Dead man walking – Mamrelund

"Dead man walking" is based on the story of Hans Otto Jørgensen’s brother and sister-in-law’s struggling farm. The novel revolves around the brother and his family’s personal tragedy, and how it challenges their understanding of who they are and what rights they have to the earth their family has owned for 150 years.

But "Dead man walking" is also about the distance that has grown over the last 50 years between country and city as family farms have given way to factory farms. Accordingly, in the cities we no longer have memories of summer holidays at grandma and grandpa’s.

City dwellers’ everyday understanding—as an extension of the disconnect between country and city—has evolved into what Jørgensen calls ‘eco-fascism’ in his novel.

About the author 

Hans Otto Jørgensen, author, teacher, editor and co-founder of Forlaget Gladiator, grew up near Vile in Limfjord, Northwest Jutland. He made his debut in 1989 with the novel Tårnet [The Tower]. "Dead man walking" is his most recent publication.

Text translated by Sharon Rhodes