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Present Tense Machine
“An ingenious pocket universe.” —Caitlin Horrocks, The New York Times Book Review
"Gunnhild Øyehaug is a magician of the highest rank."—Catherine Lacey
On an ordinary day in Bergen, Norway, in the late 1990s, Anna is reading in the garden while her two-year-old daughter, Laura, plays on her tricycle. Then, in one startling moment, Anna misreads a word, an alternate universe opens up, and Laura disappears. Twenty years or so later, life has gone on as if nothing happened, but in each of the women’s lives, something is not quite right.
Both Anna and Laura continue to exist, but they are invisible to each other and forgotten in each other’s worlds. Both are writers and amateur pianists. They are married; Anna had two more children after Laura disappeared, and Laura is expecting a child of her own. They worry about their families, their jobs, the climate—and whether this reality is all there is.
"Gunnhild Øyehaug is a magician of the highest rank."—Catherine Lacey
On an ordinary day in Bergen, Norway, in the late 1990s, Anna is reading in the garden while her two-year-old daughter, Laura, plays on her tricycle. Then, in one startling moment, Anna misreads a word, an alternate universe opens up, and Laura disappears. Twenty years or so later, life has gone on as if nothing happened, but in each of the women’s lives, something is not quite right.
Both Anna and Laura continue to exist, but they are invisible to each other and forgotten in each other’s worlds. Both are writers and amateur pianists. They are married; Anna had two more children after Laura disappeared, and Laura is expecting a child of her own. They worry about their families, their jobs, the climate—and whether this reality is all there is.
177 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 22, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 142 reviews
April 1, 2022
Zing, zing, zing...this novel gripped me in exactly the way I love in a book. Every sentence was like an exquisite story all by itself. I guess I don't need conventional plot to be completely captivated, when a story feels so true. I loved it.
September 5, 2021
In the blink of an eye, life can change; a misunderstanding, a missed opportunity, a misreading.
"The parallelity occurred on a Sunday morning in [Bergen, Norway] in 1998 when Anna was 23 years old, sitting on a terrace reading a book...an incomprehensible rearrangement of letters-perhaps a mysterious higher being had grafted this potential onto the word-a parallel universe would open." A misreading of a word would transport two year old Laura. A vanishing...a child Anna would no longer remember. "...As though the whole universe had wiped something from its memory...left with the vague feeling that something was missing...that there was a logic that had been turned upside down...".
Anna felt shadowed, as if something she loved was no longer there [like] in a piece of music...a tone that slips out of line...the track keeps moving while constantly trying to get back on track." Anna and Laura, both writers and amateur pianists, unaware of each other's existence.
In the alternate universe of "Present Tense Machine" by Gunnhild Oyehaug, the concept of mother and daughter, unaware of each other, was an intriguing premise. The presentation fell short for this reader. The tome was heavily invested in the linguistic aspects of misreading a word and its capacity to change family ties. The story was voiced by a narrator who popped up on occasion, seemingly as an afterthought. The stylistic writing was not this reader's cup of tea. A read for some but not for all.
Thank you Farrar, Straus and Giroux and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
"The parallelity occurred on a Sunday morning in [Bergen, Norway] in 1998 when Anna was 23 years old, sitting on a terrace reading a book...an incomprehensible rearrangement of letters-perhaps a mysterious higher being had grafted this potential onto the word-a parallel universe would open." A misreading of a word would transport two year old Laura. A vanishing...a child Anna would no longer remember. "...As though the whole universe had wiped something from its memory...left with the vague feeling that something was missing...that there was a logic that had been turned upside down...".
Anna felt shadowed, as if something she loved was no longer there [like] in a piece of music...a tone that slips out of line...the track keeps moving while constantly trying to get back on track." Anna and Laura, both writers and amateur pianists, unaware of each other's existence.
