I should have said: You’ve never been depressed; you’ve just been tired of working; you just assumed I was happy, but never bothered to make sure I actually was.
I should have said: Do you really believe I’ve had feelings for you for twenty years? Do you think it’s normal to walk around drowning in emotions all the time? When was the last time you bought clothes for the children?
You don’t even mow the lawn. You just shuffle around with your pirogues and expect me to lie on my back for you a couple of times a week.
I should have said: Not a single year has passed without me thinking about leaving you. Leaving you and taking the kids with me. Do you even care about them? Do you care about anyone but yourself?
I should have said: Who isn’t lonely?
One day, after two decades of marriage, Svein stood in front of the microwave and told me he no longer had feelings for me. It was 2014. To this day, he probably still believes our marriage ended because of me, because I never showed him enough love. I tried though, gave it my all; and he was in love, just not with me anymore. He was writing message after message to Veronika Hagen while I fought to keep our family together during his so-called depression.
Not People I Can Depend On tells the story of Linda Hansen, mother of two and municipal employee, whose husband leaves her for the only woman in town with a hint of glamour. What do you do when the man you sacrificed everything for walks away? When you stayed through thick and thin, only to be discarded like you don’t even matter? Like you’re filth? A goddamn cliché.
In a sharp prose, Kyrre Andreassen unflinchingly explores loss, betrayal, and the simmering desire for revenge. Written as a raw, unfiltered stream of consciousness, the novel unearths Linda Hansen’s innermost thoughts and memories, revealing a marriage that is at once selfish and selfless. In Linda, Andreassen has crafted a character in crisis, who is at the same time ruthless, stubborn and magnificent. With each page, her fury swells, relentless and unstoppable, forcing the reader to confront the dark side of the grandest thing in life – love.
Author
Reviews
“A novel worth the wait. Here, Kyrre Andreassen achieves the magical thing that literature can do when at its best: It makes us who read it reflect upon our own lives.”
– NRK, 6/6 Stars (NO)
“There is something liberating to it when Andreassen breathes life into the little devil that reside within many of us.”
– Vårt Land (NO)
“A bitter, blazing and exceedingly funny novel from Kyrre Andreassen.”
– Dagens Næringsliv (NO)
“[Andreassen’s] characteristic style is just as energetic in this year’s novel. With a wonderful, exuberant language, Andreassen gorges in the flaws of people and small-town communities. He pinpoints the Norwegian everyday life with stylistic elegance.”
– Aftenposten (NO)
“Kyrre Andreassen’s novels convey a unique insight into the Norwegian language, culture, and society.”
– Klassekampen (NO)
“Kyrre Andreassen gives us a powerful, down-to-earth portrait of loss, betrayal, and the painful search for meaning.”
– Stavanger Aftenblad, 5/6 Stars (NO)
“Not People I Can Depend On is a brilliant novel.”
– Morgenbladet (NO)
“One of the funniest books thos autumn, and certainly one of the better ones.”
– Adresseavisen, 5/6 Stars, (NO)
“Kyrre Andreassen writes richly and powerfully about the greatness of a little life.”
– Dag og Tid (NO)