Kirsti Eline Torhaug

The Fragile Limit of Reason

Growing up in a small village outside Oslo in the 1920s, Per's vivid imagination is fuelled by dreams of adventure and admiration for great explorers. He longs to embark on a journey to the Amazon. His dream sustains him through a childhood overshadowed by the loveless marriage of his parents but the bond between Per, his brother Matthias, and their extraordinary little sister Moa provides warmth and hope. Moa, with her uncanny sense of foreboding, feels the first shiver of looming tragedy when she hears footsteps in the attic of their old farmhouse. One day these footsteps mean but one thing: Nazi forces have occupied Norway.

While Per and his childhood friend Helmer refuse to accept Norway’s surrender, big world events disrupt the quiet village life. The two plan to escape to England and join the resistance, but their daring attempt ends in capture. Sent to Sachsenhausen concentration camp, Per and Helmer endure unimaginable horrors, confronting the depths of human cruelty. Through it all, it is Per’s recollections of his village and family, of the dreams that once sustained him, that help him survive these darkest of days.

After the war, Per returns to a world irrevocably altered – his youth lost, his country saved, but his soul irrevocably scarred. Haunted by questions of meaning, resilience, and hope in the aftermath of war, he searches for purpose – and for Helmer.