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Selma Lagerlöf (1858–1940)

Author of The Wonderful Adventures of Nils

530+ Works 7,946 Members 181 Reviews 41 Favorited
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About the Author

Selma Lagerlöf, winner of the Nobel Prize in 1909, was the first woman to be elected a member of the Swedish Academy. Her first novel, The Story of Gosta Berling (1891), assured her position as Sweden's greatest storyteller. She retold the folk tales of her native province, Varmland, in an show more original and poetic prose. As a woman writer, Lagerlöf gained a reputation as a naive purveyor of native traditions, but she herself compared writing a novel to solving a mathematical problem. Her artistry entails making her stories seem simple, but they are told with great attention to symbolism, psychology, and narrative technique. The Wonderful Adventures of Nils (1906) is a delightful fantasy written to teach children about Swedish geography, but it has found an international audience. Her third novel and masterpiece, Jerusalem (1901--02), the story of farmers from Dalarna who follow their faith to the Holy City, was widely praised for its insights into the lives of peasants searching for a spiritual ideal. During World War II, Lagerlöf helped many German artists and intellectuals escape the Nazis, even donating her gold Nobel Prize medal to a benefit fund to help Finland. She died of a stroke on March 16, 1940. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: Selma Lagerlöf - photo edited by Pieter Kuiper

Series

Works by Selma Lagerlöf

The Wonderful Adventures of Nils (1907) 1,621 copies, 33 reviews
The Saga of Gösta Berling (1891) 1,371 copies, 35 reviews
Jerusalem (1901) 421 copies, 12 reviews
The Emperor of Portugallia (1914) 387 copies, 13 reviews
Christ Legends (1964) 198 copies, 2 reviews
The Treasure (1903) 191 copies, 9 reviews
The Löwensköld Ring (1925) 164 copies, 9 reviews
A Manor House Tale (1889) 151 copies, 4 reviews
Memories of Marbacka (1922) 131 copies, 1 review
The Phantom Carriage (1912) 115 copies, 11 reviews
The Holy Night (1993) 108 copies, 2 reviews
Invisible Links (1894) 95 copies, 3 reviews
Anna Svärd (1928) 90 copies, 2 reviews
Jerusalem I (1978) 80 copies, 1 review
The Legend of the Christmas Rose (1987) 79 copies, 4 reviews
The Miracles Of Antichrist (2003) 77 copies, 1 review
Troll och människor (1915) 76 copies
Charlotte Löwensköld (1925) 76 copies, 2 reviews
Jerusalem II (1978) 75 copies, 1 review
Girl from the Marsh Croft (1908) 72 copies, 2 reviews
Liljecronas hem (1911) 51 copies
Körkarlen : Bannlyst (1978) 45 copies
The Outcast (1918) 44 copies
The Changeling (1992) 29 copies, 1 review
A Book for Christmas: And Other Stories (2024) 25 copies, 2 reviews
Arnes kunga manta (2022) 23 copies
Die schönsten Legenden (1978) 16 copies
