Melancholy I and II

By: Jon Fosse

Published by Deep Vellum Publishing, 2026-07-28

From Jon Fosse, winner of the 2023 Nobel Prize for Literature, comes an aching exploration of life, death, time, memory, and the artistic temperament.

Together for the first time in a single volume, Melancholy I & II, are essential entries in the body of work of one of literature's most lauded writers. Fosse focuses here on the life of Lars Hertervig (1830 - 1902), widely regarded as one of Norway's most significant painters.

Rendered in Fosse's trademark stream-of-consciousness, Melancholy I focuses on Hertervig's time as a student, torn between his studies, his art, and his unrequited loves. Melancholy II is narrated by Hertervig's sister and is set entirely on the date of his death, just after the dawning of the 20th century, as the world sits on the precipice of change.