its own accord, I'd wanted to be like a fire, but there were more ashes in my fire now than there were flames.
Arvid's ex-wife Turid has called him, in some emotional distress, not clear where she is, and in need of help. From her description, Arvid recognises the town as a remote one over an hour outside of Oslo and goes to pick her up.
But the main part of the narration has Arvid looking back on the proceeding year after Turid walked out: his own self-pity mixed with the residual grief from the family tragedy; his life (one fitting more for someone in their early 20s, rather than a nearly-40yo-father-of-3) that alternates between taking the bus to drink and seeking one-night stands in city-centre bars, and driving around the Norway of his childhood and even over the border, often sleeping the night in his car; and his increasingly difficult relationship with his three pre-teen daughters.
Memories of the time before the tragedy also make him (and us) realise that Turid had fallen out of love with him even before then, indeed really only her concern for his well-being made her stay a year after the ferry fire. And we see that his habit of sleeping in the car dates back to the troubled latter dates of their relationship, when he would often spend the night outside in the vehicle rather than in their marital bed.
Arvid describes in street-by-street and landmark-by-landmark detail both Oslo and his wider journeys, although I couldn't help feel passages such as the typical one below would be more resonant for a reader familiar with the setting than it was for me:
I got off the train at the Central station and walked out on to Jernbanetorget by the neon-lit Trafikanten clock tower. Now I felt strangely sober, perfectly clear, as if I was exactly where I was supposed to be, in a welcoming calm. Everything suddenly behind me. Turid behind me. The girls too, behind me. Cleansed, totally alone.
I walked up Karl Johans gate, up past Kirkegata, Kongens gate, and after the next block to the left on Nedre Slottsgate and down along the Steen & Strom department store to a bar that was once a pharmacy at the intersection with Tollbugata.
There is a lot of sadness in Arvid's life and in the novel. And indeed, like Petterson, Arvid himself is a novelist, increasingly one recognised in public, this a scene from his first visit to his family's graves, where he encounters another mourner:
When I came abreast of her, I stopped. It may have looked a bit dramatic with the dirty trouser-knees, and embarrassing that she had seen me kneeling before the gravestone, but what's done is done. Hello, I said. Hello, she said. You're Arvid Jansen, she said. Yes, I said, that's me. I've read your books, she said. I like them. But why are they so sad. I don't know, I said, they just turn out that way, it's not really something I can control. iiaLodd, she said. Yes, I said, it's a bit odd. And then she nodded towards the graves, towards hers, and towards mine. Is it from the ship that burned. She said the name of the ship. It was a little difficult, hearing its name spoken. Yes, I said. That was terrible, she said. Yes, I said. Is that why your books are so sad. I'm not so sure, it started before that, I think, it really isn't that long since it happened, two years, a little more. Oh, that's true, she said, I wasn't thinking.
And despite the graveyard setting, Arvid, being who he is, and deducing that she has likely lost her lover, attempts, although without full conviction, to seduce her.
And this Arvid of graveyard assignations wasn't one who I really had much resonance with or interest in. The novel was for me more resonant in the passages where he tries to maintain the relationship with his daughters, perhaps not suprisingly as I have three daughters of a similar age, but more generally this showed a more human side to Arvid that the benumbed loner seeking (and failing to find) comfort in one-night stands.
The novel also has a coda set c.4 years later when his eldest daughter is 16, which felt a little tacked-on, although I assume was designed to show the effect of the parents' estrangement on their children.
I commented in my review of I Refuse that although Petterson had (at that time) 7 works in English translation, only 2 of them had actually been originally published after his breakthrough novel Out Stealing Horses, and that each of those did seem to advance his writing, I Curse the River of Time via more complex language, and I Refuse through a more complex narrative style. Here I didn't see any particular progression, except perhaps in terms of the subject matter of the relationship with his daughters.
Overall, not my favourite of Petterson's works (I've read all of them in translation) so 3 stars, albeit this is partly by comparison to my expectations of his writing.
