In his first work of fiction since the six volumes of My Struggle, Knausgaard trades his bracingly autobiographical mode for a ravishing form of theologically infused fabulism. A mysterious celestial body appears in the late-August sky, accompanied by Biblical omens, hallucinations, and increasingly uncanny events in the natural world. Tracing the lives of nine interconnected characters, Knausgaard sets these enigmatic phenomena against the minutiae of everyday life. This combination of the universal and the intimate enables the novel to approach weighty subjects death and dying, belief and despair with both the thrust of a suspense narrative and the depth of a philosophical inquiry. The New Yorker
Knausgaard s sentences, in Martin Aitken's translation, are both plainly direct and lyrically, emotionally elevated . . . Symphonic. Heidi Julavits, New York Times Book Review
Knausgaard retains the ability to lock you, as if in a tractor beam, into his storytelling. He takes the mundane stuff of life the need to take a leak, the joy of killing pesky flies and essentializes them . . . Knausgaard is among the finest writers alive. Dwight Garner, New York Times
[Knausgaard s] imagination functions perfectly. . . . Just as we begin to wonder where he is taking us, whether he is capable, he gets us there. Actually he does what we might never have expected of Knausgaard: he carries us into a Land, like a part-animal or genderless guide. Patricia Lockwood, London Review of Books
[Knausgaard] reveals himself to be a surprise master of the uncanny . . . The storytelling gift that kept readers enthralled by My Struggle remains powerful. Like Stephen King, another inspiration here, Knausgaard stays shoulder-close to his characters, his paragraphs mimicking the erratic interleaving of their thoughts . . . This is a thoughtful, highly readable novel, packed with ideas and exciting flourishes. Charles Arrowsmith, Los Angeles Times
Without quite turning into Stephen King, Knausgaard has managed a page-turner that s recognizably his own. The true sign of the master s touch: he writes too much but always leaves you wanting more. Christian Lorentzen, Air Mail
Knausgaard s first traditional novel since the 2008 translation of A Time for Everything offers a dark and enthralling story of the appearance of a new star . . . Knausgaard wheels wildly and successfully through various forms. His focus on the beauty and terror of the mundane will resonate with fans of My Struggle . . . For the author it s a marvelous new leap. Publishers Weekly (starred)
Readers hungry for more of [Knausgaard s] immersive storytelling will burn through this tome. Booklist
