Maja Lunde’s bestseller against climate change

A film by Marion Schmidt | ARTE | 2023

Climate change, the most pressing problem of the Anthropocene, threatens all life forms on this planet. Is literature able to help us grasp the dimensions of this challenge and maybe even contribute to a shift in attitude?

In the US, a new literary genre has been developing for a while now, so called climate-fiction, in reference to science-fiction, called cli-fi in short. The genre has only recently been gaining in importance in Europe. Probably the biggest contribution to the genre comes from multiple award winning Norwegian author Maja Lunde, whose three novels exploded onto the international book market. Her books have been translated into 40 languages and have sold more than 2.5 million copies. In her climate novels, she illustrates what we could expect, if we don’t change our lifestyle and economic strategies. Even though her future scenarios are frightening, in the end there is always a glimmer of hope – maybe that is one of the reasons for her incredible success.