... seems straightforward enough, yet it moves in odd turns, leaving the reader off-balance, uncertain what Solstad is trying to do ... progresses oddly, shifting from one area of Bjørn Hansen's life to another. It does not feel incomplete, but there is an arbitrariness to much of it -- which also makes certain parts feel all the more forced. But ultimately this is a novel that wants to be perceived as such -- despite its realism, it is a thought experiment, it is artifice, it is art ... Strange, but successful in its own strange way.
... uncompromising and controversial ... Preoccupied by his usual existentialist themes, Solstad takes the idea of man controlling his own destiny to a bizarre extreme ... Solstad won the Norwegian Critics’ Prize for Literature for the second time with this stark, lugubrious tale. It might be a profound exploration of philosophical ideas but as a novel it’s an emotionless and unsettling read.
... sly and emotionally rich ... Written with a sharp eye for detail and featuring a winning cast (Turid is particularly vivid, as is the way Bjørn’s love for her ebbs as she grows older and becomes less beautiful to him; his contempt for his unpopular son is also sharp), the narrative offers much to admire, even if the second half lacks the keen emotional observation of the first and leaves the repercussions of Bjørn’s choices underexplored. Still, Solstad consistently intrigues.
... a grim exercise in modern literary existentialism ... The philosophical implications are many, though it’s a bit of a slog through an essentially actionless plot to get at them ... If Ingmar Bergman’s films are too cheerful for you, this is just the antidote.