Only I Curse the River of Time, and this book, I Refuse
Bibliography
Per Petterson bibliography with English translations:
1987 Aske i munnen, sand i skoa (short stories), translated as Ashes in My Mouth, Sand in My Shoes (2011) by Don Bartlett
1989 Ekkoland, translated as Echoland (2016) by Don Bartlett
1992 Det er greit for meg translated as It's Fine By Me (2011) by Don Bartlett
1996 Til Sibir translated as To Siberia (1998) by Anne Born
2002 I kjølvannet translated as In the Wake (2002) by Anne Born
2003 Ut og stjæle heste translated as Out Stealing Horses (2005) by Anne Born
2008 Jeg forbanner tidens elv translated as I Curse the River of Time (2010) by Charlotte Barslund
2012 Jeg nekter translated as I Refuse (2014) by Don Bartlett
2018 Menn i min situasjon translated as Men in My Situation (2021) by Ingvild Burkey
The 2004 non-fiction Månen over Porten (which could be rendered 'The Moon over the Gate'), is as yet untranslated into English, but contains Petterson’s observations about reading and writing novels, where he discusses his favourite authors.
Publisher
The novel is the latest under the Vintage / Harvill Secker revival, from 2020, of the wonderful translated series branded with the Leopard logo, one that brought us so much wonderful translated literature in the 1990s and early 2000s.
When The Harvill Press was founded in 1946 by former Foreign Office colleagues Manya Harari and Marjorie Villiers (hence Har•vill), it was with the express intention of rebuilding cultural bridges after the Second World War. As their first catalogue set out: The editors believe that by producing translations of important books they are helping to overcome the barriers, which at present are still big, to close interchange of ideas between people who are divided by frontiers.'
December 20, 2024
Arvid Jansen, a man ensnared in the aftermath of a catastrophic ferry accident that claimed the lives of his parents and brothers, finds his personal tragedy compounded by the dissolution of his marriage to Turid, who departs with their three daughters. Unable to process his grief, Arvid drifts through life in a haze of alcohol and aimless drives around Oslo, seeking solace in ephemeral encounters.
The narrative takes a pivotal turn when Turid unexpectedly reaches out to Arvid, requesting a ride home from the train station. This encounter compels Arvid to confront the life he has been evading. Despite his emotional turmoil, he must navigate the complexities of his relationship with his daughters, particularly Vigdis, who seeks his support during her own crisis. This moment of connection offers a glimmer of hope and a chance for Arvid to find some semblance of purpose and redemption.
Petterson's novel is a profoundly introspective journey through the male psyche, capturing the nuances of vulnerability and the struggle for meaning in the face of profound loss. Through Arvid's first-person narration, readers gain intimate access to his fragmented thoughts and emotions, painting a vivid portrait of a man caught between the desire for anonymity and the burden of his past. The story's melancholic tone is tempered by moments of introspection and the possibility of healing, rendering it a rich narrative about personal grief and recovery.
The narrative takes a pivotal turn when Turid unexpectedly reaches out to Arvid, requesting a ride home from the train station. This encounter compels Arvid to confront the life he has been evading. Despite his emotional turmoil, he must navigate the complexities of his relationship with his daughters, particularly Vigdis, who seeks his support during her own crisis. This moment of connection offers a glimmer of hope and a chance for Arvid to find some semblance of purpose and redemption.
Petterson's novel is a profoundly introspective journey through the male psyche, capturing the nuances of vulnerability and the struggle for meaning in the face of profound loss. Through Arvid's first-person narration, readers gain intimate access to his fragmented thoughts and emotions, painting a vivid portrait of a man caught between the desire for anonymity and the burden of his past. The story's melancholic tone is tempered by moments of introspection and the possibility of healing, rendering it a rich narrative about personal grief and recovery.
December 25, 2019
Razlozi za čitanje ove knjige su bili vrlo pragmatični. Zanimalo me je kako u drugom delu Evrope (onom delu koji nazivaju "ledenim", a ljude koji žive u tim krajevima neretko opisuju sa "hladni i distancirani") muškarci reaguju na razvod i kako se nose sa novom ulogom - ulogom oca koji nije uvek sa svojim detetom/svojom decom.
Naravno, zanimalo me je i kako deca doživljavaju razvod.
U ovom slučaju je situacija posebno interesantna, jer glavni lik ima tri ćerke. A očevi su, barem u našim krajevima, posebno osetljivi na žensku decu (tu vrstu osetljivosti nisam uspela da uočim u ovom romanu).
Utisak? - Nije loše.
Naravno, zanimalo me je i kako deca doživljavaju razvod.
U ovom slučaju je situacija posebno interesantna, jer glavni lik ima tri ćerke. A očevi su, barem u našim krajevima, posebno osetljivi na žensku decu (tu vrstu osetljivosti nisam uspela da uočim u ovom romanu).
