Seven Days in August
ABOUT
THE BOOK
A few years after the deadly 2011 terror attack in Norway’s Utøya Island, Otto and Sofie are attempting to put the pieces of their life back together without their beloved daughter, who was murdered alongside countless other youths on one of the worst day’s in Norway’s history. Seven Days in August is the story of Otto and Sofie’s grief, painstakingly narrated over just one week-a window into their attempts to navigate a life together, face to face with their own helplessness and mortality.
The week begins with a tick bite on Sofie’s hand, which continues to swell dangerously as the days pass. As her pain intensifies, so too does the marital strife present in a household stricken by grief. Told in award-winning Norwegian writer Brit Bildøen’s signature lyrical prose, the story slowly unfurls the horrors of a national tragedy, while peeling back the layers of sorrow that infect relationships over time.
NOMINATING LIBRARY COMMENTS
A couple lost their daughter in the 2011 Norway terror attacks and nothing is the same. There is an uneasy current running through the book and the marriage alike. The story is centred around the concept of mourning, and is unfolded during seven days in August, hence the title.