Norway and Anna Normann’s Silent Resistance

Submitted: 6th August 2025

Norway and Anna Normann’s Silent Resistance

Author Anna Normann talks all things Norway, Haugesund and the war effort…

The Silent Resistance Anna Normann

Locations in The Silent Resistance

When Anan and I started working on The Silent Resistance, we knew the story belonged in a small town setting. The natural choice was my hometown, Haugesund, on the west-coast of Norway. It was once called ‘the most isolated town in Norway’ because it was only accessible by ships. The coast line is rugged and dramatic, full of perfect hiding places for anyone wanting to hide something from the Nazi’s.

Akerhus festning 16 (c) Anna Normann

Locations in The Silent Resistance

Our first book together was set during the war, and we always talked about doing something similar again. We were researching the Norwegian ‘German girls’, women who had relationships with German soldiers during the Occupation, and came across an article about the Bigamy Law. It was such a dark and profound story, the way it affected the lives of women and their children for years to come. Once we made that decision, Anni, our main character, stepped out onto the pages, and The Silent Resistance became her story.

Haugesund (c) Anna Normann

Locations in The Silent Resistance

Lucky for us, in 2006 Norway started digitalising newspapers, books, photographs, historical documents; basically everything that had been written and published all the way back to the Middle Ages, and these data are available for everyone living in Norway. For historical writers it’s a goldmine, and something we use on a daily basis whenever we work on a new story.

I also write historical fiction series in Norwegian, and most of my books are located in Haugesund. I’ve always had a fascination with WW2, and over the years, I’ve probably collected far too many research books on WW2, all of them needed, of course.

Haugesund (c) Anna Normann

Locations in The Silent Resistance

Haugesund is a lovely town, with traditional white houses found in our coast towns, and most of the buildings that were there during the war are still intact. However we wanted a more isolated location for Anni’s house, and I immediately thought of my old primary school; Gard primary school, and Haraldshaugen, a national monument commemorating King Harald Fairhair’s unification of Norway.

Hovedøya women’s camp. (1956) (c) Anna Normann

Locations in The Silent Resistance

Like many schools during the war, Gard was used as barracks for German soldiers. I remember how fascinated I was, sitting in my classroom and looking at the nail marks on the walls where the soldiers had their bunks. I would try to picture how it had been back then, and it stuck with me. Since I was born 17 years after the liberation, and the war was very much a part of my life growing up.

WW2 Gard skole2 (c) Anna Normann

Locations in The Silent Resistance

Across the road from the school, there was a small prayer house where I used to go Sunday school, and where Anni had her little crèche. It’s possible to walk in Anni’s footsteps from Gard, where Ingrid started first grade just after the war.

Locations in The Silent Resistance

During the war, there was a few farms and houses close to the monument, and we decided that was the place for Guri’s farm and Anni’s house. It was perfect, especially for someone who worked with the local resistance.

Locations in The Silent Resistance

Most of the locations in The Silent Resistance is in Haugesund, and it’s a popular stop for cruise ships. For anyone visiting, a stroll through the high street, Haraldsgaten, is a must. Haraldshaugen monument is the most important place, because it will give you a sense of where Anni lived with her daughter and her mother-in-law. The walk around the monument is lovely, and gives a strong sense of where the story takes place. You can almost look across the sea to Scotland.

Locations in The Silent Resistance

We’d also like to recommend another important location, this one in Oslo. After the war, when Anni was arrested, she was sent to a camp on Hovedøya, an island a short ferry trip from Oslo harbour. The camp was situated in the middle of the island, and there’s still a building left, now used as a lovely cafe.