New Swedish Books, Autumn 2017 1
65 Autumn 2017 Agnes Lindström (b. 1992) Hating G
ustavsberg Publisher Bonnier Carlsen www.bonniercarlsen.se Rights Bonnier Rights mathilde.coffy@bonnierrights.se Agnes Lindström works in social services and is herself from Gustavsberg. Hating Gustavsberg is her first novel. Hating Gustavsberg Agnes Lindström’s debut is a sharp, confident and positive story about growing up that stands out with its quick-witted tone. Mirre lives in a terraced house in Gustavsberg, a small town near Stockholm, together with her two older brothers and her completely ordinary parents. Nothing happens here. There’s no struggle, no one has any original thoughts, and mum can’t even be bothered to yell at Mirre properly, despite catching her smoking. Mirre is dying of boredom. But then, at a large family dinner, something finally happens. To her extended family’s great surprise (and to Mirre’s own) she suddenly speaks up. “I’m gay”, she says. And immediately after, inside her head, she hears: What? Am I? With an assured hand Agnes Lindström depicts just how confusing it can be to be fifteen. Who am I? What do I think? How do you make out with someone? And with whom? It’s difficult not to fall in love with the self-awareness and weary self-contempt in Mirre’s voice as she tells us about her life. Photo: Stefan Tell