Knots

“From my first reading of Knots in the original Nynorsk, I have been captivated by Gunnhild Øyehaug’s wit, imagination, ironic social commentary, and fearless embrace of any and every form of story-telling. These are stories to be relished, inspiring in their art and humanity both. How fortunate that we can now read them in Kari Dickson’s sparkling and magically faithful English.”
—Lydia Davis, author of Can’t and Won’t

“The rich variety of the stories in Knots contributes to the sense of unpredictability and wonder that pervades the book. But wonder in Knots doesn’t spring from variety alone. It arises from Gunnhild Øyehaug’s very conception of story, and only a rare writer is capable of such sustained surprise.”
—Stuart Dybek, author of Ecstatic Cahoots

"Her work is playful, often surreal, intellectually rigorous, and brief. She sometimes resembles Lydia Davis . . . Like Davis, she moves easily from the theoretical to the humanely engaged . . . And, like Davis, she can produce stabs of emotion, unexpected ghost notes of feeling, from pieces so short and offbeat that they seem at first like aborted arias . . ." —James Wood, The New Yorker

"Øyehaug’s newly translated collection charts entanglements of all kinds, from difficult families and first loves to more metaphysical experiments that combine a crisp minimalism with endearingly offbeat conceits . . . [Øyehaug's] stories are as original as they are joyously delicate and tranquil." —Publishers Weekly

“Formally playful, poignant, understated, and often acutely funny, Øyehaug’s English-language debut teems with humanity . . . A near-perfect collection about the knots we tie ourselves into and the countless ways we intertwine in the pursuit of sex, love, compassion, and family.”
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Replete with IKEA crises, uncuttable umbilical cords, and lewd eulogies, these stories will have you laughing at the strange way the 'world has organized today for you.'" —O, The Oprah Magazine