Four plays written between 1979 and 1983, including work by the feminist writer Bj0rg Vik (see below) and a Brechtian analysis of Europe in the nuclear age by Edvard Hoem.? Knut Hamsun Hunger (PicadorFarrar, Straus & Girouxl; The WaPicadorKnopf); Mysteries IPicadorCarroll & Graf); The Women at the Pump, Wayfarers, Growth of the Soil (all SouvenirFarrar, Straus & Giroux); Pan (Vision Press, UK|. Hamsun's novels are enjoying a resurgence of interest after a backlash initiated by his proNazi sympathies during the last war. They're thoughtful, lyrical works on the whole, deliberately simple in style but with an underlying, sometimes sinister, ambivalence. Henrik Ibsen Ibsen Plays: Vols. 16 (Methuen Heinemann). The key international figure of Norwegian literature, Ibsen was a social dramatist, keen through his characters to portray contemporary society in all its forms and hypocrisies. Comparatively few of his plays are ever performed in Britain, though some A Doll's House, Hedda Gabler, for example are household names. All the major plays are contained in the six volume set. Jonas Lie The Seer{forest Books, UKl. The celebrated nineteenthcentury Norwegian writer who spent over thirty years living abroad represented here by his first great success, the novella The Seer, and eight other short stories. Bystein L0nn Tom Peber's Last Retreat (Marion Boyars, UK). A recent novel by one of Nonway's bestknown contemporary writers. It examines a businessman's past and his increasingly complicated present in typically tense style. Sigbjarn Obstfelder A Priest's Diary (Norvik PressDufour), The last, uncompleted work of a highly regarded Norwegian poet who died of consumption in 1900 aged 33. A moody, intense piece, it forms only a segment of an ambitious work that Obstfelder intended to be his life's major undertaking. Cora Sandel Alberta and Jacob, Alberta and Freedom, Alberta Alone (The Women's Press Ohio University Press). The celebrated Alberta trilogy follows the struggle of a young woman to prove herself in a hostile environment. With its depth of insight and contemporary detail, it ranks as a key work of twentiethcentury Norwegian literature. Also published by The Women's Press are Krane's Cafe, The Leech and The Silken Thread. 261 BASICS Amalie Skram Betrayed (Pandora, UK). A psychological study of nineteenthcentury sexual mores, concerning the marriage of a shy young bride to an older sea captain. Bjorg Vik Aquarium of Women (Norvik Presj Oufour). A collection of nine connected short stories by one of Norway's bestknown feminist writers. Recommended. CRITICISM AND BIOGRAPHY J.P, Hodin Edvard Munch (Thames & Hudson) The best available general introduction to Munch's life and work, with much interesting historical detail. Michael Meyer Ibsen on fUg (MethuenHeinemann). The best brief introduction to Ibsen's work for the general reader. For more depth, Meyer's biography, Ibsen (Penguin), is invaluable, and a marvellous read to boot.