“The ending is dramatic and open-ended, and that is just another plus for this wonderful novel. You Are Home Now fits beautifully into the series of Per Petterson’s existential masterpieces, which can be read again and again and again.”
5/6 stars
Henriette Bacher Lind, Jyllands-Posten, Denmark

“His prose is absolutely wonderful—so intimate and sensory, both carefree and meticulously crafted. You’re so close to the events, so close to what it feels like to be Kasper, that you think it can’t be true.

And of course it isn’t—the truth, that is. Petterson writes fiction; he invents, he fantasizes, but his “lies” in this new novel contain so much truth about existence and the human condition that, once you’ve finished reading, you immediately start the novel all over again. You Are Home Now is both an aesthetic and existential masterpiece from one of Norway’s greatest authors.”
6/6 stars
Bent Stenbakken, Kulturen.nu, Denmark

“It is sorrowful and lonely, yet at the same time immeasurably beautiful and multifaceted—only Per Petterson can frame the poignant and life-altering with understated humor and linguistic flair. … Per Petterson writes in a meandering, poetic style with a subtle flair for intricate details and associative, camouflaged detours. It’s imaginative in an immediately light and airy way, but beneath the chatty, faintly melancholic tone, you’re deftly led into the lovable yet cantankerous old man’s complex mind. … If you can (and you must!) look beyond the irony of men in Kasper’s situation downplaying their all-dominant role, you’ll find a lovely and sarcastic little work about guilt and shame, loneliness and powerlessness, love and infidelity. And about—perhaps—daring to deal with it all.”
Merete Reinholdt, Berlingske, Denmark

“The reason this reader, despite his quiet reservations, warmly recommends Petterson’s novel is his style. He manages to maintain a calm and measured pace, all while quietly stripping away the first-person narrator’s facade without making the reader lose sympathy for him, and it is remarkable how smoothly the author shifts from unassuming and soberly perceptive descriptions of objects and situations to ethically conscious reflection.
‘Gripping’ is probably the best word to describe this reading experience; I stand by my feeling of being grabbed by the collar by an author who wants me to linger as long as possible in the pain, guilt, and shame.”
Erik Skyum-Nielsen, Information, Denmark

“Gripping and masterful … delivers on all levels and encompasses almost everything. Elegant prose, fine flow, emotional depth, sharp observations, humorous understatements and well-founded reflections… Petterson writes in a style that is both casual and intimate, where the inner monologue balances exquisitely between written and spoken language, while the dialogues are lively and precise. Often with an underlying and subtle sense of humour, and throughout with a poetic nerve and flow that draws the reader into Petterson’s universe … The fact that Petterson does this in a fairly low-key and down-to-earth tone only reinforces the emotional aspect of this beautiful little story.”
6/6 stars, Leif Gjerstad, Bok365

“Few write better about love and death than Per Petterson… The very finest, Petterson’s genuine hallmark of quality, is present in abundance: the closeness to nature, the details of the emotions, the depictions of what emotions can make us do, without the author explaining or providing any definitive answers … Per Petterson is a master at capturing moments. He makes readers see their value.”
5/6 stars, Anne Cathrine Straume, NRK

“When the novel doesn’t become a little too intense and at the same time a standard love triangle, it has to do with Petterson’s language. Even though the broad strokes in his books can be dramatic, as they are this time, he grounds both the plot and the character portraits with a stylistically confident and understated language. Per Petterson simply writes incredibly well! … Petterson touches us with his words as if he were writing skin to skin … With You Are Home Now, Petterson is back with a new solid and intense novel … Petterson’s latest is among the strongest I have read this autumn.”
Alf Kjetil Walgermo, Vårt Land

“Per Petterson in top form … With the novel You Are Home Now, Per Petterson once again delivers a brilliantly sad story … Per Petterson’s sentences flow so beautifully and quietly. And in the novel You Are Home Now, they are illuminated by the bus driving through the night with Kasper sleeping, and sometimes reading … Per Petterson is a master of this intimate game where the choice of words and tone can determine the duration of a relationship or its sudden death.”
Turid Larsen, Dagsavisen

“Like meeting a dear old friend. For such a slim volume, this novel truly contains a great deal… a book that contains considerable amounts of melancholy and guilt, fortunately a good deal of humour – but also fundamental insights from a man whose motto in life has been to be truthful.”
5/6 stars, Ole Jacob Hoel, Adresseavisen