On the Calculation of Volume I
by Solvej Balle
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Pub Date 10 Apr 2025 | Archive Date 17 Apr 2025
Description
'It seems so odd to me now, how one can be so unsettled by the improbable. When we know that our entire existence is founded on freak occurrences and improbable coincidences. That we wouldn't be here at all if it weren't for these curious twists of fate.'
The first volume of the poetic, page-turning masterpiece about one woman's fall through the cracks of time.
Tara Selter has slipped out of time.
Every morning, she wakes up to the 18th of November. She no longer expects to wake up to the 19th of November, and she no longer remembers the 17th of November as if it were yesterday.
She comes to know the shape of the day like the back of her hand – the grey morning light in her Paris hotel; the moment a blackbird breaks into song; her husband's surprise at seeing her return home unannounced. But for everyone around her, this day is lived for the first and only time. They do not remember the other 18ths of November, and they do not believe her when she tries to explain.
As Tara approaches her 365th 18th of November, she can't shake the feeling that somewhere underneath the surface of this day, there's a way to escape.
Advance Praise
WINNER OF THE 2022 NORDIC COUNCIL LITERATURE PRIZE
'Absolutely, absolutely incredible.' Karl Ove Knausgård
'A total explosion.' Nicole Krauss
'Unforgettable.' Hernan Díaz
'Breathtaking.' Chetna Maroo
WINNER OF THE 2022 NORDIC COUNCIL LITERATURE PRIZE
'Absolutely, absolutely incredible.' Karl Ove Knausgård
'A total explosion.' Nicole Krauss
'Unforgettable.' Hernan Díaz
'Breathtaking.' Chetna Maroo
Available Editions
| EDITION | Paperback |
| ISBN | 9780571383375 |
| PRICE | £12.99 (GBP) |
| PAGES | 192 |
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Laura S, Reviewer
The premise of this short book is that Tara Selter, who with her husband runs an online antiquarian book business, goes to Paris on a buying trip and suddenly becomes enmeshed in a fault in time which leads her to live the same day over and over again. Not quite like Groundhog Day, though: some small things change, and the experience prompts some deep reflections on how we live our lives. Tara moves from puzzlement through fear and anguish. Tension builds as she devises strategies to force her time to move on to the next day and the reader shares her disappointment and sadness when they don't work.
The book is beautifully written - I think the translator has done a brilliant job. But the cliffhanger ending left me unsatisfied. And then I discovered that there are further books in the series, seven in all. I am looking forward to reading the next volume, out next spring.
Thanks to Faber and Netgalley for the ARC.
Cath H, Bookseller
As intriguing as it sounded! The perfect balance between high concept and domestic, full of compassion and empathy for Tara, and her relationships with the inevitably ignorant Thomas, thought-provoking on how each of our lives bring relentless miniature destructions that can pass seemingly unnoticed by us and those around us, and, above all. a gripping and original plot. I can't wait to read the next volume of this stunning journey.
Ben D, Reviewer
Tara Selter is living the same day, the 18th of November, over and over again. This is not Groundhog Day, it is not played for laughs or for the mystery, but instead Solvej Valley uses the gimmick to explore the nature of time, of memory, and of living in the moment. It is beautifully written (and translated from the Danish) and it becomes more engaging the deeper you get into it. A word of warning: this is just the first volume in a seven novel cycle, so reading this volume and reviewing it is like only reviewing a work based on a few chapters. I am very keen to read the remaining volumes in the series - all of which I expect are forthcoming. I can recommend this thoroughly, though you may want to wait until all the books are out before starting it yourself. But if you do decide to pick it up, you are in for a real literary treat.
Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for the ARC.
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