NEW EARTH

"A fine, golden metal rim rises in the east where the sun rises. The city is beginning to wake up, there is already the occasional distant rumble of carts entering the streets from the countryside, large, heavy farmer's carts, full of peat goods, hay and offal and firewood."

1893

Ny jord (1893) is an artist's novel.

The story is set in Kristiania around 1890, where the poet Irgens finds himself at the center of a self-satisfied and superficial circle of artists. With their high morals, hard work and integrity, the businessmen Tidemand and Henriksen act as counterparts to the artists. In the middle of these stands the schoolteacher Coldevin, described by Tore Hamsun as the author's mouthpiece.

New Earth bears the hallmark of being written as a contribution to an ongoing, contemporary debate, which comes at the expense of its literary quality. However, Hamsun long considered it his best novel, and referred to it as a "fist book."