In the alternate universe of "Present Tense Machine" by Gunnhild Oyehaug, the concept of mother and daughter, unaware of each other, was an intriguing premise. The presentation fell short for this reader. The tome was heavily invested in the linguistic aspects of misreading a word and its capacity to change family ties. The story was voiced by a narrator who popped up on occasion, seemingly as an afterthought. The stylistic writing was not this reader's cup of tea. A read for some but not for all.
Thank you Farrar, Straus and Giroux and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
November 22, 2021
The first word that came to my mind from the first 10 pages when I start reading this book, was STRANGE. After reading more pages other words came too, like weird, what, odd, how, unusual, hmmm!!!
Sunday afternoon in 1998, when Anna was 23 years old, Laura was playing on her tricycle out on the lawn. Anna kept an eye on Laura as she read, then Laura disappeared and none of them could remember. It likes there wasn't a time they were together. A misread word, words have power and cause the consequences.
"The people were one people and had one language, and decided to build a tower so tall that it reach up to heaven, And they would themselves a name... in other words: up to where God resides, and they want to create a new name for themselves up there, in other words, they come into being through the word, the word was with God, and the word was God, and if the people built a tower that reached all the way up … and created themselves through language … they would then be able to create everything else …"
Anna is 44 years old lives with two children and her husband. Laura is 24 years old and pregnant, they live in parallel universes, not knowing each other only remembering the sense of loss, knowing that lost something but couldn't remember what.
This was a fictional story in parallel worlds and families who try to protect each other, recommend it to unusual fiction readers.
Many thanks to Farrar, Straus and Giroux and NetGalley for giving me a chance to read Present Tense Machine by Gunnhild Øyehaug, translated by Kari Dickson, I have given my honest review.
Sunday afternoon in 1998, when Anna was 23 years old, Laura was playing on her tricycle out on the lawn. Anna kept an eye on Laura as she read, then Laura disappeared and none of them could remember. It likes there wasn't a time they were together. A misread word, words have power and cause the consequences.
"The people were one people and had one language, and decided to build a tower so tall that it reach up to heaven, And they would themselves a name... in other words: up to where God resides, and they want to create a new name for themselves up there, in other words, they come into being through the word, the word was with God, and the word was God, and if the people built a tower that reached all the way up … and created themselves through language … they would then be able to create everything else …"
Anna is 44 years old lives with two children and her husband. Laura is 24 years old and pregnant, they live in parallel universes, not knowing each other only remembering the sense of loss, knowing that lost something but couldn't remember what.
This was a fictional story in parallel worlds and families who try to protect each other, recommend it to unusual fiction readers.
Many thanks to Farrar, Straus and Giroux and NetGalley for giving me a chance to read Present Tense Machine by Gunnhild Øyehaug, translated by Kari Dickson, I have given my honest review.
February 7, 2022
I loved the experience of reading this novel. It is very clever and erudite, elaborately conceived, the plot following the interconnected narratives of a mother and daughter, Anna and Laura, whose lives have been bifurcated into alternate realities. It explores questions about the origin of language, the creation of words, the importance of stories, music, the nature of wounds and absences and senses of mourning that we don't understand even as they riddle our lives, the idea of lives lived literally and literarily, with sentences that rush, descriptions that often surprise, and humor. A few years ago, I read Oyehaug's collection of stories called Knots that only sort of engaged me, but Present Tense Machine fully engaged me. I rarely re-read, but this is one that I intend to visit again.
October 23, 2021
2.5 rounded down
An example of a fantastic premise not being developed or delivered in the way this reader wanted or expected. Present Tense Machine follows Anna, a young woman who one day misreads a word. in a novel and her two year old daughter disappears. Except Laura and Anna's lives do both continue, and they live separate lives, totally ignorant of the knowledge that the other ever existed. Yet as the novel develops we see that there are many parallels between the women's lives and experiences - although I should add that this is not a plot driven book, which the characters themselves taking centre stage.
Unfortunately I found the novel to be too patchy: there were moments and lines I found profound and brilliant and then I'd be confused as to what was going on for the next several pages. I'd be interested to try the author's next novel, but it's regrettable that this one didn't fully work for me.
