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Selma Lagerlof profile picture
Selma Lagerlof
Author · 52 books

Selma Ottilia Lovisa Lagerlöf (1858-1940) was a Swedish author. In 1909 she became the first woman to ever receive the Nobel Prize in Literature, "in appreciation of the lofty idealism, vivid imagination and spiritual perception that characterize her writings". She later also became the first female member of the Swedish Academy. Born in the forested countryside of Sweden she was told many of the classic Swedish fairytales, which she would later use as inspiration in her magic realist writings. Since she for some of her early years had problems with her legs (she was born with a faulty hip) she would also spend a lot of time reading books such as the Bible. As a young woman she was a teacher in the southern parts of Sweden for ten years before her first novel Gösta Berling's Saga was published. As her writer career progressed she would keep up a correspondance with some of her former female collegues for almost her entire life. Lagerlöf never married and was almost certainly a lesbian (she never officially stated that she was, but most later researchers believe this to be the case). For many years her constant companion was fellow writer Sophie Elkan, with whom she traveled to Italy and the Middle East. Her visit to Palestine and a colony of Christians there, would inspire her to write Jerusalem, her story of Swedish farmers converting into a evangelical Christian group and travelling to "The American Colony" in Jerusalem. Lagerlöf was involved in both women issues as well as politics. She would among other things help the Jewish writer Nelly Sachs to come to Sweden and donated her Nobel medal to the Finnish war effort against the Soviet union. Outside of Sweden she's perhaps most widely known for her children's book Nils Holgerssons underbara resa genom Sverige (The Wonderful Adventures of Nils).

Series

Books

A Book for Christmas book cover

A Book for Christmas

2024

The Löwensköld Ring book cover

The Löwensköld Ring

1925

Luciadagens legend book cover

Luciadagens legend

2022

Ett barns memoarer

Mårbacka II

1930

Tjänsteanden book cover

Tjänsteanden

1911

Fire julefortellinger book cover

Fire julefortellinger

2017

Tomten på Töreby book cover

Tomten på Töreby

1921

Geschichten zur Weihnachtszeit. book cover

Geschichten zur Weihnachtszeit.

1976

Dagbok för Selma Ottilia Lovisa Lagerlöf book cover

Dagbok för Selma Ottilia Lovisa Lagerlöf

1932

Bandito book cover

Bandito

1918

Vägen mellan himmel och jord book cover

Vägen mellan himmel och jord

1915

Selma Lagerlöfs jul book cover

Selma Lagerlöfs jul

24 berättelser

2022

Liljecronas hem book cover

Liljecronas hem

1911

Christ Legends book cover

Christ Legends

1904

Gösta Berling's Saga book cover

Gösta Berling's Saga

1891

Mistrzowie opowieści. O kobiecie book cover

Mistrzowie opowieści. O kobiecie

2023

En Julgäst

1894

The Silver Mine book cover

The Silver Mine

2016

La leggenda della rosa di Natale book cover

La leggenda della rosa di Natale

1910

Spökhanden book cover

Spökhanden

1898

Anna Svard book cover

Anna Svard

1928

Jerusalem book cover

Jerusalem

I Dalarne

1901

El gran libro de los perros book cover

El gran libro de los perros

Los mejores relatos, ensayos y poemas de la literatura canina universal

2018

A Manor House Tale book cover

A Manor House Tale

1899

The Emperor of Portugalia book cover

The Emperor of Portugalia

1914

იერუსალიმი book cover

იერუსალიმი

1901

Invisible Links book cover

Invisible Links

1894

The Changeling book cover

The Changeling

1915

What the Shepherd Saw book cover

What the Shepherd Saw

2014

Körkarlen book cover

Körkarlen

1912

Uomini e troll book cover

Uomini e troll

1915

Further Adventures of Nils book cover

Further Adventures of Nils

1907

The Ultimate Christmas Collection book cover

The Ultimate Christmas Collection

2020

The Queens of Kungahalla book cover

The Queens of Kungahalla

1899

From a Swedish Homestead book cover

From a Swedish Homestead

1899

Das Mädchen vom Moorhof book cover

Das Mädchen vom Moorhof

1908

Herr Arnes penningar book cover

Herr Arnes penningar

1904

Dödskallen book cover

Dödskallen

1921

Charlotte Löwensköld book cover

Charlotte Löwensköld

1925

The Holy City, Jerusalem II book cover

The Holy City, Jerusalem II

1901

The Holy Night book cover

The Holy Night

1904

Il libro di Natale book cover

Il libro di Natale

1945

Selma Lagerlof - Jerusalem, & The Treasure book cover

Selma Lagerlof - Jerusalem, & The Treasure

2008

Weihnachtsgeschichten book cover

Weihnachtsgeschichten

2007

L'anello rubato book cover

L'anello rubato

2024

Морбакка book cover

Морбакка

1922

The Wonderful Adventures of Nils book cover

The Wonderful Adventures of Nils

1906

O Livro das Lendas book cover

O Livro das Lendas

1904

The Miracles of Antichrist book cover

The Miracles of Antichrist

1897

Frid på jorden book cover

Frid på jorden

1917

ლიოვენშოლდების ბეჭედი / შარლოტა ლიოვენშოლდი / ანა სვერდი book cover

ლიოვენშოლდების ბეჭედი / შარლოტა ლიოვენშოლდი / ანა სვერდი

1925

Bortbytingen book cover

Bortbytingen

Noveller

1915

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