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The Copenhagen Trilogy
The Copenhagen Trilogy: Childhood; Youth; Dependency | Tove Ditlevsen
Called "a masterpiece" by The Guardian, this courageous and honest trilogy from Tove Ditlevsen, a pioneer in the field of genre-bending confessional writing, explores themes of family, sex, motherhood, abortion, addiction, and being an artist. This single-volume hardcover contains all three volumes of her memoirs Tove Ditlevsen is today celebrated as one of the most important and unique voices in twentieth-century Danish literature, and The Copenhagen Trilogy (196971) is her acknowledged masterpiece. Childhood tells the story of a misfit childs single-minded determination to become a poet; Youth describes her early experiences of sex, work, and independence. Dependency picks up the story as the narrator embarks on the first of her four marriages and goes on to describe her horrible descent into drug addiction, enabled by her sinister, gaslighting doctor-husband. Throughout, the narrator grapples with the tension between her vocation as a writer and her competing roles as daughter, wife, mother, and drug addict, and she writes about female experience and identity in a way that feels very fresh and pertinent to todays discussions around feminism. Ditlevsens trilogy is remarkable for its intensity and its immersive depiction of a world of complex female friendships, family and growing upin this sense, its Copenhagen's answer to Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan Novels. She can also be seen as a spiritual forerunner of confessional writers like Karl Ove Knausgaard, Annie Ernaux, Rachel Cusk and Deborah Levy. Her trilogy is drawn from her own experiences but reads like the most compelling kind of fiction. Born in a working-class neighborhood in Copenhagen in 1917, Ditlevsen became famous for her poetry while still a teenager, and went on to write novels, stories and memoirs before committing suicide in 1976. Having been dismissed by the critical establishment in her lifetime as a working-class, female writer, she is now being rediscovered and championed as one of Denmark's most important modern authors, with "Tove fever" gripping readers.
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Readerann
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I hadn‘t heard of this author, but I can see why she is considered one of Denmark‘s best twentieth-century writers. Really compelling reading. I was drawn in by her brutal honesty in describing her life.

sarahbarnes I have a copy of this on my shelf from @merelybookish and want to get to it someday soon! 1mo
Readerann @sarahbarnes I wasn‘t expecting it to be a page-turner! 1mo
13 likes2 comments
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AbstractMonica
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Based on authors experiences.. really loved the entirety of this novel! I was absolutely gripped from Tove‘s childhood all the way to her many marriages and later life.

16 likes1 stack add
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AbstractMonica
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Has anyone read this? I‘m only 5 chapters in, and I‘m already loving it.

Dilara I haven't but it's in my wishlist. Looking forward to your review. (I have read The Faces by the same author, but can't remember anything about it 😳) 10mo
merelybookish Yes, it's excellent! 10mo
AbstractMonica @Dilara would love to read The Faces, too! This one is pretty great so far 10mo
AbstractMonica @merelybookish so glad to hear… I love the writing so far. 10mo
15 likes4 comments
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lauraisntwilder
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I went into this with no expectations and I can't even remember what made me originally want to read it, aside from my usual interest in Scandinavian lit. The writing, so matter-of-fact, reminded me of Natalia Ginzburg and, to a lesser degree, Ellen Gilchrist (though with very different subject matter). There are no embellishments. People are beautiful or ugly or plain, with little other description. I'm interested to read her fiction now.

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The_Penniless_Author
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Too many memoirs I've read are either sterile laundry lists of accomplishments or a series of disjointed anecdotes that don't do much to illuminate the subject. It's hard to write about things like childhood and addiction in a way that doesn't lapse into cliche, but Ditlevsen nails it here, distilling 20+ years of life down to its essence and homing in on the moments, images, and events that formed the person she became.

lauraisntwilder This is in my TBR stack. Glad to see a good review! 😊 2y
BarbaraBB Great review. I need to read this. 2y
50 likes1 stack add2 comments
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AlizaApp
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A brilliant memoir about growing up in Denmark, starting in the 1920s and through WWII. The final third of the book, which focused on her struggles with addiction, was sometimes difficult to get through but I respected her honesty and perseverance.

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CindyE09
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Although I don‘t normally read memoirs, even from authors whose fiction I enjoy, I was quite enthralled by this #translated #memoir about Ditlevsen‘s life in Copenhagen. It was really interesting to hear about life in Copenhagen during the 1930-50s and Ditlevsen is a very talented writer. I would really like to check out her other works that are being translated to English.