Thank you Netgalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the advance copy, which was provided in exchange for an honest review.
An example of a fantastic premise not being developed or delivered in the way this reader wanted or expected. Present Tense Machine follows Anna, a young woman who one day misreads a word. in a novel and her two year old daughter disappears. Except Laura and Anna's lives do both continue, and they live separate lives, totally ignorant of the knowledge that the other ever existed. Yet as the novel develops we see that there are many parallels between the women's lives and experiences - although I should add that this is not a plot driven book, which the characters themselves taking centre stage.
Unfortunately I found the novel to be too patchy: there were moments and lines I found profound and brilliant and then I'd be confused as to what was going on for the next several pages. I'd be interested to try the author's next novel, but it's regrettable that this one didn't fully work for me.
Thank you Netgalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the advance copy, which was provided in exchange for an honest review.
August 21, 2021
And now time for something beguilingly weird and uncannily strange. A trip down split memory lanes of a family torn by quantum physics. A life split into parallels and followed along as mother and daughter find themselves navigating alternate universes.
This Moebius tape of a novel is difficult to explain or sum up in any other way and it is very much unlike most parallel worlds stories I read. Those tend to veer more into science fiction thriller territory, but this one very much remains a family drama, albeit in a pretty unconventional arrangement.
This kind of book can easily be done wrong, but the author did it just right. Was it the Scandinavian succinctness? The first rate character writing and development? The conceptual originality? The cleverness of it all? The overall brevity? Well, it must have been.
The writing style is usually dense, clumped together, dialogue and all, but somehow it works here. There’s a hypnotic quality to the author’s writing that’s strangely immersive. It’s such a quick read, it goes by like an odd moody slightly surreal dream, all watercolors and ambiance. I don’t think it’ll work for everyone, there’s a very specific tonality to it, but it worked for me. Thanks Netgalley.
This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/
This Moebius tape of a novel is difficult to explain or sum up in any other way and it is very much unlike most parallel worlds stories I read. Those tend to veer more into science fiction thriller territory, but this one very much remains a family drama, albeit in a pretty unconventional arrangement.
This kind of book can easily be done wrong, but the author did it just right. Was it the Scandinavian succinctness? The first rate character writing and development? The conceptual originality? The cleverness of it all? The overall brevity? Well, it must have been.
The writing style is usually dense, clumped together, dialogue and all, but somehow it works here. There’s a hypnotic quality to the author’s writing that’s strangely immersive. It’s such a quick read, it goes by like an odd moody slightly surreal dream, all watercolors and ambiance. I don’t think it’ll work for everyone, there’s a very specific tonality to it, but it worked for me. Thanks Netgalley.
This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/
April 30, 2023
Dette er den første boken jeg har lest (eller generelt fortellingen eller fenomenet eller teksten) hvor parallelle univers virker som noe veldig virkelighetsnært og mulig, uten sci-fi el. Fantasy aspektet
Jeg ble litt gråtkvalt overraskende mange ganger mens jeg leste boken, ikke fordi den nødvendigvis er trist, men det er noe tungt ved konseptet av å splittes fra personer som står deg nært - ikke ved døden, men fordi du har havnet i annen dimensjon av tid og rom, uten å vite det engang!
Morsom, hyggelig, mye spennende tankerekker om språk og lingvistikk! Og ordets makt.. skal ikke spoile mer
Føler jeg hadde gitt den 5 stjerner om jeg leste den i ett sett, hadde en litt for lang pause fra den
Men her er vi!
Takk til Kaya som skrev ned et familietre i starten av boka så jeg kunne lene meg på det om jeg ble navnforvirret, anbefaler å gjøre det
Jeg ble litt gråtkvalt overraskende mange ganger mens jeg leste boken, ikke fordi den nødvendigvis er trist, men det er noe tungt ved konseptet av å splittes fra personer som står deg nært - ikke ved døden, men fordi du har havnet i annen dimensjon av tid og rom, uten å vite det engang!