Utisak? - Nije loše.
December 25, 2018
Den gnålende selvmedlidende apatien til Arvid Jansen, Per Pettersons alter ego, fenger bare ikke lenger. Alt går på tomgang og uten retning. Bare en mann som har kjørt seg fullstendig fast i sin egen manglende framdrift, til tross for ivrig litterær namedropping, halvpinlige seksuelle fantasier og krampaktig iscenesatte empatiske tildragelser.
Det er ikke det at denne halvfiktive mannens velfødde elendighet ikke kunne fungert som et dystert, numment portrett av et akterutseilt menneske. Det er snarere at dette ikke er litterært interessant. Det er bare overflate og krusninger uten dybde og underliggende dimensjoner.
Den eneste scenen som virkelig tok tak i meg inntraff mot slutten, der Arvid står og holder datteren fast mens hun prøver å få puste etter et gråteanfall på vei til psykiatrisk sykehus. Men selv dette klarer Petterson å skusle bort i en banal sluttscene som visker ut Arvid Jansen med datter i en tynn stripe dieseleksos gjennom Oslogatene.
Takk og farvel til Arvid Petterson. Eller Per Jansen.
Det er ikke det at denne halvfiktive mannens velfødde elendighet ikke kunne fungert som et dystert, numment portrett av et akterutseilt menneske. Det er snarere at dette ikke er litterært interessant. Det er bare overflate og krusninger uten dybde og underliggende dimensjoner.
Den eneste scenen som virkelig tok tak i meg inntraff mot slutten, der Arvid står og holder datteren fast mens hun prøver å få puste etter et gråteanfall på vei til psykiatrisk sykehus. Men selv dette klarer Petterson å skusle bort i en banal sluttscene som visker ut Arvid Jansen med datter i en tynn stripe dieseleksos gjennom Oslogatene.
Takk og farvel til Arvid Petterson. Eller Per Jansen.
May 16, 2020
Yazarla ilgili fikrim tek, duyguları geçirmekte uzman! O kadar dertli okudum bu kitabı ve aklımda sürekli the smiths there is a Light that never goes out çalıyor!
Yazarla mutlaka tanışın!
Yazarla mutlaka tanışın!
March 24, 2021
Šī grāmata ir skumja un priecīga reizē. To lasot, vajag pacietību, jo tā nav viegla un ātra. Sākumā tā mani pat tracināja, jo virsraksts “Vīrieši manā situācijā” vedina domāt, ka visi vīrieši pēc šķiršanās kļūst tik poētiski apgaroti kā autora radītais rakstnieks Arvids. Jā, grāmata ir emocionāls vēstījums par mīlestību un zaudējumiem, kas mūs katru pavada, un Arvids Jensens nebūt nav izņēmums. Iesaku grāmatu lēnu sižetu un izkoptas valodas cienītājiem.
August 13, 2021
“Cuando dejé atrás esos meses había estado en más habitaciones, más casas, más barrios de los que hubiera creído posible para un hombre como yo. Pero aquello se acabó sin más; había querido ser como una hoguera, pero ahora en mi hoguera había más cenizas que llamas.”
La separación familiar, y porque no decir, el divorcio es un tema que siempre ha salpicado la historia y la misma actualidad. Hago esta introducción, pues a la vista de lo narrado tanto la fortuna y la desgracia conviven en ser humano, siempre en nuestras vidas hay épocas donde la bonanza, la estabilidad familiar endulzan todas las actividades que rodean a la familia, pero si de algo debemos estar advertido es del asecho de los periodos de crisis que acompaña esos momentos donde las luces de la felicidad se ven mermadas, porque una no existe sin la otra. Y esta novela es un claro ejemplo de una familia que en un momento fue estable pero que a medida que nos vamos introduciendo nos damos cuenta de la despiadada desintegración de su personaje, Arvid Jansen en separación de la familia. La triste, pero al mismo tiempo historia de los años de Jansen como padre a tiempo parcial recién divorciado y hombre perdido, es una novela con muchos niveles de significado.