Mårbackasviten (2013) 15 copies
Spökhanden (2012) 14 copies, 1 review
Gösta Berlingin taru. 1 (1965) 13 copies
Frid på jorden (2013) 11 copies, 1 review
Sakari Topelius (1920) 11 copies
Gösta Berlings saga. B.2 (1965) 11 copies
Tjänsteanden (2013) 11 copies, 1 review
What the Shepherd Saw (2014) 10 copies, 1 review
Unsichtbare Bande Erzählungen (2010) 9 copies, 1 review
Els Ingmarsson (1988) 9 copies
El carreter (2017) 9 copies
The silver mine (2017) 9 copies, 1 review
Gesammelte Werke, 5 Bde. (1980) 9 copies
L'anneau du pêcheur (1987) 9 copies
Novelas escogidas (1959) 8 copies
Dödskallen (2013) 7 copies, 1 review
Oeuvres romanesques (2014) 7 copies
Fire julefortellinger (2017) 7 copies
Il violino del pazzo (2023) 6 copies
Dunungen (2012) 6 copies
Nils Nolgersson (1991) 6 copies
Legenden om julrosorna (2021) 6 copies, 1 review
Sprookjes en sagen (1987) 6 copies
Vägen mellan himmel och jord (2013) 5 copies, 1 review
The Outlaws (2005) 5 copies, 1 review
Geschichten und Sagen (1991) 5 copies
Skrifter 5 copies
Luciadagens legend (2022) 4 copies, 1 review
Cudowna podróż. T. 1-2 (1986) 4 copies
Liebe Sophie - Liebe Valborg (2016) 4 copies, 1 review
Liebesgeschichten (2008) 4 copies
Sagor och berättelser (1984) 4 copies
Contos Lendários (2011) 4 copies
El proscrito (Spanish Edition) (2024) 3 copies, 1 review
Trollmusik 3 copies
Ingrid 3 copies
Nils Holgersson (1997) 3 copies
Legenden om juleroserne (2003) 3 copies, 1 review
Cuentos y Leyendas (2016) 3 copies
Legender, berättade (2019) 3 copies
Geschichten und Legenden (1998) 2 copies
Generosidad de corazón (1942) 2 copies
Nils wird verzaubert (1981) 2 copies
Robin Redbreast (1996) 2 copies
Geschichten und Sagen (1998) 2 copies
Tomten p©Æ T©œreby (2020) 2 copies, 1 review
En julg©Þst (2023) 2 copies
Legender 2 copies
Erzählungen — Author — 2 copies
Påskkärringen (2020) 2 copies
Bortbytingen (1986) 2 copies
Die Lichtflamme 2 copies
Dockteaterspel 2 copies
Short Fiction 2 copies
Opere 1 copy
Petter Nord 1 copy
Skrifter. 1 copy
Tarinoita 1 copy
Kočijaš 1 copy
Une Légende de Jérusalem 1 copy, 1 review
Podzim 1 copy
Fortellinger 1 copy
Nils Holgersson (2016) 1 copy
Maldición 1 copy
Oud en Nieuw 1 copy
Selma Lagerlöf (2009) 1 copy
Elsa 1 copy
Vonken 1 copy
Karr und Graufell (1955) 1 copy
En herrgårdssägen (2015) 1 copy
Legenden om julrosorna (2012) 1 copy
SADUN SATU 1 copy
Geschichten und Sagen (1980) 1 copy
Legenden om fru Lucia (2000) 1 copy
Julelegender 1 copy
EN JULEGJEST (2017) 1 copy
Astrid 1 copy
Cudowna podróż. T. 2 (2022) 1 copy
L'imperatore di Portugallia — Author — 1 copy
The Rattrap 1 copy, 1 review
LENDARIOS 1 copy
Nordic Tales (2004) 1 copy
Sigrid la Superbe 1 copy, 1 review
Helga 1 copy
Skiftingen (1975) 1 copy
Morbaka (1993) 1 copy
Morbakka / M©Ærbacka (2023) 1 copy
Cartea de Crăciun (2011) 1 copy
Legende o Kristu (2004) 1 copy
Nordisk jul 1 copy
Gudsfreden (2025) 1 copy
Bandito 1 copy