Morsom, hyggelig, mye spennende tankerekker om språk og lingvistikk! Og ordets makt.. skal ikke spoile mer
Føler jeg hadde gitt den 5 stjerner om jeg leste den i ett sett, hadde en litt for lang pause fra den
Men her er vi!
Takk til Kaya som skrev ned et familietre i starten av boka så jeg kunne lene meg på det om jeg ble navnforvirret, anbefaler å gjøre det
November 7, 2021
Ljuvligt märklig! Det är en språklig fröjd att befinna sig bland dessa sidor, i två parallella universum varsamt sammansvetsade av sina detaljer: en syrenbuske, ett stycke av Satie, en gata. Den allvetande berättaren kan ibland bli lite väl högljudd, men på det stora hela skapar Øyehaug en värld där jag mer än gärna stannar kvar.
September 17, 2025
Stranger Than Fiction vibes, in a good way. I do love me a story about parallel universes.
December 15, 2022
Here's a tangent I won't apologize about -- what's up with netgalley giving advance copies of books to people that clearly would never like the novel to begin with ???? The overall star rating on this book is fairly low, but most reviews are clearly more interested in a neat, conventional SF plot than with something that's more concerned with poetry and form. And every negative review I saw ends or begins with "thank you netgalley ..."
Not a diss on those readers, but its ridiculous that the publisher thinks it would help to promote a strange poetic novel by giving it to anyone who wants a free book. Its like if a studio did a test screening for a David Lynch film -- no one would like it. Books like this have a specific audience, for better or worse, and the average rating becomes completely inaccurate as to what its target readers would likely think. (Not that this is a masterpiece, just that it deserves a fair shake).
Anywayyyyy, I really enjoyed this, which at times was a bit messy and unfocused, but stayed consistent in its strong writing style and mood. I'm very curious about the author's influences, as I kept thinking "she must have similar taste as I do. She writes how I want to write."
There's something charming about her approach to the Krasznakorkhai style of writing (long sentences and dense apocalyptic themes). Her concerns are much warmer than his -- human relationships and how it would feel to suddenly lose something. The end was quite emotional.
It is flawed at times, but I found it interesting and I admired the writer's hand prints being over the pages. (Lots of fourth wall breaking, which I always admire).
Considering how short it is, I think its worth the read.
Not a diss on those readers, but its ridiculous that the publisher thinks it would help to promote a strange poetic novel by giving it to anyone who wants a free book. Its like if a studio did a test screening for a David Lynch film -- no one would like it. Books like this have a specific audience, for better or worse, and the average rating becomes completely inaccurate as to what its target readers would likely think. (Not that this is a masterpiece, just that it deserves a fair shake).
Anywayyyyy, I really enjoyed this, which at times was a bit messy and unfocused, but stayed consistent in its strong writing style and mood. I'm very curious about the author's influences, as I kept thinking "she must have similar taste as I do. She writes how I want to write."
There's something charming about her approach to the Krasznakorkhai style of writing (long sentences and dense apocalyptic themes). Her concerns are much warmer than his -- human relationships and how it would feel to suddenly lose something. The end was quite emotional.
It is flawed at times, but I found it interesting and I admired the writer's hand prints being over the pages. (Lots of fourth wall breaking, which I always admire).
Considering how short it is, I think its worth the read.
February 18, 2025
A complete nonsense book. The idea is that if you read a certain word incorrectly in a book then it will tear the universe apart into a multiverse. The author offers no explanation of why that occurred except "crazier things have happened". No they haven't.
Every chapter is filled with unearned fourth wall breaks. I think the author is trying to be glib but it comes off as sloppy. The characters in both sides of the multiverse are so uninteresting that it's impossible to keep up with who is who and why we should care. It's 100 pages and it took me months to read because I only read it when I needed to fall asleep. Worked like a charm.
Every chapter is filled with unearned fourth wall breaks. I think the author is trying to be glib but it comes off as sloppy. The characters in both sides of the multiverse are so uninteresting that it's impossible to keep up with who is who and why we should care. It's 100 pages and it took me months to read because I only read it when I needed to fall asleep. Worked like a charm.
