Harry Hole
Harry Hole is the main character in a series of 12 crime novels by Norwegian author Jo Nesbø . Hole (pronounced: [ˈhuːlə]) is a brilliant detective with unorthodox methods and a tendency to go it alone and break rules. Critics associate Harry Hole's personality with those of famous literary detectives: Sherlock Holmes , Hercule Poirot , Jules Maigret and Nero Wolfe , but according to Jo Nesbø himself, Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch is more of a tribute than inspiration relates.
In the film adaptation of the book Snowman , Harry Hole is played by Michael Fassbender .
Character description
Harry Hole is a police officer with the Oslo Department for Violent Crimes. Born in 1965, he has a younger sister with Down syndrome to whom he is deeply attached. His mother, a descendant of the Sami people , died of cancer when he was in his twenties. He never had a closer connection to his father Olav, a former teacher. Hole, Harry's family name, is the name of a historic Norwegian town ( Hole, Norway ) that dates back to Norwegian origins in the Viking Age. The name is derived from Old Norse hólar, the plural form of hóll, which means "round and isolated hill". The word is pronounced as two syllables, with an emphasis on the first [ˈhuːlə], as suggested in The Bat Man , where the Australian police call him "Harry Holy".
Hole had relationships with a number of women during the series of twelve novels. Ever since Robin, however , the love of his life has been Rakel Fauke, a lawyer whom he met at the police station. For Rakel's son Oleg, Harry is a father figure. Although their relationship breaks up several times due to Harry's police work or his alcohol addiction, they find each other again and again. At the end of their coma , Harry and Rakel get married.
Otherwise he has few close friends. In contrast, Hole often makes enemies among his colleagues who, however, reluctantly respect him.
He is a chain smoker and a hard alcoholic. Although he has his alcoholism under control at times, he always has a bottle of whiskey at home, fearing that he will lose control of himself if he relapses. The effects of his problem sometimes bring him into conflict with his superiors and some colleagues; but the heads of his department, Bjarne Møller and later Gunnar Hagen, can and always want to prevent his dismissal because they need Hole's brilliant mind. Hole is one of the few in the force who has received special training in interrogation methods and firearms with the FBI .
Hole has few friends in the Oslo Police Department, with the exception of some employees in the forensic department of the Norwegian police, including Beate Lønn, whom he often uses to secure important information in critical situations where specialist knowledge is required, and Bjørn Holm, another Forensic scientist . Harry is also friends with Gunnar Hagen, his former senior officer prior to the case described in The Larva .
In many ways, Oslo, the author's hometown, stars in the Harry Hole novels. Much of the background details of the stories relate to real-world locations, and the city is shown with "warts and everything" from Hole's favorite food and drink spots he visits to the traffic of what is known as the "Traffic Machine" road system. Harry Hole's friends and acquaintances include city dwellers from all walks of life, including immigrants from other parts of the world, old school friends such as taxi driver Øystein Eikeland - possibly the one closest to Hole.
Harry Hole's address is Sofie's Gate in Bislett , Oslo. He hasn't lived there since the events in The Larva because he has been in Hong Kong for three years. His popular "waterhole", the Schrøder restaurant (Schrøder for short) in St. Hanshaugen, which appears in most novels, is located near his home.
Apparitions
- 1997: Der Fledermausmann (Original title: Flaggermusmannen . Kriminalroman. Translated by Günther Frauenlob. Ullstein, Berlin 1999, ISBN 3-548-24597-8 .)
- 1998: Kakerlaken (Original title: Kakerlakkene . Kriminalroman. Translated by Günther Frauenlob. Ullstein, Berlin 2007, ISBN 978-3-548-26646-6 .)
- 2000: Rotkehlchen (Original title: Rødstrupe . Translated by Günther Frauenlob. Ullstein, Berlin 2003, ISBN 3-548-25544-2 .)
- 2002: Die Fährte (Original title: Sorgenfri . Kriminalroman. Translated by Günther Frauenlob. Ullstein, Berlin 2003, ISBN 3-548-25958-8 .)
- 2003: The fifth character (Original title: Marekors . Kriminalroman. Translated by Günther Frauenlob. Claassen, Berlin 2006, ISBN 978-3-546-00397-1 .)
- 2005: Der Erlöser (Original title: Frelseren . Kriminalroman. Translated by Günther Frauenlob. Ullstein, Berlin 2007, ISBN 978-3-550-08686-1 .)
- 2007: Snowman , filmed in 2017 (Original title: Snømannen . Kriminalroman. Translated by Günther Frauenlob. Ullstein, Berlin 2008, ISBN 978-3-550-08757-8 .)
- 2009: Leopard (Original title: Panserhjerte . Kriminalroman. Translated by Günther Frauenlob and Maike Dörries. Ullstein, Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-3-550-08774-5 .)
- 2011: Die Larve (Original title: Gjenferd . Kriminalroman. Translated by Günther Frauenlob. Ullstein, Berlin 2011, ISBN 978-3-550-08873-5 .)
- 2013: Koma (Original title: Politi . Kriminalroman. Translated by Günther Frauenlob. Ullstein, Berlin 2013, ISBN 978-3-550-08013-5 .)
- 2017: Durst (Original title: Tørst . Kriminalroman. Translated by Günther Frauenlob. Ullstein, Berlin 2017, ISBN 978-3-550-08172-9 .)
- 2019: Messer (Original title: Kniv. Kriminalroman. Translated by Günther Frauenlob. Ullstein, Berlin 2019, ISBN 978-3-550-08173-6 .)