Through a Glass, Darkly (Gaarder novel)

Through A Glass, Darkly (original Norwegian title: I et speil, i en gåte) is a novel by Norwegian author Jostein Gaarder published in 1993. An award-winning film adaptation was released in 2008. The title is a phrase from the First Epistle to the Corinthians, one of the epistles by Paul the Apostle.

Through a Glass, Darkly

First edition (Norwegian)
Author	Jostein Gaarder
Original title	I et speil, i en gåte (In a mirror, in a riddle)
Language	Norwegian
Genre	young adult, philosophy
Publisher	Aschehoug
Publication date	1993
Publication place	Norway

Plot

The book describes a series of conversations between Cecilia, a girl lying ill in bed with terminal cancer, and Ariel, an angel who stepped in through her window, on the meaning of life.

Prizes

The book won the author the Norwegian Booksellers' Prize for 1993,^[1] and has sold more than two million copies worldwide.^[2] In 1996, a German translation Durch einen Spiegel, in einem dunklen Wort won the Buxtehude Bull award for youth literature.^[3]

Film

The book was adapted to the screen by director Jesper W. Nielsen in 2008, entitled, like the book, I et speil, i en gåte. Marie Haagenrud played the leading character, Cecilia, and Aksel Hennie played the angel Ariel. The film won the Amanda Award for the best children's film for 2009.^[4]