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The Other Name book cover
The Other Name
Septology I-II
2019
First Published
4.05
Average Rating
351
Number of Pages

Part of Series

WINNER OF THE 2023 NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE Longlisted for the 2020 International Booker Prize “Fosse’s fusing of the commonplace and the existential, together with his dramatic forays into the past, make for a relentlessly consuming already Septology feels momentous.”—The Guardian The Other Name follows the lives of two men living close to each other on the west coast of Norway. The year is coming to a close and Asle, an aging painter and widower, is reminiscing about his life. He lives alone, his only friends being his neighbor, Åsleik, a bachelor and traditional Norwegian fisherman-farmer, and Beyer, a gallerist who lives in Bjørgvin, a couple hours’ drive south of Dylgja, where he lives. There, in Bjørgvin, lives another Asle, also a painter. He and the narrator are doppelgangers—two versions of the same person, two versions of the same life. Written in hypnotic prose that shifts between the first and third person, The Other Name calls into question concrete notions around subjectivity and the self. What makes us who we are? And why do we lead one life and not another? Through flashbacks, Fosse deftly explores the convergences and divergences in the lives of both Asles, slowly building towards a decisive encounter between them both. A writer at the zenith of his career, with The Other Name, the first two volumes in his Septology, Fosse presents us with an indelible and poignant exploration of the human condition that will endure as his masterpiece.

Avg Rating
4.05
Number of Ratings
5,549
5 STARS
39%
4 STARS
37%
3 STARS
16%
2 STARS
5%
1 STARS
2%
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Author

Jon Fosse
Jon Fosse
Author · 28 books
Jon Olav Fosse was born in Haugesund, Norway and currently lives in Bergen. He debuted in 1983 with the novel Raudt, svart (Red, black). His first play, Og aldri skal vi skiljast, was performed and published in 1994. Jon Fosse has written novels, short stories, poetry, children's books, essays and plays. His works have been translated into more than forty languages. He is widely considered as one of the world's greatest contemporary playwrights. Fosse was made a chevalier of the Ordre national du Mérite of France in 2007.[1] Fosse also has been ranked number 83 on the list of the Top 100 living geniuses by The Daily Telegraph.[2] Since 2011, Fosse has been granted the Grotten, an honorary residence owned by the Norwegian state and located on the premises of the Royal Palace in the city centre of Oslo. The Grotten is given as a permanent residence to a person specifically bestowed this honour by the King of Norway for their contributions to Norwegian arts and culture.
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