Para Arvid Jansen, la vida se ha convertido en una cuestión de puntos de referencias fijos. Visita viejos campos de la ciudad, se emborracha, conoce a mujeres y se queda con ellas en casa, o conduce en el Mazda, donde también pasa las noches en las que la cama se convierte en un lugar imposible. Ha pasado un año desde que Turid, su esposa, se llevó a las tres niñas. Una mañana temprano llama desde la estación de tren en desuso de Bjørkelangen. Arvid la recoge y la lleva a su casa en Skjetten. Pero, por una vez, se niega a darle lo que pide. Porque en la casa adosada a la que se ha mudado, no encuentra nada de su vida en común, allí está completamente extinto, ya no existe. Vigdis, la hija mayor, ve qué clase de hombre es él en realidad, piensa Arvid, y por eso debe distanciarse de él. Pero al mismo tiempo, puede que sea ella quien más lo necesite. Hombre en mi situación es una descripción tierna y despiadada de una vida en desintegración.
Creo que es una novela aceptable, pero no la veo mas allá de darle una gran puntuación, pues en la misma hay momentos que se producen algunas desescaladas en el ritmo haciendo referencia a hechos. Es un texto que tiene mucho del escritor, pues Arvid es un escritor de novela “sí, he empezado un libro nuevo. Una novela, una novela de amor. Una novela de amor, dijo ella, eso suena bien, pero ¿tiene un final tan triste como el resto de tus libros? No lo descartaría, dije yo. Cómo iba a poder terminar de otra manera, si no conozco otra cosa. No era fácil explicar eso, qué podía haber dicho ella. Era una respuesta improvisada. Estaba escribiendo una novela que no tenía nada que ver.”
La separación familiar, y porque no decir, el divorcio es un tema que siempre ha salpicado la historia y la misma actualidad. Hago esta introducción, pues a la vista de lo narrado tanto la fortuna y la desgracia conviven en ser humano, siempre en nuestras vidas hay épocas donde la bonanza, la estabilidad familiar endulzan todas las actividades que rodean a la familia, pero si de algo debemos estar advertido es del asecho de los periodos de crisis que acompaña esos momentos donde las luces de la felicidad se ven mermadas, porque una no existe sin la otra. Y esta novela es un claro ejemplo de una familia que en un momento fue estable pero que a medida que nos vamos introduciendo nos damos cuenta de la despiadada desintegración de su personaje, Arvid Jansen en separación de la familia. La triste, pero al mismo tiempo historia de los años de Jansen como padre a tiempo parcial recién divorciado y hombre perdido, es una novela con muchos niveles de significado.
Para Arvid Jansen, la vida se ha convertido en una cuestión de puntos de referencias fijos. Visita viejos campos de la ciudad, se emborracha, conoce a mujeres y se queda con ellas en casa, o conduce en el Mazda, donde también pasa las noches en las que la cama se convierte en un lugar imposible. Ha pasado un año desde que Turid, su esposa, se llevó a las tres niñas. Una mañana temprano llama desde la estación de tren en desuso de Bjørkelangen. Arvid la recoge y la lleva a su casa en Skjetten. Pero, por una vez, se niega a darle lo que pide. Porque en la casa adosada a la que se ha mudado, no encuentra nada de su vida en común, allí está completamente extinto, ya no existe. Vigdis, la hija mayor, ve qué clase de hombre es él en realidad, piensa Arvid, y por eso debe distanciarse de él. Pero al mismo tiempo, puede que sea ella quien más lo necesite. Hombre en mi situación es una descripción tierna y despiadada de una vida en desintegración.
Creo que es una novela aceptable, pero no la veo mas allá de darle una gran puntuación, pues en la misma hay momentos que se producen algunas desescaladas en el ritmo haciendo referencia a hechos. Es un texto que tiene mucho del escritor, pues Arvid es un escritor de novela “sí, he empezado un libro nuevo. Una novela, una novela de amor. Una novela de amor, dijo ella, eso suena bien, pero ¿tiene un final tan triste como el resto de tus libros? No lo descartaría, dije yo. Cómo iba a poder terminar de otra manera, si no conozco otra cosa. No era fácil explicar eso, qué podía haber dicho ella. Era una respuesta improvisada. Estaba escribiendo una novela que no tenía nada que ver.”
October 30, 2020
No, no, no.
Quan Petterson fa de Petterson és molt bo, però quan fa de Knausgard no ho és.
M'ha costat prou arribar a la pàgina 100, l'ultimàtum que poso als llibres, aquesta vegada no he continuat.
Petterson quan fa ficció és sublim, però en l'autoficció es perd, com el temps del lector.
Quan Petterson fa de Petterson és molt bo, però quan fa de Knausgard no ho és.
M'ha costat prou arribar a la pàgina 100, l'ultimàtum que poso als llibres, aquesta vegada no he continuat.
