Oliver Lovrenski published his debut novel Back in the Day at the age of nineteen. Dubbed “Trainspotting for Gen Z”, it tells the story of a group of Norwegian teenagers growing up in a world full of anxiety, drugs, and hope. Lovrenski will discuss the novel, which became a bestseller in Scandinavia, in an interview with poet and journalist Jonáš Zbořil.

In partnership with NORLA - Norwegian Literature Abroad.

Oliver Lovrenski is a Norwegian writer with Croatian roots. He grew up in Oslo and made his literary debut at the age of nineteen with the novel Back in the Day (2025), a raw generational portrait of a group of teenage boys from immigrant backgrounds. Their lives unfold on the streets, fraught with violence and drugs but also loyal friendships. Written in a rhythmic language influenced by rap, slang, and youthspeak, the book was an instant bestseller in Norway and was dubbed “the Norwegian Trainspotting”. The book won the Bokhandlerprisen, the prestigious Norwegian Booksellers’ Prize, making Lovrenski its youngest laureate ever. He also won the Oslo City Artist Prize and was nominated for the Brage Prize and the Tarjei Vesaas Debutant Prize. The novel has been published in multiple languages, and it was shortlisted for the 2026 Dublin Literary Award.

Jonáš Zbořil is a Czech writer, poet, and journalist. He studied Czech and English at Charles University’s Faculty of Education. He made his literary debut in 2013 with the poetry collection Podolí, which was nominated for the Jiří Orten Award and the Magnesia Litera Discovery of the Year. He followed this up with the collection Nová divočina (New Wilderness, 2020), and in 2024 he published his prose debut Flora, a dystopian novella about parenthood, nature, and humanity’s changing relationship with the world around us. The translation rights to the book have been sold in nineteen languages, including English, German, and French. Zbořil’s writing is characterised by an intimate, down-to-earth style that connects everyday experience with environmental and existential themes. He previously worked for a number of years at the Czech public radio station Radio Wave, where he hosted the literary programme Liberatura. He is currently the editor of the culture section of the news website Seznam Zprávy.