Karl Ove Knausgaard’s most daring and macabre novel yet, The School of Night is an indelible tale about dark temptations and moral depravity, and what we forget when we bargain with the devil
It’s 1985, and the young and ambitious Kristian Hadeland is moving from Norway to London to study photography. He throws himself headfirst into the bustling art scene and finds himself at a crossroads—ultimately deciding to pay any price for success in his early career, willing to sacrifice everything and to stop at nothing.
Twenty-four years later, Kristian has achieved everything he’s ever desired. Now an art photographer with a major retrospective in New York City, he sees his world around him begin to crumble as his past catches up to him and he faces his evil fate.
In a thrilling twist on Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus, and set in the occult universe of The Morning Star, The Wolves of Eternity, and The Third Realm, Knausgaard masterfully spins a dark cautionary tale about the lengths we will go to achieve success—and how far we are willing to fall.
Karl Ove Knausgaard’s first novel, Out of the World, was the first ever debut novel to win the Norwegian Critics’ Prize and his second, A Time for Everything, was longlisted for the 2010 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. The My Struggle cycle of novels has been heralded as a masterpiece wherever it has appeared. His work is published in 35 languages. Knsugaard's newest novel, The School of Night, will be published by Penguin Press in January 2026.
View titles by Karl Ove Knausgaard
Karl Ove Knausgaard’s most daring and macabre novel yet, The School of Night is an indelible tale about dark temptations and moral depravity, and what we forget when we bargain with the devil
It’s 1985, and the young and ambitious Kristian Hadeland is moving from Norway to London to study photography. He throws himself headfirst into the bustling art scene and finds himself at a crossroads—ultimately deciding to pay any price for success in his early career, willing to sacrifice everything and to stop at nothing.
Twenty-four years later, Kristian has achieved everything he’s ever desired. Now an art photographer with a major retrospective in New York City, he sees his world around him begin to crumble as his past catches up to him and he faces his evil fate.
In a thrilling twist on Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus, and set in the occult universe of The Morning Star, The Wolves of Eternity, and The Third Realm, Knausgaard masterfully spins a dark cautionary tale about the lengths we will go to achieve success—and how far we are willing to fall.
Karl Ove Knausgaard’s first novel, Out of the World, was the first ever debut novel to win the Norwegian Critics’ Prize and his second, A Time for Everything, was longlisted for the 2010 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. The My Struggle cycle of novels has been heralded as a masterpiece wherever it has appeared. His work is published in 35 languages. Knsugaard's newest novel, The School of Night, will be published by Penguin Press in January 2026.
View titles by Karl Ove Knausgaard
