Originally published in 2018 and translated now by Martin Aitken, they by Helle Helle is the first of a trilogy slated for publication in English in 2026 and 2027. Helle is one of Denmark’s most accomplished modern novelists, but is yet to enjoy the same cult status in the anglophone world. The publication of this trilogy is sure to change that.

Helle’s quiet book revolves around an inseparable mother and daughter, both unnamed, who live above a hairdresser’s in Rødby, a small Danish town of 2,572 people. Together they walk through spring fields, watch a meteor shower and enrol in an evening class. But when the mother complains of a pain