At the beginning of the 90s, Jostein Gaarder wrote a global bestseller with “Sofie’s World”. Today he looks at the book with different eyes. A conversation about the big questions in life and the secret to a happy existence.
Mr. Gaarder, you have been writing books introducing philosophy for 30 years. Have you already thought about a philosophical question today?
Yes. Like every single day since I was about eleven years old.
What happened when you were eleven?
One day I felt like I was part of an adventure, a fairy tale. I was suddenly amazed. For my friends, the other children, their own existence was so self-evident. I write about this in my new book “Isn’t it a wonder we exist?” I understood that life is short and I will disappear at some point.