On the Calculation of Volume 3
“A literary phenomenon nearly forty years in the making, and a speculative masterwork” (New York Magazine), Balle’s epic On the Calculation of Volume in Book III introduces new thrills to the adventures of Tara Selter’s endless November day
In the marvelous third installment of Balle’s “astonishing” (The Washington Post) septology, Tara’s November 18th transforms when she discovers that she is no longer alone in her endless autumnal day. For she has met someone who remembers, and who knows as well as she does that “it is autumn, but that we’re not heading into winter. That spring and summer will not follow. That the reds and yellows of the trees are here to stay. That yesterday doesn’t mean the seventeenth of November, that tomorrow means the eighteenth, and that the nineteenth is a day we may never see.” Where Book I and II focused on a single woman’s involuntary journey away from her life and her loved ones and into the chasm of time, Book III brings us back into the realm of companionship, with all its thrills, odd quirks, and a sense of mutual bewilderment at having to relearn how to exist alongside others in a shared reality. And then of course, what of Tara’s husband Thomas, still sitting alone day after day, entirely unawares, in their house in Clarion-sous-Bois, waiting for his wife to return? Blending poetry and philosophical inquiry with rich reflections on our discombobulating times, Balle’s On the Calculation of Volume asks us to consider: What is a single person’s responsibility to humanity and to the preservation of this world?
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Solvej Balle
Solvej Balle (b. 1962) is a unique voice in Danish literature. She was part of a group of mainly female writers who debuted or established themselves in the early 1990s. Balle published her debut novel, “Lyrefugl,” in 1986 and gained fame in the 1990s with her novel “Ifølge loven.” Since then, she has published very few works, so it was a surprise when Balle announced in 2020 an ambitious and philosophical seven-part work, “Om udregning af rumfang,” for which she received the Nordic Council Literature Prize in 2022, for the first four parts.
On the Calculation of Volume
On the Calculation of Volume invites readers into a world where time loops endlessly, and every repetition deepens the weight of human experience. At the center is Tara Selter, a rare books dealer who wakes on the same November 18th again and again, while the world around her continues unaware. In this ceaseless day, the ordinary becomes extraordinary, and the familiar reveals hidden patterns, subtle choices, and the fragility of connection.
On the Calculation of Volume consists of four books and series is set to expand with the upcoming release of one more book. The current recommended reading order for the series is provided below.
