The Copenhagen Trilogy: Childhood, Youth, DependencyThe Copenhagen Trilogy: Childhood, Youth, Dependency
Score Classic
What it's about
Tove Ditlevsen grew up in a working-class neighborhood of Copenhagen in the 1920s, determined to become a poet against her family's wishes. Her three short memoirs, Childhood, Youth and Dependency, follow her from a poor, lonely girlhood through her first jobs and first published poems to her early marriages. In the third volume, a doctor husband introduces her to opioids, and she spirals into a devastating addiction. She writes about all of it with startling frankness.
Why it's worth reading
Ditlevsen was a celebrated Danish writer, but the trilogy only reached English readers in 2021 and landed on the New York Times list of the century's best books. It's honest, sharp and impossible to forget.
You'll love it if you liked
My Brilliant Friend
The Glass Castle
The Year of Magical ThinkingGood to know
The three short books read as one. Dependency, the last, deals with addiction and is harrowing.
By the numbers
- Readers95 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics59 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller12 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
Why it made the list
Reads as
Thought-provoking
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Quick answers
Is The Copenhagen Trilogy: Childhood, Youth, Dependency worth reading?
Yes. Ditlevsen was a celebrated Danish writer, but the trilogy only reached English readers in 2021 and landed on the New York Times list of the century's best books. It ranks #301 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 81.6 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is The Copenhagen Trilogy: Childhood, Youth, Dependency about?
Tove Ditlevsen grew up in a working-class neighborhood of Copenhagen in the 1920s, determined to become a poet against her family's wishes. Her three short memoirs, Childhood, Youth and Dependency, follow her from a poor, lonely girlhood through her first jobs and first published poems to her early marriages. In the third volume, a doctor husband introduces her to opioids, and she spirals into a devastating addiction. She writes about all of it with startling frankness.
What should I read after The Copenhagen Trilogy: Childhood, Youth, Dependency?
If you liked it, try My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls or The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion.