The discoverer - Jan Kjaerstad

The third volume of Jan Kjaerstad's award-winning trilogy finds Jonas aboard the Voyager, a small boat exploring the reaches of the great Sognefjord in Western Norway. Also on board, four young people engaged in a multi-media project to chart all aspects of the fjord - its geography, people, and history. But, like the space probe the boat is named for, Jonas' personal journey of discovery reaches far beyond the usual confines of time and space. With all the breathtaking prowess of a master juggler, Jan Kjaerstad throws episode after episode from Jonas Wergeland's life into the air and holds them, suspended, like planets in solar system. And the reader, once again, is drawn into Wergeland's universe, and taken on a journey - this time with his daughter as guide - to discover finally the truth about his life, and what led to the death of his wife.

Jan Kjaerstad was born in Oslo in 1953. He read theology at the University of Oslo and made his debut as a writer in 1980 with a short story collection, The Earth Turns Quietly. The Seducer forms the first part of a trilogy that also includes the novels The Conqueror and The Discoverer. These novels have achieved huge international success. Jan Kjaerstad is also the author of essays, a children's book and editor of the literary magazine Vinduet. He was the recipient of the Nordic Prize for Literature in 2001 and was also Germany's Henrik Steffen Prize for Scandinavians who have significantly enriched Europe's artistic and intellectual life. Other awards include the Norwegian Literary Critics Prize adn the Aschehoug Prize.