Henrik Nor-Hansen

Deadline. A Portrayal of Violence in Norway

Termin. En fremstilling av vold i Norge

Midsummer 1998 a young man is found passed out at Hommersåk outside Stavanger on west coast of Norway. The police suspect blind violence. Witnesses are called for in the local area. The victim goes through a difficult rehabilitation with surgery and medical treatment. Half a year later the case is dismissed. In the years following the incident, Kjetil Tuestad attempts to find his way back to society, but experiences a series of neuropsychiatric after effects. Gradually, he loses the ability to be close to others, to intimacy, and is admitted to the psychiatric division at Stavanger University Hospital several times. He gets divorced and loses contact with his child.
During the same period of time, Hommersåk goes through big transformations, so does the region, if not the country on the whole. The money is flowing, but the social issues remain and take on new forms. To what degree is there a connection between the economical and psychological issues? Is Kjetil Tuestad a victim or a symptom?

Nominated for the Nordic Council Literature Prize 2017.

Nor hansen termin hd

‘Nor-Hansen’s project is interesting, his short books are small, literary experiences.’

Dagens Næringsliv

‘[It] is a short book, but the themes belongs with the truly large ones in Norwegian contemporary history. The answers suggested, gives associations to David Lynch and J.G. Ballard, both artists who have occupied themselves with the obscenities of middle-class suburbia.’

Morgenbladet
Nor hansen. henrik photo nina kristin nilsen
Photo: Nina Kristin Nilsen

Henrik Nor-Hansen (b. 1967) has his base in Stavanger. He made his debut in 1996 with the novel Krater på krater.