Petterson quan fa ficció és sublim, però en l'autoficció es perd, com el temps del lector.
February 6, 2020
Per Petterson favori yazarlarımdan her daim, bu kitabını diğerlerine göre biraz daha az sevsem de değişmez bu. O sakin, heyecansız, bol ayrıntılı İskandinav edebiyatı kalp ben :)))
September 22, 2020
"Después de la exitosa obra Salir a robar caballos, Per Petterson nos sorprende de nuevo con una novela completamente diferente, en la que mantiene la esencia que lo caracteriza y que tanto nos gusta.
Si en la primera, el protagonista se adentra en los bosques y la naturaleza de Noruega, esta vez el autor ha elegido las calles y los locales nocturnos de Oslo como fondo por los cuales Arvid Jansen deambula, sin rumbo, buscando respuestas al porqué de su existencia.
Y es que, ¿cómo tiene que actuar un hombre?, ¿qué tiene que sentir o hacia dónde tiene que echar cuando, de repente, todo aquello que formaba parte de su vida desaparece?
Después de perder sus padres y hermanos en el accidente de un ferry, ser abandonado por su mujer y obligado a distanciarse de sus tres hijas, y cuando todas las cosas que formaban parte de su vida se vuelven, de golpe, desconocidas, el único refugio que encuentra Jansen es el silencio de la noche.
Un silencio que despierta recuerdos dormidos y en el que resuenan los pensamientos.
Petterson consigue mostrarnos, en su última obra, un maravilloso ejercicio de introspección, del que se desprende la soledad ante nuestros sentimientos. Será precisamente este silencio, el protagonista que más nos hable y que nos acabe mostrando cómo, al final, todo termina pasando." Ànnia Paredes
Si en la primera, el protagonista se adentra en los bosques y la naturaleza de Noruega, esta vez el autor ha elegido las calles y los locales nocturnos de Oslo como fondo por los cuales Arvid Jansen deambula, sin rumbo, buscando respuestas al porqué de su existencia.
Y es que, ¿cómo tiene que actuar un hombre?, ¿qué tiene que sentir o hacia dónde tiene que echar cuando, de repente, todo aquello que formaba parte de su vida desaparece?
Después de perder sus padres y hermanos en el accidente de un ferry, ser abandonado por su mujer y obligado a distanciarse de sus tres hijas, y cuando todas las cosas que formaban parte de su vida se vuelven, de golpe, desconocidas, el único refugio que encuentra Jansen es el silencio de la noche.
Un silencio que despierta recuerdos dormidos y en el que resuenan los pensamientos.
Petterson consigue mostrarnos, en su última obra, un maravilloso ejercicio de introspección, del que se desprende la soledad ante nuestros sentimientos. Será precisamente este silencio, el protagonista que más nos hable y que nos acabe mostrando cómo, al final, todo termina pasando." Ànnia Paredes
October 11, 2018
Etter endt lesning føler jeg meg som en etterlatt - tomhet og abstinenser. Jeg vil ha Per Petterson tilbake nå.
March 15, 2022
Here Petterson's frequent "stunt double" Arvid Jansen is a man who loses his anchor in life when his wife leaves him taking their three daughters. Before long, his daughters say they no longer want to come for their regular visits. Arvid is grieving, not just the end of his marriage but the loss more than a year earlier, of his parents and two of his brothers in a tragic boat accident (a real event in Peterson's life that he sometimes brings into his novels). In this slow, beautifully written novel, Arvid struggles to make sense of his life, trying to date and slowly working on a novel. He is a writer of some renown, but coming from a working class background, he is an odd fit into the literary world—a perpetual outsider.
I have read a number of Petterson's novels and each time he explores different territory, even though some of the same elements recur. And despite the somewhat depressing material, his protagonist has an appealing honesty and a dry sense of humour. And he is simply such a strong, confident writer that even in his gloominess, his work is a pleasure to read.
Long review here: https://roughghosts.com/2022/03/15/i-...
I have read a number of Petterson's novels and each time he explores different territory, even though some of the same elements recur. And despite the somewhat depressing material, his protagonist has an appealing honesty and a dry sense of humour. And he is simply such a strong, confident writer that even in his gloominess, his work is a pleasure to read.
Long review here: https://roughghosts.com/2022/03/15/i-...
