In Rosa the reader encounters the narrator, the twenty-two year-old Parelius, as he observes the often comic and near-tragic events surrounding the lovely young widow, Rosa, her previous husband Arentsen, and Hartvigsen, who desires to marry her and ultimately does. As this story unfolds, we gradually begin to see each of the figures, trapped in a small fishing village, hiding the truth: Hartvigsen has, in fact, lied to Rosa about her husband's death, and soon after her "dead" husband shows up in Sirilund. And the young ...
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In Rosa the reader encounters the narrator, the twenty-two year-old Parelius, as he observes the often comic and near-tragic events surrounding the lovely young widow, Rosa, her previous husband Arentsen, and Hartvigsen, who desires to marry her and ultimately does. As this story unfolds, we gradually begin to see each of the figures, trapped in a small fishing village, hiding the truth: Hartvigsen has, in fact, lied to Rosa about her husband's death, and soon after her "dead" husband shows up in Sirilund. And the young narrator, who himself has fallen under Rosa's charms, discovers - as in all of Hamsun's great fictions - that reality is far more complex than the everyday surface of life ever reveals. This new version of Hamsun's novel, by the Norwegian translator Sverre Lyngstad, makes one of the most engaging of his fictions available for a new generation of readers.
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Seller's Description:
Very Good. Book Softcover, 254 pp., brief author's biography [1 p.]. Light wear, unmarked, tight binding. Born in Norway in 1859, Knut Hamsun is one of the major figures of world literature in the 20th century. He influenced numerous writers as diverse as Henry Miller, Ernest Hemingway, Isaac Bashevis Singer, and younger writers such as Paul Auster. Hamsun died in 1952.
The narrator, a young man in his early 20's, falls in love with Rosa, a married woman. This novel is not as intense as some of Hamsun's earlier novels, but gives an interesting look at life in a Norwegian coastal village. Many of the characters who are first seen to be responsible and kind people turn out to have very odd quirks. Rosa is the exception, she remains steady throughout the story. More could be said, but I do not want to be a spoiler for future readers. A must for Hamsun fans.