February 23, 2023
I loved this weird little book. It's not for everyone, but this sparse melancholy novel hit just right for me. The everyday-ness and interiority reminded me of The Mezzanine—a novel I absolutely adore. Also I just really love short books! Pack a punch into a real little package, please and thank you.
October 20, 2020
Satt och tänkte på parallella världar och åkte
förbi min station när jag skulle till jobbet...
förbi min station när jag skulle till jobbet...
December 30, 2022
4.5
It’s been a long time since I read a book that gripped at that mysterious ache in my chest and then quietly let me go at the end to shed my tears in silence.
Considering how I have often felt that there is another Eliana living in an alternate universe, with different callings and delights and sorrows, that sometimes there are gaps in my own universe that indicate missing pieces of my being, that the language we use to describe this being makes all the difference, and that she and I inexplicably overlap when it matters most, Present Tense Machine was an unexpectedly comforting read this week.
On a literary level, I am impressed at this unconventional yet distinctly modernist take on magical realism, at least from the very little I understand about forms. I’m not usually the greatest fan of any contemporary stab at stream-of-consciousness, but this is well-done and well-balanced. And bearing in mind the complexity of reading a text in translation, I am even more intrigued by what the author has accomplished here.
Also, there are references to Anne Carson’s work, Anton Chekhov’s short stories, and Interstellar so, really, what’s not to like?
It’s been a long time since I read a book that gripped at that mysterious ache in my chest and then quietly let me go at the end to shed my tears in silence.
Considering how I have often felt that there is another Eliana living in an alternate universe, with different callings and delights and sorrows, that sometimes there are gaps in my own universe that indicate missing pieces of my being, that the language we use to describe this being makes all the difference, and that she and I inexplicably overlap when it matters most, Present Tense Machine was an unexpectedly comforting read this week.
On a literary level, I am impressed at this unconventional yet distinctly modernist take on magical realism, at least from the very little I understand about forms. I’m not usually the greatest fan of any contemporary stab at stream-of-consciousness, but this is well-done and well-balanced. And bearing in mind the complexity of reading a text in translation, I am even more intrigued by what the author has accomplished here.
Also, there are references to Anne Carson’s work, Anton Chekhov’s short stories, and Interstellar so, really, what’s not to like?
August 11, 2021
Thanks to Netgalley and FSG for the ebook. This is a rather odd, but playful short novel that asks questions about multiple universes. Anna, a writer and amateur pianist, misreads a word in a poetry book that she’s reading and through this one simple mistake, Laura, her two year old daughter, vanishes. Twenty years later, Laura is pregnant with her first child and Anna is living her life with the two children she’s had since Laura. In this story, neither remembers the other, but they are still so alike and at various times they feel a shadow of the other without quite knowing exactly what they are feeling. A heady book that’s grounded with intelligent and very real characters.
March 27, 2023
This book was almost brilliant. It is as if, a modern family drama, a philosophical essay, the movies interstellar and arrival and a masters in linguistics has a love child. That’s this book.
The only knock on it is that there are about 35 pages that make no sense and seem extemporaneous to the story. It was only 155 pages but should have been 100.
The only knock on it is that there are about 35 pages that make no sense and seem extemporaneous to the story. It was only 155 pages but should have been 100.
February 11, 2024
satie, universe, language
January 25, 2024
So strange and so good!!!
September 29, 2021
One day, some weirdness happens, and a toddler is taken from this world and dropped off in a parallel world. Though nobody can remember this, there remains a strong sense of loss.
This is literary fiction and it feels like magical realism, but I am not sure if that term also applies to the more sci fi side of things. The characters are very three dimensional, and the plot is very focused on a small cast of people. Very characterdriven, too.
The writing borders on stream of consciousness, and we have very long sentences. Speech is not indicated by any symbols, and you can find two utterances by different people in on sentence.
As I already mentioned earlier, this kind of writing is very inaccessible to neurodiverse folk, and already I feel like I can't tell you specific things. What remains with me is more a general idea of how I felt while reading this.
