With her latest book, Det har skjedd verre ting i utlandet, Marte Michelet explores her own upbringing, family history and identity. The book grew out of her relationship with her father, the writer Jon Michelet.
Combining family history and social history, Michelet explores themes such as the desire for freedom, political idealism, grief and the relationship between parents and children. She also reflects on how memories and the stories we tell about ourselves can shape our identity.
For this event, Michelet meets writer, biographer and editor Alf van der Hagen for a conversation about the book and her writing process. They will discuss memories, family, identity and how literature can be used to examine our own lives.
Alf van der Hagen has worked with literary conversations and interview based biographies for several decades. He has written books about authors including Dag Solstad, Kjell Askildsen, Suzanne Brøgger and Ingvar Ambjørnsen. In 2026, he received the Vestfold Literature Prize for his work highlighting Vestfold authors Ingvar Ambjørnsen and Dag Solstad.
Marte Michelet is a journalist and author. She received the Brage Prize for Den største forbrytelsen in 2014 and the Norwegian Booksellers’ Non Fiction Prize for Hva visste hjemmefronten? in 2018. The latter also sparked an extensive debate among historians.
And what does «laiving» actually mean? Find out when Michelet and van der Hagen meet on stage.