Men livet lever, meaning But Life Goes On, is a late novel and the last in a trilogy that includes Vagabonds and August. It returns to the coastal village of Polden and to the wanderer August, now an older man. The community has changed with modern times, and the book looks at ageing, memory and the shifting values of a small town. It is a quieter, reflective work in Hamsun's long career, closing a loosely connected group of stories about restless men and the places they call home.