Associated Works

A World of Great Stories (1947) — Contributor — 301 copies, 4 reviews
Myths and Legends (1949) — Contributor — 269 copies, 3 reviews
Stories to Remember {complete} (1956) — Contributor — 184 copies, 1 review
Stories to Remember, Volume 1 (1956) — Contributor — 178 copies, 3 reviews
Great Short Stories of the World (1925) — Contributor — 165 copies, 1 review
Home for Christmas: Stories for Young and Old (2002) — Contributor — 140 copies, 12 reviews
The Fantastic Imagination II (1978) — Contributor — 107 copies
Great Short Stories of the Masters (1995) — Contributor — 94 copies, 1 review
Easter Stories: Classic Tales for the Holy Season (2015) — Contributor — 91 copies, 10 reviews
The Nobel Prize Treasury (1948) — Contributor — 88 copies, 1 review
Great Stories by Nobel Prize Winners (1993) — Contributor — 86 copies, 1 review
World's Great Adventure Stories (1929) — Contributor — 82 copies
Women and Fiction 2: Short Stories by and about Women (1978) — Contributor — 77 copies
A Scandinavian Christmas (2021) — Contributor — 45 copies
The Phantom Carriage [1921 film] (1921) — Original novel — 43 copies, 2 reviews
The Easter Book of Legends and Stories (1963) — Contributor — 34 copies
The Seas of God: Great Stories of the Human Spirit (1944) — Contributor — 32 copies, 2 reviews
The Animals' Christmas (1944) — Contributor — 28 copies
The Firelight Book: Prose and Poetry (1946) — Contributor — 28 copies
A Fireside Book of Yuletide Tales (1948) — Contributor — 22 copies, 1 review
Echo: Scandinavian Stories about Girls (2000) — Contributor — 17 copies
Trees: A Celebration (1989) — Contributor — 16 copies
Great Short Stories from the World's Literature (1950) — Contributor — 13 copies
Visions and Imaginations: Classic Fantasy Fiction (2005) — Contributor — 13 copies
Meesters der Zweedse vertelkunst — Author, some editions — 10 copies
Los Premios Nobel de Literatura, v.1 (1971) — Contributor — 9 copies
Dangerous Ladies (1992) — Contributor — 8 copies
The Saga of Gösta Berling [1924 film] (1924) — Original novel — 7 copies
Den store eventyrbog : eventyr fra hele verden (1996) — Contributor — 6 copies
The Greatest Christmas Stories & Poems in One Volume (2015) — Contributor — 4 copies
The Word Lives On: A Treasury of Spiritual Fiction (1951) — Contributor — 3 copies
Modern Short Stories — Contributor — 3 copies
Karvatassujen jäljillä : satuja eläimistä (1996) — Contributor — 2 copies
Adventures of Nils Holgersson [1962 film] (1962) — Original novel — 1 copy
Klassiske julefortellinger (2015) — Contributor, some editions — 1 copy
Svenske fortællere fra August Strindberg til Harry Martinson — Author, some editions — 1 copy, 1 review
Kleine Bettlektüre für treue Pommern (1985) — Author — 1 copy
Stories for girls — Contributor — 1 copy

Tagged

Common Knowledge

Canonical name
Lagerlöf, Selma
Legal name
Lagerlöf, Selma Ottilia Lovisa
Other names
Лагерлёф, Сельма
Birthdate
1858-11-20
Date of death
1940-03-16
Gender
female
Education
Högre lärarinneseminariet, Stockholm, Sweden
Occupations
novelist
short story writer
teacher
memoirist
Organizations
Swedish Academy
Awards and honors
Nobel Prize (Literature, 1909)
Relationships
Olander, Valborg (friend)
Elkan, Sophie (friend)
Tegnér, Esaias (Her grandfather, Daniel Lagerlöf was his cousin)
Sachs, Nelly (friend)
Short biography
Selma Lagerlöf was born in Östra Emterwik in the province of Värmland, western Sweden, and raised at Mårbacka, the family's estate there. Her parents were Erik Gustav Lagerlöf and his wife Louise Wallroth. She had five siblings. An early illness left her lame in both legs for a while, but she recovered and later said she had a happy childhood. She began writing poetry at an early age. She was educated at home, and in 1881 went to Stockholm to train as a teacher. In 1885, she took a job at a girls' high school in Landskrona, where she wrote her first novel, Gösta Berlings Saga (1891). The book went unnoticed at the time but later became her most popular, and played a part in the Swedish Romantic revival of the 1890s. In 1895, she won a scholarship from the Swedish Academy and gave up teaching to devote herself to her writing. After a visit to Italy, she published Antikrists mirakler (The Miracles of the Antichrist, 1897). With her close friend Sophie Elkan, she took a trip to Egypt and Palestine in 1899 that inspired her book Jerusalem (two volumes, 1901–02), her first big hit, which established her as one of the leading Swedish novelists of her generation. Other works included the children's geography book Nils Holgerssons underbara resa genom Sverige (The Wonderful Adventures of Nils, 1906). In 1909, Lagerlöf became the first female writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. World War I disturbed her deeply, and she wrote little until publishing her memoirs Mårbacka (1922), Ett barns memoarer (Memories of My Childhood, 1930), and Dagbok för Selma Lagerlöf (The Diary of Selma Lagerlöf 1932). She also produced a trilogy of historical novels set in Värmland: Löwensköldska ringen (The Ring of the Löwenskölds, 1925), Charlotte Löwensköld (1925), and Anna Svärd (1928). She was deeply attached to her childhood home Mårbacka, which was sold after her father’s death, and used her Nobel Prize money to buy it back. She was also a friend of the German-Jewish writer Nelly Sachs, and helped her escape the Nazis to Sweden.
Nationality
Sweden
Birthplace
Östra Ämtervik, Värmland, Sweden
Places of residence
Mårbacka, Östra Ämtervik, Värmland, Sweden
Stockholm, Sweden
Landskrona, Sweden
Place of death
Östra Ämtervik, Värmland, Sweden
Burial location
Sunne
Associated Place (for map)
Östra Ämtervik, Värmland, Sweden