This leads me to believe that this book, though beautifully done, will only appeal to a specific set of readers. If you think you belong to them, give this a go!
The arc was provided by the publisher.
This is literary fiction and it feels like magical realism, but I am not sure if that term also applies to the more sci fi side of things. The characters are very three dimensional, and the plot is very focused on a small cast of people. Very characterdriven, too.
The writing borders on stream of consciousness, and we have very long sentences. Speech is not indicated by any symbols, and you can find two utterances by different people in on sentence.
As I already mentioned earlier, this kind of writing is very inaccessible to neurodiverse folk, and already I feel like I can't tell you specific things. What remains with me is more a general idea of how I felt while reading this.
This leads me to believe that this book, though beautifully done, will only appeal to a specific set of readers. If you think you belong to them, give this a go!
The arc was provided by the publisher.
September 11, 2022
here is my overly obnoxious pitch for this book if i had to write one of the staff pick blurbs for it (which i don't, and won't, because it's ivana's pick anyway): this book feels like submerging yourself into a pool at night and specifically the moment after you haul yourself up and out by the ladder, when your senses are slightly off and trying to adjust / the air feels much colder than before / your heart is beating a bit fast from the exercise and you have goosebumps and feel a bit like a child. soooo special of a book to me, so happy i had someone to rec it, ive read a few translated books lately that were disappointing but the language here felt so realized(?) and that nothing was missing (for me) in the english. read if you want something magical/wonderful/beautifully brief!!!
shanna pls read <3
shanna pls read <3
December 2, 2022
...i don't think the author really knew where to go with this. maybe the straight 'storytelling' would have worked best. some big-time editing could have been applied too... e.g.
...p 54: ' to describe X the billionth of a billionth of a billionth of a millionth of X a second.
DNF.
...p 54: ' to describe X the billionth of a billionth of a billionth of a millionth of X a second.
DNF.
January 23, 2025
I loved this book so much.
Topics/themes I loved:
-linguistics generally
-the power of words/language
-specifically, the idea that like reading "traadgaard" ("garden" in Swedish) as "taardgaard" (???*) could like, possibly trigger the generation of an alternative bubble universe, in which like a family member is missing, which causes a vague feeling of displacement or missingness but like nothing enormously dramatic
-semi-erroneous Biblical allusions (I appreciated the afterword)
-vicariously, Norway/Norwegian
-repetition of Neapolitan mastiff
-the narrator and the almost-sinister concept of whatever universe that is always wet and there's never any new boots available
-I can't possibly capture this, but the eerie feeling of being close to something, or knowing something will happen
-whatever is going on with Elina, including the end
Stuff I didn't get as much:
-Erik Satie/the parts with music
-sometimes getting Laura & Anna mixed up
-the chapter titles being written in reflection?
-Jesper???
Finally, I want to thank the Bookstore Podcast for bringing this book to me! I think I listened to the episode on it when it came out, thought it sounded great, put in on my tbr, eventually requested it from the library, and after a few weeks wondered what on earth this book was doing checked out by me. Luckily I again saw the episode & remembered. There's a surreality that surrounds this book, and I'm sure it's just that it calls attention to plenty of odd coincidences, and baader-meinhof and all that, but also, I firmly believe in the weird stuff Becca & Corinne also noticed while reading this! I kept hoping to see a pair of people both reading this while riding a train, but alas.
*I also kept reading this as "tardigrade"! & it makes sense I think
Topics/themes I loved:
-linguistics generally
-the power of words/language
-specifically, the idea that like reading "traadgaard" ("garden" in Swedish) as "taardgaard" (???*) could like, possibly trigger the generation of an alternative bubble universe, in which like a family member is missing, which causes a vague feeling of displacement or missingness but like nothing enormously dramatic
-semi-erroneous Biblical allusions (I appreciated the afterword)
-vicariously, Norway/Norwegian
-repetition of Neapolitan mastiff
-the narrator and the almost-sinister concept of whatever universe that is always wet and there's never any new boots available
-I can't possibly capture this, but the eerie feeling of being close to something, or knowing something will happen
-whatever is going on with Elina, including the end
Stuff I didn't get as much:
-Erik Satie/the parts with music
-sometimes getting Laura & Anna mixed up
-the chapter titles being written in reflection?
