Mr Hordvik arrived unexpectedly into The Reader’s life, turning up at a drop in evening at Another Country in the spring. He had brought a story to be read and it was good, very good indeed. A straight forward piece of story-telling, concealing an awful lot of art, we insisted PAIN was entered into the competition and so it was:
PAIN
It was a good feeling being back in Berlin. Several months had passed since the last time, and he was excited by the thought to visit some of the Second Hand Bookshops he knew so well. So he did, and early in the afternoon, he walked in the door, usually slightly open on sunny days, and said ‘hello’ to the owner sitting behind his computer. He liked this place, ANOTHER COUNTRY, and had therefore decided to spend most of the afternoon there. So often before, he had found books he considered small ‘jewels’, and, at a bargain price. He had made a list in his old ‘travel companion’, the small black note book, and he started to check around to test his luck again.
He wanted to stay in the city for a week or two to write a story that has been on his mind for so long, and finally decided now was the time. Walking around between the book shelves, he suddenly felt the urge to start there and then. The owner found a writing pad, and with that, and a bottle of white wine, he sat down in one of the worn out chairs at the window facing the street.
It was the only place giving sufficient light. The smell of old books, the quiet atmosphere, slightly dark, and the wine, gave him the feeling of privacy, and he started to fill the pages with words:
