Literature and Fiction · Paperback

The Pros and Cons of Existing

Norwegian title: Fordeler og ulemper ved å være til

This is a novel about a bright woman with irrepressible optimism and a belief that everything will work out in the end. She loves life in all its shapes and forms and does what she can to spread happiness and joy. No more grey days! Nina is a single mother with a ten-year old daughter and has just bought the old Grepan Guest House by the Oslo fjord, which has a dining room that opens straight out onto a private beach. Here summer nights are to be enjoyed and life's highlights celebrated. Nina's fascination for people makes her an unusual and perhaps slightly unpredictable hostess, but who cares? as she would say herself.

The question is whether faith and joy can stand meeting the real world? Is being optimistic only positive – or does it have it's disadvantages too? Vigdis Hjorth's novel is both entertaining and thought-provoking.

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