-Jesper???
Finally, I want to thank the Bookstore Podcast for bringing this book to me! I think I listened to the episode on it when it came out, thought it sounded great, put in on my tbr, eventually requested it from the library, and after a few weeks wondered what on earth this book was doing checked out by me. Luckily I again saw the episode & remembered. There's a surreality that surrounds this book, and I'm sure it's just that it calls attention to plenty of odd coincidences, and baader-meinhof and all that, but also, I firmly believe in the weird stuff Becca & Corinne also noticed while reading this! I kept hoping to see a pair of people both reading this while riding a train, but alas.
*I also kept reading this as "tardigrade"! & it makes sense I think
January 13, 2026
From the first fourth-wall breaks, this sad and twisting novel insists on story as artifice, gears exposed in a way that reminded me of the cinematic structure of Florence Pugh’s “The Wonder.” It’s by turns phenomenological and absurdist, which keeps the machinery of storytelling visible and de-signed—narrative that’s stripped down to the barest syntax of human thought. The premise, essentially, is that multiverses are birthed from language itself, multiplicity being the substrate, much like films “Interstellar” and “Arrival.”
From Satie to Eno, meaning reverberates and loops, retraining the mind for how signifiers (pseudonyms, aesthetics, even identity itself) shift under sustained observation. That looping also stages a tension between social science and physics: impermanence versus repetition, contingency versus law. This parallelism (body-doubling, time travel) imagines what climate change, for example, might look like across time, not as a single event but as chaotic pattern.
The “ambient body,” with its background functions and noise, is the conceptual main character. Those speculative elements land in that Olga Ravn register for me, so existential and hilarious. Øyehaug turns sentiment over like facets of a diamond and, in peeling back the veil on creation myths, performs the trick in real time: abracadabra, making a new one. A spectacular read.
From Satie to Eno, meaning reverberates and loops, retraining the mind for how signifiers (pseudonyms, aesthetics, even identity itself) shift under sustained observation. That looping also stages a tension between social science and physics: impermanence versus repetition, contingency versus law. This parallelism (body-doubling, time travel) imagines what climate change, for example, might look like across time, not as a single event but as chaotic pattern.
The “ambient body,” with its background functions and noise, is the conceptual main character. Those speculative elements land in that Olga Ravn register for me, so existential and hilarious. Øyehaug turns sentiment over like facets of a diamond and, in peeling back the veil on creation myths, performs the trick in real time: abracadabra, making a new one. A spectacular read.
March 4, 2022
3.5 ⭐ rounded down
This is the second book I've read just this week, which features slightly confusing narrative voice. The book begins in third person, then abruptly shifts to second person at seemingly random times. I can't figure out the wisdom of this kind of commentary. Is this the new trend?
Setting the odd narration aside, the idea of parallel realities certainly captured my attention. It's one of my favorite literary devices. And couldn't it be true? We've all felt that buzz, brushing against a kind of shimmery close veil, on the other side of which a similar, but different reality, might be unfolding. It's such an intriguing thought: multiple versions of you living multiple versions of your life.
But, I felt like the author only explored the concept halfway. I was frustrated because I wanted a fuller expansion of these shadow lives. The narrative seemed more like a sketch of an idea, not fully formed nor released to fulfill its surreal potential.
The author is on the right track, and may well dig deeper in the future. I look forward to it.
This is the second book I've read just this week, which features slightly confusing narrative voice. The book begins in third person, then abruptly shifts to second person at seemingly random times. I can't figure out the wisdom of this kind of commentary. Is this the new trend?
