A Change of Time [Paperback]

“A masterpiece of the epistolary novel told in diary entries . . . beautifully translated . . . deeply felt”—from an award-winning and bestselling Danish novelist (Bookforum)

A penetrating study of a woman who, in the wake of her domineering husband’s death, must embrace her newfound freedom and redefine herself

Set in rural Denmark in the early 20th century, A Change of Time tells the story of a schoolteacher whose husband, the town doctor, has passed away. Her subsequent diary entries form an intimate portrait of a woman rebuilding her identity, and a small rural town whose path to modernity echoes her own path to joyful independence.
 
“An engaging, honest, and beautifully written look at love, loss, and self-realization.”
—Kirkus Reviews“Jessen is a talented and empathetic writer (and kudos must be given to translator Aitken, whose translation is supple and luminous), and has imbued a quiet story about a woman finding herself after her husband’s death with poignancy and stunning humanity.”
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“An engaging, honest, and beautifully written look at love, loss, and self-realization.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“In A Change of Time, Ida Jessen has crafted a masterpiece of the epistolary novel told in diary entries. Each log is rich with detail ... Here, one-liners—beautifully translated from the Danish by Martin Aitken—are deeply felt.”
—Bookforum&lS0