Ola Larsmo’s new novel is centred around a place: a small industrial community somewhere in Western Sweden, where World War II is still palpably present. This used to be a place heavily trafficked by the exchange of refugees and resistance men across the border.

In and around this place, several stories unfold: one concerning resistance man Randner whose tracks disappear into the borderland woods, another concerning Anton who was caught in the middle of those who were for and those who were against the occupation of Norway, and finally a story set in the present, about Johan and Marianne. Johan is writing a Master’s paper about the Norwegian resistance movement – he is researching on location and makes discoveries that lead him onto dangerous ground.


Sweden was ”a glade in the forest” during the war, but the tensions that existed between pro- and anti-nazists were strong and perhaps they can tell us something about the conflicts that are still simmering under the surface in today’s Sweden.

First published by Albert Bonniers Förlag, Sweden, 2004.
318 pages.