The Nordic literary salon online in November will focus on the master of writing short stories, Kjell Askildsen. Our host will be translator from Norwegian Eva Kecková. She will present the collection of Askildsen’s stories, A great deserted landscape, which was published this year in her Czech translation by publishing house Rubato. Moderated by Michal Švec.
You can watch the live stream on Tuesday 18th November 2025 from 20:00 on the Scandinavian House Facebook page. The recording will later be made available on our YouTube channel.
In Czech.
About the book:
A great deserted landscape brings stories in which seemingly nothing happens; people go from room to room, smoke at tables in gardens, fill up their wine glasses, look out of the window or sit on benches in parks. But things are boiling under the surface, communication stagnates and the not so likeable protagonists of the stories analyse and try to understand the meaning of the banalities that are spoken. In his stories, the author creates a space where the meaning is born between the lines. Every sentence is carefully weighted and every detail is important. His prose is not dramatic, but instead lets the readers take a look at the tension and loneliness that hide inside the most commonplace situations.
The partner of Nordic literary salon online is Czech Translators of the North – an association that brings together translators of fiction from Northern languages to Czech. The event is part of the Scandinavian House’s year-long project Nordic Literature in the Heart of Europe 2025. It is supported by the Prague City Hall and the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic.
