The Visit of the Royal Physician

The Visit of the Royal Physician (Swedish: Livläkarens besök) is a 1999 novel by the Swedish writer Per Olov Enquist. It is known as The Royal Physician's Visit in the United States. Against the backdrop of political turbulence and the enlightenment in the second half of the 18th century, the narrative revolves around the court of the mentally ill King Christian VII of Denmark, and the romance between the king's physician, Johann Friedrich Struensee, and the queen, Caroline Mathilde. The novel won the August Prize and the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize.[1][2]

The Visit of the Royal Physician
First edition
AuthorPer Olov Enquist
Original titleLivläkarens besök
TranslatorTiina Nunnally
CountrySweden
LanguageSwedish
PublisherNorstedts Förlag
Publication date
1999
Published in English
2001
Pages387
ISBN91-1-300755-6

Reception

John de Falbe of The Spectator wrote that "Enquist has imagined this appalling drama with immense sensitivity and intelligence." De Falbe continued: "Enquist writes in short, jerky sentences which often seem to repeat themselves. Although disconcerting at first, the technique works brilliantly. The atmosphere is suitably nervy, while the shifting ground beneath the apparent repetitions is vibrant with stealth and subterfuge. ... The swirling currents - emotional, political, social, spiritual - are so vivid that we cannot doubt the relevance of this historical tale."[3] Bruce Bawer reviewed the book for The New York Times, and wrote that "Enquist's principal characters are realized with a vividness and subtlety that place the book in the front ranks of contemporary literary fiction", and called the prose "brisk, lucid, vigorous, penetrating, rich in arresting epigrams and marked by calculated repetitions that give the novel a touch of hypnotic power."[4]

The novel was adapted into an opera by Bo Holten, premiered in 2009.[5]

See also

References
  1. "Alla Vinnare". augustpriset.se (in Swedish). Swedish Publishers’ Association. Archived from the original on 2011-08-12. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
  2. Staff writer (2004-03-30). "Collective's thriller makes foreign fiction shortlist". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2014-09-12. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
  3. Falbe, John de (2001-09-28). "Madness again in the state of Denmark". The Spectator. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
  4. Bawer, Bruce (2001-11-18). "Take My Queen, Please". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2015-05-27. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
  5. Gianna Chiesa Isnardi -Storia e cultura della Scandinavia: Uomini e mondi del Nord 8858771192 2015 il quale ha altresì rielaborato il proprio racconto nel libretto per l'omonima opera (Livlægens Besøg, 2008) la cui musica si deve al compositore danese Bo Holten
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