Larissa Bendel with Morten on the book cover

Larissa Bendel, known for running the Hamburg-based international a-ha fan club together with other fans from 1988 to 1998, has recently published a new book in English called Close-up: My Life with a-ha.

The 246-page paperback edition, now available from amazon.co.uk, provides a personal account of her journey from becoming an a-ha fan in Germany in 1986 to teaming up with other fans to create the a-ha fan club and gradually getting to know both the band members and their families.

The fan club magazine was one of the best sources of info about a-ha and solo projects in the pre-internet days, featuring detailed news reports, concert reviews, set lists and interviews, with 38 issues published in total.

In Close-up: My Life with a-ha Bendel recounts stories of following the band on tour, attending promotional events, numerous trips to Norway and interactions within the a-ha fan community, from the beginning up until 2025.

The book has also been published in German as Nahaufnahme: Mein Leben mit a-ha and in Norwegian as Nærbilde: Mitt Liv med a-ha – both available from amazon.de. All editions can also be purchased as e-books.

Parts of the book were previously published in German in 2014 as a-ha-Effekte (and later in English as a-ha moments) but Close-up: My Life with a-ha is a heavily revised and expanded version.

Larissa Bendel has previously also written a book about Hunting High and Low, which was published in both Norwegian and English in 2011, as part of a series of books about the ten greatest Norwegian albums of all time.