As if nothing yet happened
ORIGINAL TITLE: Som om inget redan hänt
NUMBER OF PAGES: 276
AUTHOR: Niklas Rådström
ORIGINAL PUBLISHER: Albert Bonniers förlag
GENRE: Memoir
During a routine doctor’s appointment on a summer morning, Niklas Rådström receives an unexpected diagnosis of serious and acute blood cancer. Three days later, he undergoes his first chemotherapy session. As if nothing yet happened depicts a three-year leukemia treatment alongside the author’s upbringing as an only child in a disintegrating family. It is a gripping and vulnerable portrayal of an existence hanging in the balance, and a contemplation on what is ultimately important in life. A tale in the vicinity of death and yet a life-affirming story bathed in enchanting light and shadow.
Reviews
“one of our finest stylists. Crystalline and moving, but without an ounce of sentimentality, he describes the inexorable course of the disease. It is arresting, sincere and painful. ... And so, in the end, this meditation on illness and death becomes a beautiful tribute to life. A triumph for the writer of life.”
Svenska Dagbladet
“a depiction of childhood and coming of age that, with its authenticity and openness, goes straight to the heart. Niklas Rådström writes with shimmering beauty and eloquence, as he interweaves the personal with literature, psychology and science. ... As if nothing yet happened is a book to immerse yourself in and rejoice in, with its reflections on life and humanity. Something of the finest I have read. Don’t miss it.”
Nerikes Allehanda
“As if nothing yet happened is a magnificent tribute to life and to all living things, and a very good start to the new year in Swedish literature.”
Skånska Dagbladet
“a surprisingly sober book, given the circumstances. ... a convincing argument in a book that is stoically fighting for life”
Dagens Nyheter
“Rådström writes with subdued fervor, eloquently and philosophically, about living close to death. He is as liberatingly unsentimental about death as he is encouragingly sentimental about life.”
Btj
"It is powerful, moving and – dare I say – a real kick for the immune system"