Children's Books · Hardback

You Must Choose

Norwegian title: Du må velge

Simon Stranger

Every single day, we have to make thousands of choices, both big and small. Many of them are simple and mundane, while others can have major, unexpected consequences.

If you choose to read this book, you will be drawn into stories from all over the world, spanning thousands of years, and you must choose the path yourself. Every choice leads to new ones in a branching web of small and large events that turn out to be interconnected: You could, for example, be a submarine captain during the Cold War, or the female translator for the Spaniards in 15th-century Mexico, helping to topple the Aztec Empire. You could be a zookeeper in Libya or a con artist in Vietnam, a Senegalese musician or a young Norwegian man about to do something he will regret for the rest of his life.

You Must Choose is an ambitious yet highly readable young adult novel that actively engages the reader in a captivating way. The book features black-and-white illustrations by Eivind Gulliksen.

«It has been a very long time since I was as captivated by a novel as I have been with Simon Stranger’s new book, You Must Choose. It has an entirely unique structure, almost built like a classic board game where you must make a choice before moving the pieces. (…) The uniqueness of the composition is fascinating, the multitude of stories is thrilling. This is a rare treat.»Tønsberg Blad, 6/6 stars

«Through carefully selected details, Stranger conjures up a wealth of diverse human destinies. (…) It is an ambitious dramaturgy Stranger has undertaken. (…) The variety of human fates is impressive. They are surprising and original.»Bok365.no