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perfectlywinged
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Devastating

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merelybookish
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Such stripped down brutal honesty. (Also, I can relate.) Tagged book is not poetry but her memoir which is also brutally and brilliantly honest.
#nail #poetrymatters @TheSpineView

sarahbarnes Love this. And I have the copy of the trilogy that you gave me! I‘m looking forward to reading it this year. 3y
TheSpineView Perfect choice! ❤ 3y
merelybookish @sarahbarnes I really love this too. She's just so plainspoken. 3y
42 likes3 comments
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JackieGreco
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I was really captured by Tove Ditlevsen‘s memoir. She had quite the life experiences growing up poor in Denmark, being a youth in the time leading up to the Second World War, becoming fascinated by becoming a poet, and then becoming addicted to pain medication and trying to be sober again. This was pretty depressing but overall an interesting read. 3/5

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Billypar
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I read Vol 1 of My Struggle earlier this year and really liked Knausgard's style but wished it were shorter. As it turns out, Ditlevsen's trilogy of short memoirs is exactly what I wanted: hyper-conscious, yet carefully curated recollections. Ditlevsen is brilliant at knowing what moments to focus on and what is most fascinating about her perceptions of experiences with family, writing mentors, romantic partners, or her struggles with addiction.

Billypar (When I listen to audiobooks I never know what to post as the picture besides a screenshot of the cover, so I thought I'd mix it up a little with this aspiring shelf climber) 3y
Centique Awwww! Best little shelf climber ever 😍 I would stack this from your great review, but I already have. Sounds wonderful. 3y
Liz_M So cute! 😻😻😻 3y
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vivastory This has been on my radar, but your review has definitely bumped it up BTW I meant to tell you that I enjoyed your segment on Shawn's BookTube. 3y
Ruthiella Too cute! 😻😻😻 3y
Billypar @Centique I love it when I attempt to stack something and find I already did without remembering. It's like added confirmation that I should really read it 🙂 3y
Billypar @Liz_M @Ruthiella He does seem to like the books, so he'll likely be featured in more posts 😸 3y
Billypar @vivastory It's funny because this one reminded me of a NYRB work. I think you'll really enjoy it. And glad you liked the bite-size book chat - Shawn's put together a great program and that novella was a fun one to talk about. 3y
BarbaraBB Such a cute picture and you convinced me to stack the book! 3y
Cathythoughts I think I have this book .. must have a look. Great review 👍🏻 (edited) 3y
batsy Fab review! I want to read this for sure but *also* Knausgaard and there's only so many hours in the day 😬 photos of shelf climber always welcome 😍 3y
Billypar @BarbaraBB Excellent - I think it's one you'll enjoy! 3y
Billypar @Cathythoughts Thanks - hope you find it on your shelf! 3y
Billypar @batsy Thanks! That's always the truth - I did appreciate that Ditlevsen takes less hours than Knausgard 🙂 3y
46 likes14 comments
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merelybookish
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Wow! Ditlevsen writes with stark honesty about her working class childhood, her alienation, her development as an artist, her love affairs, and her addiction. It's an amazing story (she became a literary success at 22 in the midst of WWII) but it's written with matter-of-factness shaded by loneliness and precarity. All three volumes are excellent, but Book 3 describing her complicated marriages, abortions, and addiction is particularly harrowing.

Cathythoughts Great review! I ve stacked these during your posts ❤️👍🏻 4y
batsy Excellent review! 4y
youneverarrived Great review! They‘re on my tbr. 4y
merelybookish @Cathythoughts Thank you! I think you would enjoy. She provided quite a psychological portrait of herself! 4y
merelybookish @batsy @youneverarrived Thanks! I know you both like reading women writers from the past and she is a fascinating case. It made me want to read a bio of her although not sure one exists in English. 4y
76 likes4 stack adds5 comments
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Leftcoastzen
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Because my cat needed joint meds , I‘m not Amazon prime, & don‘t want to pay for shipping . No impulse control, wait , no impulse control should be first.😄Cat paws no extra charge.I‘m looking at you 👀
@merelybookish

merelybookish Well if you are already getting the meds might as well throw in a book too. That's just sensible. 😀 Look forward to your thoughts. I'm really into it! 4y
rubyslippersreads You‘re just doing what‘s best for your cat. 😸 4y
batsy Nicely done! 😆 4y
54 likes3 comments
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Twocougs
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What a fascinating and sad story of the early life of danish writer, Tove Ditlevsen.

vivastory I've seen this around lately and am intrigued, also this cover freaks me out 😂 4y
18 likes1 comment
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TheBookStacker
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It‘s so cold here in SoCal (for us) and it hailed this morning and now it‘s steadily pouring down rain and windy. So I turned the heating pad on and grabbed a blanket and I‘m settling in to snuggle with my cat and read a book.

Cuilin I so want to read this. 4y
TEArificbooks We have the same weather here and I love it but I am 🥶 4y
TheBookStacker @mdm139 oh I have sweatshirt sweatpants blanket fuzzy socks and space heater lol chilled to the bone 4y
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MicheleinPhilly I‘ll see your 50 degree weather and raise you (lower you) 20 degree weather. 😋 I say this as a former Southern Californian who knows what wimps you guys are. 😉 4y
TheBookStacker @MicheleinPhilly I‘m originally from Ohio and I‘ve definitely become a wimp since moving away 6 years ago to New Orleans, Las Vegas, and now San Diego. 4y
MicheleinPhilly I hear that. My wife is originally from Sweden but lived in Los Angeles for 15 years. She‘s the biggest wimp when it comes to the cold. 😂 4y
39 likes2 stack adds6 comments