Lars Saabye Christensen


Lars Saabye Christensen, is a Norwegian/Danish author.
Saabye Christensen was raised in the Skillebekk neighbourhood of Oslo, but lived for many years in Sortland in northern Norway; both places play a major role in his work. He lives in Blindern, the university district of Oslo.
He is half Danish and holds Danish rather than Norwegian citizenship.

Career

Saabye Christensen studied literature, Norwegian, art history and the history of ideas at university. He made his début in 1976 with a collection of poems entitled Historien om Gly, which won Tarjei Vesaas' debutantpris for that year's best Norwegian literary début, but he had published a poem collection, titled Grønt lys, when he was 19 years old, and had also published many poems in an underground literary publication called Dikt og Datt.
He has written numerous poems and plays, and several film scripts, but is best known as a novelist. His first novel was published the year after Historien om Gly and titled Amatøren. Among his most noted works are the novels Beatles and Halvbroren . Other notable books by Saabye Christensen are Herman, Gutten Som Ville Være En Av Gutta, Maskeblomstfamilien and Modellen. Between 2017 and 2019, he released a trilogy titled Byens spor, in which all three books were met with critical acclaim, while simultaneously being treated for a spinal disc herniation and bone marrow cancer.
Since 1993 he has issued 4 recordings of his poetry as a member of the band Norsk Utflukt: Med lyset på, Diger og gul, Det blå arret and Tida som går.
On 24 October 2006 he was made a Commander of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav. In April 2008 he was made a Chevalier dans L’ordre des Arts et Lettres by the French Government. In 2018, he was awarded an honorary Amanda award for his contribution to Norwegian culture.. He is a member of the Norwegian Academy for Language and Literature.

Awards and prizes