January 7, 2023
30% mlaka ispovest razvedenog tipa, 70% saobraćajna mreža Osla !?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
March 27, 2025
Ir subtilu, ir jautru, ir visgi neįdomu.
February 26, 2019
Herregud, for en kjedelig bok! Jeg klarer overhodet ikke å opparbeide sympati for Arvid Jansen, en karakter til forveksling lik min egen far og alle andre menn i den generasjonen fra arbeiderklassen.
De lange, indre monologene uten bruk av komma, men med «krydder» fra assosiasjoner og minner, virker påtatte og platte. Og sjøl om Petterson skriver vakkert og det innimellom er avsnitt som gir meg lyst til å skrive sjøl, blir jeg litt sur på meg sjøl for at jeg brukte tid på å fullføre.
Alle disse kjipe bøkene om kjipe menn. Ikke visste jeg at de fort kan bli hele livet om en ikke slutter å bruke tida på dem.
De lange, indre monologene uten bruk av komma, men med «krydder» fra assosiasjoner og minner, virker påtatte og platte. Og sjøl om Petterson skriver vakkert og det innimellom er avsnitt som gir meg lyst til å skrive sjøl, blir jeg litt sur på meg sjøl for at jeg brukte tid på å fullføre.
Alle disse kjipe bøkene om kjipe menn. Ikke visste jeg at de fort kan bli hele livet om en ikke slutter å bruke tida på dem.
March 11, 2021
..nosaukums vilināja un arī ieskats bija gana vilinošs. taču ļoti maz tur bija tās pēc-šķiršanās izklaides, vairāk tāda sevis meklēšana, izzināšana utt. varbūt par daudz biju sacerējies, varbūt arī ne. protams, varēja būt interesantāk, tomēr es izbaudīju. // 3,5*
May 10, 2025
Boşanma sonrası kendine hoyratlıktan helak olmuş bir adama tanık oluyoruz derinlemesine. Üzücü ama gerçek.
June 26, 2021
La vida de l'Arvid Jansen ha patit un daltabaix. Els seus pares i germans han tingut una mort terrible a l'incendi del ferri, i la seva dona, la Turid, l'ha deixat i s'ha emportat les seves tres filles. Sol i desorientat, es lliura a les nits d'Oslo, als trajectes en el seu vell Mazda color cava, a les visites als suburbis on va créixer i, sobretot, als braços de les dones esporàdiques que coneix en les seves escapades nocturnes.
Aquesta obra és un fragment de la vida d'Arvid Jansen, un protagonista a qui Per Petterson ja ha fet servir en altres llibres i que forma part d'una història de més envergadura. Potser per això, i perquè és el primer llibre del seu univers que llegeixo, m'han faltat algunes explicacions de fets que m'hauria agradat conèixer i que aquí només es van introduint amb comptagotes. En aquest sentit, i amb l'experiència de 'Sortir a robar cavalls', pensava que seria una història més complexa, explicada de manera desordenada, però és força lineal i es dedica, sobretot, a seguir l'evolució del protagonista després de les seves desfetes.
No obstant, l'escriptura de Petterson és força absorbent, aconsegueix mantenir-te enganxat a la lectura, malgrat que moltes escenes es podrien eliminar sense conseqüències, però no es fa pesat en cap moment. És força descriptiu, especialment en els trajectes per Olso i altres parts de Noruega, i ens mostra un protagonista molt humà, tot i que fred i taciturn. És un bon llibre i un estil que, salvant les distàncies, em recorda una mica a Murakami. Un Murakami a la noruega. Però a aquesta història, llegida de manera aïllada, li falten coses. Hauré de recuperar els altres títols amb en Jansen de protagonista.
(SERGI)
Aquesta obra és un fragment de la vida d'Arvid Jansen, un protagonista a qui Per Petterson ja ha fet servir en altres llibres i que forma part d'una història de més envergadura. Potser per això, i perquè és el primer llibre del seu univers que llegeixo, m'han faltat algunes explicacions de fets que m'hauria agradat conèixer i que aquí només es van introduint amb comptagotes. En aquest sentit, i amb l'experiència de 'Sortir a robar cavalls', pensava que seria una història més complexa, explicada de manera desordenada, però és força lineal i es dedica, sobretot, a seguir l'evolució del protagonista després de les seves desfetes.
No obstant, l'escriptura de Petterson és força absorbent, aconsegueix mantenir-te enganxat a la lectura, malgrat que moltes escenes es podrien eliminar sense conseqüències, però no es fa pesat en cap moment. És força descriptiu, especialment en els trajectes per Olso i altres parts de Noruega, i ens mostra un protagonista molt humà, tot i que fred i taciturn. És un bon llibre i un estil que, salvant les distàncies, em recorda una mica a Murakami. Un Murakami a la noruega. Però a aquesta història, llegida de manera aïllada, li falten coses. Hauré de recuperar els altres títols amb en Jansen de protagonista.
(SERGI)
December 27, 2020
De vegades sona forçat, sobretot al principi, i de vegades he pensat que tot era massa afectat, un pèl fals, però un cop connectes amb aquesta frustració, desorientació, pèrdua de l'equilibri que pateix el protagonista, és fàcil identificar-se amb la crisi per la qual passa. Quan t'ha passat una cosa com la que li ha passat a Arvid, què pots fer? Com et comportes? Com agafes força i segueixes endavant? Cap a on? Amb qui? I, molt important, per què seguir endavant? I per a qui? Salvant les distàncies, jo m'he preguntat moltes vegades aquestes coses i segur que no soc l'únic. Jo, que no conec l'autor de res, em sembla una novel·la notable.
February 23, 2022
I hadn't read any of Petterson's books since Out Stealing Horses, and because I loved that, I wanted to love this. It just didn't do it for me. I'm pretty sure that if all the mentions of streets, routes, landmarks, and directions were removed, this 291 page book would only be 125 pages long. The stream-of-consciousness narration style and lack of plot line might reflect the protagonist's grieving process...but it didn't make for great reading.
Here are the 2 sentences and a paragraph I appreciated:
"And then I walked across the cobblestones towards the door and up the stairs where every crack in the tiles was an old acquaintance" (68).
"Sometimes it's easy to think about nothing, other times your thoughts form an impatient queue" (121).
"Today I had been in life, in spite of it all, tomorrow I would be pushed back out of gravity. Or rather, let myself be pushed out. And float away. I could see no bridge from today over to tomorrow other than sleep, which was a doubtful bridge. Suddenly I wanted to be where I was, in what this day had been, I had to postpone sleep for as long as possible. If I fell asleep, anything could happen. Anything could not happen. Absolutely nothing, and then I would remain where I was. I didn't want that. I felt less troubled. I wanted it to stay that way. What if it didn't last the night, what if sleep was not a bridge, but an eraser" (254).
Occasionally interesting turns of phrase but not interesting enough to maintain my attention and involvement for nearly 300 pages.
Here are the 2 sentences and a paragraph I appreciated:
"And then I walked across the cobblestones towards the door and up the stairs where every crack in the tiles was an old acquaintance" (68).
"Sometimes it's easy to think about nothing, other times your thoughts form an impatient queue" (121).
"Today I had been in life, in spite of it all, tomorrow I would be pushed back out of gravity. Or rather, let myself be pushed out. And float away. I could see no bridge from today over to tomorrow other than sleep, which was a doubtful bridge. Suddenly I wanted to be where I was, in what this day had been, I had to postpone sleep for as long as possible. If I fell asleep, anything could happen. Anything could not happen. Absolutely nothing, and then I would remain where I was. I didn't want that. I felt less troubled. I wanted it to stay that way. What if it didn't last the night, what if sleep was not a bridge, but an eraser" (254).
Occasionally interesting turns of phrase but not interesting enough to maintain my attention and involvement for nearly 300 pages.
January 22, 2021
Años después de la moda de la novela nórdica y en tiempos en los que parece que la llama de los testimonios parece no arder como antaño, llega a mis manos “Hombres en mi situación”, de un autor noruego cuya ficción está escrita en primera persona y tono confesional. La novela narra la desorientación de Arvid Jansen, un escritor que no dispone de horizonte, ni vital ni laboral, por lo que bebe y deambula. Alguien que teme no acabar su novela y le inquieta no poder empezar una nueva vida. Un hombre que al mirar hacia atrás solo ve la muerte de sus padres, la separación de su mujer y la distancia que han marcado sus tres hijas, por lo que bebe y deambula. Es mi primer acercamiento a la escritura de Petterson y me ha gustado su conciso estilo literario, también descriptivo y minucioso y con muy ocasionales momentos líricos que logran conmover al lector por su forma de retratar la vulnerabilidad de quien siente que ningún camino le pertenece, que su vida transcurre, pero que mientras nada pasa; y que por eso bebe y deambula.
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