Setting the odd narration aside, the idea of parallel realities certainly captured my attention. It's one of my favorite literary devices. And couldn't it be true? We've all felt that buzz, brushing against a kind of shimmery close veil, on the other side of which a similar, but different reality, might be unfolding. It's such an intriguing thought: multiple versions of you living multiple versions of your life.
But, I felt like the author only explored the concept halfway. I was frustrated because I wanted a fuller expansion of these shadow lives. The narrative seemed more like a sketch of an idea, not fully formed nor released to fulfill its surreal potential.
The author is on the right track, and may well dig deeper in the future. I look forward to it.
August 21, 2022
Not for everyone, for sure. Very weird, but maybe in a good way - if you're not looking for a conventional story line. The way the narrator popped in and inserted herself could be confusing or frustrating, but I think the whole point of this short novel is that language builds our world(s), and defines us as humans. She might even be saying language is God. I don't know. Like I said, this book is truly not for everyone. The premise is that one day, a mother misreads a word, and that causes her world to split off into another version of her life where she has no daughter. Her life goes on without her remembering. The story then also follows the daughter that no longer remembers having a mother, along with the husband who cannot remember a time when it wasn't just him and his daughter. Yep, it's not always easy to follow the who is who. The characters impacted occasionally experience an odd existential feeling of something missing, or that there was something there that they couldn't see. It think this would make a interesting movie or series.
January 18, 2022
What I loved: the action that kicks off the entire plotline - inadvertently reading a word incorrectly that completely changes the main character's past, present, and future.
What I didn't care for: lots (LOTS) of stream of consciousness writing here; I think this book should be read two or three times to appreciate the whole story, and I wish I had that kind of time. It IS one I'll go back and re-read, but probably not until a year has gone by.
Incredibly clever writing, in spite of my qualm above, and an additional exploration of that part of the mind that plays the "what-might-have-been" game.
What I didn't care for: lots (LOTS) of stream of consciousness writing here; I think this book should be read two or three times to appreciate the whole story, and I wish I had that kind of time. It IS one I'll go back and re-read, but probably not until a year has gone by.
Incredibly clever writing, in spite of my qualm above, and an additional exploration of that part of the mind that plays the "what-might-have-been" game.
August 30, 2025
I chose this book to read because I needed to read a book set somewhere I’ve never been for the New York Times Summer Reading Bucket List. This book by a Norwegian author is set in Bergen, Norway.
In this story, a mother loses her young daughter to a parallel universe after reading a misprinted word in a book, and then doesn’t remember that her daughter ever existed. Not everything adds up in these parallel universes, but it’s still a good read. It explores the power of words and the idea of a longing that we can’t always explain. It reminded me a lot of Terrace Story which was also really good.
In this story, a mother loses her young daughter to a parallel universe after reading a misprinted word in a book, and then doesn’t remember that her daughter ever existed. Not everything adds up in these parallel universes, but it’s still a good read. It explores the power of words and the idea of a longing that we can’t always explain. It reminded me a lot of Terrace Story which was also really good.
October 19, 2021
Mostly enjoyed this. The ending was not satisfying but the writing was nice. Could have done without the statements ending chapters. Yes we get it, this is the end of the chapter. The story had promise but it fizzled out.
Also I’m not sure why but the author thinks it’s a good idea to spoiler the film Interstellar in this book. So if you haven’t seen that film maybe don’t read this.
My copy was provided by NetGalley for review
Also I’m not sure why but the author thinks it’s a good idea to spoiler the film Interstellar in this book. So if you haven’t seen that film maybe don’t read this.
My copy was provided by NetGalley for review
March 6, 2022
I love weird books !! This little one was weird in the best way. Centered around language and origins and that feeling that something is off or missing. Are you just off or were you quickly whisked away to a parallel universe after misreading a word in a poem? Can’t be sure.
The writing style was fun and playful and insightful; I was intrigued by the insertion of the narrator into the story.
Super happy I picked this up and can’t wait to read Wait, Blink soooon
The writing style was fun and playful and insightful; I was intrigued by the insertion of the narrator into the story.
Super happy I picked this up and can’t wait to read Wait, Blink soooon
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