Peter Heg: the work of a Danish writer

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Peter Heg is a Danish writer who became internationally famous with the publication of Smilla and Her Sense of Snow in 1992.

A bestseller with a detective story, a strong sense of style, exciting plot twists, an understanding of the flow of life with its turmoil, troubles and loneliness was published in several countries around the world. This story, written from the point of view of a woman, tells about the experiences of the main character Smilla, who knew 70 definitions of snow and tried to understand the tragic death of a neighbor's boy who fell from the roof. Another famous piece written by Peter Heg is Silence.

Some information about the Danish writer

Peter Heg is a rather interesting personality who does not make contact with either the press or readers. His address is not recorded in the telephone directory, there is no sign with his name on the door of the dwelling, incoming mail is immediately redirected to his publishing house. It is only known that in winter it lives withwife and two daughters in the city, and in the summer in the country.

May 17, 1957 - the date of the birth of the Danish writer. A native of Copenhagen, he studied at a private school, then graduated with a degree in Literature. Before taking up writing, Peter Heg tried himself in various fields: he danced in ballet, taught stage art, was a sailor, which gave him the opportunity to get acquainted with Africa and the Caribbean. Apparently, such a meaningful past allowed Peter to describe ordinary life fragments in a poignantly melancholic style.

The first work published in 1988 was the novel "Visions of the Twentieth Century", reflecting the key role of national self-determination in the modern world.

Peter Heg, Novel Conditionally Fit

The novel about Smill - the second work; then the light was seen by the autobiographical book “Conditionally Suitable”, published in 1993 and revealing a new reality, tried on by the writer. Peter Heg was an orphan and wandered around various educational institutions for a long time. During this 14-year life period, the teenager was regularly humiliated, which was typical of Denmark in the 70s of the 20th century. This work is dedicated to a certain experience that was carried out at the Biel school during the author's studies in it. Later, Peter Heg, whose books are very popular all over the world, explained the events that happened to him as the desire of adults to help the young man adapt to modern life.

Man oranimal?

The Woman and the Monkey is a novel best suited for relaxed home reading. The unpredictable plot, the intrigue, the growing dynamics, in combination with the deeply emotional layers of the narrative, tell about the transformation into an independent, determined person of an alcoholic aristocrat. It can be said that in this case, from the pen of Peter Heg, a parable was born, figuring out who we are - animals or people? If people - why are they so cruel to themselves and their loved ones, indifferent to the future and short-sighted, because without hesitation we cut off the last connection with Nature. If animals, why do we take it negatively and demand to be called human?

Peter donated all the proceeds from the publication of this work to a foundation he founded to help residents of third world countries.

Peter Heg, Silence

The most notorious literary event in Denmark was the novel "Silence", published after a ten-year silence of the author, all this time traveling the world, carried away by Eastern philosophy, living as a hermit and doing charity work.

The action of this work takes place in modern Copenhagen after the earthquake happened. 42-year-old Kasper Kone - a famous musician, Bach fan, gambler - has a unique ear: he hears each person in a certain key. The complexity of his own life and its disorder, combined with the sound congestion of the modern metropolis, prompt Casper all the timestrive for silence, almost disappeared in the rhythm of the surrounding life. One day, a 10-year-old girl comes to his house, does not sound like everyone else, and exudes silence …

Peter Heg's books are published in millions of copies. The author also writes poetry. In 1998, a collection of his poems Første og sidste kapitel was published.