WINNER OF THE MARTIN ANDERSEN NEXØ LITERARY AWARD
FEBRUARY 2014 WINNER OF BOOKWORLD'S BOOK OF THE MONTH PRIZE
SHORTLISTED FOR DANISH RADIO LITERATURE'S BEST NOVEL OF THE YEAR PRIZE
March, 1986: the Swedish prime minister, Olof Palme, has been assassinated, and a young boy and his father are on the move again. Travelling from Sweden to the outskirts of Denmark and into the heart of Copenhagen, the two live an itinerant life on the margins of society. The father, an eccentric, restless man, takes a series of odd jobs — from making antique furniture, to landscaping, to working as a bouncer at a strip club. By day, he home-schools his son. At night, he weaves a fairy tale about a prince and a king on a secret mission. But one day, their adventure takes a dark, unpredictable turn.
Ten years later, as the boy enters adulthood, he tries to conform to the demands of ordinary life. Yet he is haunted by his childhood — and questions about his father's murky past can no longer remain unanswered.
A Fairy Tale is a coming-of-age novel like no other. Powerful, sensitive, and utterly mesmerising, it reveals the indelible legacy that our parents leave to us.
PRAISE FOR JONAS T. BENGTSSON
'Bengtsson has artfully created a piece of existential fiction ... that tugs on the heartstrings and leaves a solid impression.' Readings Monthly
'[C]onveys the alienated, hollowed-out life of the young man with understated melancholy intensity.' The Sunday Age
