Childhood, Youth, Dependency The Copenhagen Trilogy

Tove Ditlevsen was a Danish writer who drew inspiration from her own life as a woman. In her poetry and as a writer, she developed a deep psychological insight into the divided lives of contemporary women. Her ability to express complex emotions in a simple and beautiful language, has influenced generations of readers. The “Copenhagen Trilogy” is a stunning memoir published in three captivating volumes of gritty and honest auto-fiction published as separate books in Denmark between 1967 and 1971. And you can feel it, because each of these parts is different. Tove writes beautifully; this book gets five stars from me, no doubt for the prose, for the plot and for the author’s ability to convey emotion so intensely. However, it is also a difficult, complex read, honest and uncompromising. The third part (Dependency) was the strongest of all. It evoked a wealth of emotions in me and was difficult to come to terms with. I will continue to think about it over the next few days, because I don’t think I will forget this book anytime soon.