A philosophical novel by the genre specialist Jostein Gaarder. A book about the meaning of life, self-awareness, and generally the significance of existence.

At the University, Albert meets and falls in love with Eirin. Thirty-seven years later, when Eirin is in Melbourne and Albert is alone, he learns a big secret from Marianne, his doctor. Can he continue to live with what he now knows? He travels to the fairy-tale house, the refuge for him and Eirin for many years, and gives himself a twenty-four-hour deadline to write the story of their shared journey. There are things he needs to try to understand and confess because he is about to make the most important decision of his life.