In the Wilderness

Copyright © 1929 by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Copyright renewed 1957 by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. Published in the United States by vintage Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York, and simultaneously in Canada by Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto. Originally published in hardcover in Norwegian in two volumes as Olav Audunsson I Hestviken and Olav Audunsson og Hans Born by H. Ascheboug & Company, Oslo. Copyright © 1925, 1927 by H. Ascheboug & Company, Oslo. This translation was published in hardcover as part of The Master of Hestviken by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York, in 1929.

Translated from the Norwegian by Arthur G. Chater.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Undset, Sigrid, 1882–1949.
[Olav Audunsson og hans born. I. English]
In the wilderness / Sigrid Undset.
p. cm— (Master of Hestviken; v. 3)
Originally published in Norwegian as pt. 1 of Olav Audunsson og hans born (2 v.).
eISBN: 978-0-307-77310-4
1. Middle Ages—History—Fiction. 2. Norway—History—1030-1397—Fiction.
I. Title. II. Series: Undset, Sigrid, 1882-1949. Master of Hestviken; v. 3.
PT8950.U506213 1995 839
8’2372—dc20
94-42543
CIP

v3.1

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

PART ONE: The Parting of the Wags

1

2

3

4

5

PART TWO: The Wilderness

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

About the Author

Other Books by This Author

Books by Sigrid Undset

PART ONE
The Parting of the Wags

1

ON a day in spring Olav was out with one of his housecarls spreading dung on the frozen soil of the “good acre.”

The fields that faced north still gleamed and glittered with ice, but from above on the Horse Crag water trickled and ran. And on the sunny side, across the creek, the cliff was baking—the Bull rose out of the sea with a flickering reflection of the ripples on its rusty-grey rocks. Brown soil showed under the pines over there, and the thicket on the hillside toward Kverndal was hung with yellow catkins.

Out in the creek Eirik was rowing—the lad’s red kirtle shone sharply against the blue water. Olav stood for a while leaning on his spade and looked down at the little boat. ’Twas ever the same with Eirik—he took such a time! He had only had a few sheep to ferry across; sheep and goats were now turned out in the wood on that side. Today there was good use for the boy at home.

There came a tripping of feet on the rocks behind Olav’s back—the great bare rocks that rounded off the “good acre” toward the fiord. There stood Cecilia with the sun behind her so that its rays shone through her fair, curly hair, lighting it up.