First published 2013
Audun keeps his sunglasses on in class and says nothing when his teacher wants him to describe his rural past. He will not tell them about the cardboard shelters or the evening his intoxicated father fired three shots through the ceiling after his baby brother arrived. The teenager now shares an apartment with his mother in working class Oslo. His family members have gone separate ways. Audun carries newspapers for money and talks about Jack London and Hemingway during long nights with his friend Arvid. The school environment feels like the wrong fit, a route designed for somebody different. He feels other options exist outside these classroom boundaries. Audun moves between the harsh facts of his early years and the gentle experiences that help him continue.
Genres: literary-fiction, coming-of-age, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Norway, Oslo
Period: late-teens
208 pages · Paperback · Picador
Content warnings: abuse, alcohol-abuse, child-abuse