I Think We’ve Been Here Before

I Think We’ve Been Here Before
by Suzy Krause
Published by Radiant Press
Review by Brandon Fick
$25.00 ISBN 9781998926220

The biggest compliment I can give to Suzy Krause’s I Think We’ve Been Here Before is that it is a comforting, fuzzy-sweater-type book about the bleakest topic imaginable: the end of all life on Earth. Spanning three months, mostly in southwestern Saskatchewan, partially in Berlin, the novel follows Marlen and Hilda Jorgensen and their daughter Nora, along with Hilda’s sister Irene and her husband and son, Hank and Ole, and Hilda and Irene’s father, Iver, as they grapple with news of an impending cosmic blast. Those expecting an apocalyptic, sci-fi disaster narrative will be disappointed. I Think We’ve Been Here Before is about love, family, and community, the fundamental things that matter to all of us. It is about forgiveness, acceptance, and making the best use of a finite – or perhaps not so finite – life. Krause also injects some high-concept physics that are eventually tied to the characters’ recurring sense of déjà vu.

What grounds this potentially baffling story that raises concepts like quantum entanglement is the family unit. Marlen, already diagnosed with terminal cancer, has written a book that mirrors the reality all the characters are experiencing, “a tribute to their family, a commentary on grief, on love, on relationships when time is short.” Because of this, he is able to process the upcoming catastrophe much differently than his wife Hilda, who agonizes over the separation from Nora and becomes consumed with painting life-affirming murals throughout the Jorgensen house. In Irene, Krause provides a different perspective, familiar to all of us who went through COVID, of someone who does not believe in the all-consuming global crisis. With empathy, she asks whether “it’s unfair to judge anyone for what they believe, if they have come to that belief honestly.” Ole and Iver, in a subplot that involves running away from home, dementia, a long-ago tragedy, and arcade games, have different reactions to the end of the world due to their age gap, but their surprising interactions also give the other exactly what they need. Nora, perhaps the most relatable character, finds herself “entangled” with Jacob, a young Berliner, following her first experience with heartbreak. This subplot, a tentative romance with soft philosophical reflection, takes some twists and turns that will feel a little odd until the final pages, which offer a plausible, if mind-bending explanation.

Time slows then suddenly skips in this novel, and that parallels my reading experience, where certain chapters dialled back the pace and I wondered where the plot was going, only to be surprised by chapters with a sudden shift in the action, insightful observations on human nature, and quirky humour. Just as the characters embody various contradictions, the book, not overly reliant on “plot,” still has the makings of a bestseller. In fact, I Think We’ve Been Here Before will soon be getting a much wider American release. And as I read it I kept thinking of the enormously popular novel The Midnight Library by Matt Haig, which, though it is not about a cosmic blast wiping out humanity, traffics in similar philosophical themes. Nevertheless, Krause’s work stands on its own, namely due to her warm, emphatically hopeful voice and the recognizable rural setting.

I Think We’ve Been Here Before can be called many things: a philosophical novel, a family novel, an anti-apocalyptic novel, a Christmas novel, a regional yet universal story. I would feel comfortable recommending it to seasoned literary readers, readers of popular bestsellers, those who do not read much at all. Its appeal is that broad, and rather than being something to die for, the poignant ending is something to live for.

THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE AT YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORE OR FROM WWW.SKBOOKS.COM