Yesterday it was revealed that ”THE OTHER WOMAN” is one of the shortlisted titles for the Nordic Council Literature Prize. This is the second award nomination as the book has previously been shortlisted for the Swedish Radio’s Literature Prize.
”THE OTHER WOMAN” describes the forbidden passion between a young woman and a married middle-aged man against a small-town backdrop. Therese Bohman skillfully portrays boredom and intellectual alienation from the viewpoint of her young female narrator: a university drop-out who works in the canteen of the local hospital and who finds excitement and purpose through her burgeoning affair with the married physician Carl Malmberg. Just like in her debut, Therese Bohman’s tone is very intimate and sincere, which is also enhanced by her protagonist’s sharp observations and reflections.
“The Other Woman” is a powerful, urgent, continuously alarming novel that highlights vital issues about the context of existence, that touches and raises questions about the fundamental and crucial meanings that most of us want to find in our lives.
Crister Enander, Helsingborgs Dagblad
“The Other Woman” can be read as an enthralling love story but underneath lies an original and profound discussion about the terms and conditions of the serious game in a society that comes across as completely contemporary and present.
Christian Swalander, Borås Tidning
Therese Bohman’s thoughts on class and femininity will most probably cause a stir. No matter how one interprets this, “Den andra kvinnan” is still a both well-written and well-narrated novel. The main protagonist’s combination of ocassionally irksome elitism and fathomless vulnerability becomes, in Bohman’s hands, both genuine and plausible.
Paulina Helgeson, Svenska Dagbladet
