Gunstein Bakke: A Novel? Poetry and Essay
– Norway
The name of this novelist, who enjoys blurring the borders of genres, is already well established among Czech and Slovak readers. The novels Maud og Aud – ein roman om trafikk (Maud and Aud – A Novel about Traffic) and Havende (Expecting) caught the attention of many with their poetic style, polyphonic narrative and thought-provoking reflections, which today make Bakke (b. 1968) rightly regarded as one of Norway's most original literary voices. His career started at the beginning of the new millennium with the novel Kontoret (The Office). However, it was his third novel Maud and Aud that earned him praise from literary critics and brought him fame on both the Norwegian and European scenes, along with the European Union Prize for Literature. In the novel, he explored the global phenomenon of car transportaiton and its impact on today's world. In the novel Havende, he wrote a story about pregnancy and human identity on the true story of Julia Pastrana, known as the monkey woman because her face and body were covered in hair.