Members

Discussions

2nd edn Finalist discussion: Girl From the Marsh Croft in Consensus Press (November 2025)
Group Read, May 2014: Gosta Berlings Saga in 1001 Books to read before you die (May 2014)

Reviews

194 reviews
Svezia rurale, fine ottocento. Jan e Kattrinna si sposano, non più giovani, non con l'idea di avere figli. Jan sembra scocciato di diventare padre "chissà se qualcuno pensa che sono contendo di vedermi arrivare questo bambino", pensa. Poi gli mettono in braccio la sua bambina, "all'improvviso sentì una scossa che fece tremare lui e la bambina" e "non riusciva a rendersi conto se fosse stata la piccina a trasmetterla a lui o lui alla piccina". Klara Gulla sconvolgerà la vita di Jan. Il show more romanzo parla dell'amore sconfinato tra Jan e sua figlia che porterà entrambi a dei sacrifici e ad allontanarsi, e ciascuno dei due reagirà a questo allontanamento in maniera differente, influenzandosi a vicenda. L'orgoglio e la vergogna di Klara Gulla sono causa dell'allontanamento dalla realtà di Jan. Questi due aspetti alimentano l'impossibilità di dialogo tra i due.
La cosa che mi ha reso speciale il romanzo è la profondità in cui il tema viene raccontato, con aspetti fiabeschi che si riflettono sia nello stile (tutta la prima parte, in cui viene presentata la bambina sembra quasi una raccolta di parabole) che nel racconto della follia di Jan, che appare a volte non come tale, ma come semplice risultato della forza delle sue emozioni.
Assolutamente oltre le aspettative, se la vogliamo vedere come una fiaba, una fiaba che piace anche ai Grinch come la sottoscritta.
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Jag är ganska säker på att jag läste den här i högstadiet, men annars är det mest TV-serien med Ingvar Hirdwall som sitter i minnet.

Men inte nu längre, för herregud vilken liten roman.

Grundhistorien trodde jag ju att jag kunde; fattig man älskar sin dotter över allt annat, hon måste resa till storstan för att tjäna pengar, hamnar på sniskan och pappa blir galen när han får reda på det. Och visst, där har vi grunddragen. Men på 220 sidor hinner ju Selma med så mycket show more mer; bara det att hon låter så många som älskar Jan - i slutändan till och med berättelsen själv - upprepa att han är inte galen.

"Jan är inte stollig. Men Vår Herre har satt en skärm för ögona på'n, så att han inte ska behöva se det, som han inte tål ve å se. Å det kan en bara vara tacksam för."

Även om Selma knappast är en realist av Martinsonsk kaliber använder hon här sitt sagoberättande för att stryka under så mycket; det tuffa livet som backstusittare, det benhårda klassamhället, de hårda vintrarna, livet som får Jan och Kattrinna att gifta sig bara för att slippa vara ensamma, till och med den rena lilla mordhistorien som ger honom en ny patron... och så den enda solstrålen i Jans liv, dottern som ger allt nya färger, som väcker hans hjärta efter ett långt och hårt liv, och vars frånvaro redan innan folk börjar tala klarspråk med honom om hur hon förtjänar pengar i Stockholm gör resten helt omöjligt att bära. Så vad ska han göra?

Och sen det lilla men effektiva persongalleriet runt omkring, de som inte kan låta bli att skratta åt honom, men som också är villiga att spela med för att ... ja, återigen, vem kan förebrå en bruten gammal man att han vill leva i en bättre värld och behandla människor bättre än han själv blivit? Om de i honom ser en bättre värld för sig själva också? "Han gick här och frös precis som vi - ett stort geni", som en annan värmlänning skrev...
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Based upon a Christmas story from famed Swedish author and Nobel laureate Selma Lagerlöf, this lovely picture-book, originally published in Switzerland, follows the nighttime adventures of a strange man who goes searching for something with which to keep his wife and infant child warm. Eventually he happens upon a hardhearted shepherd, who is so impressed by the fact that his dogs can't bite the stranger, his sheep don't flee from him, and his staff won't strike him, that he grants his show more wish, and allows him to take some coals. Following this man, the shepherd sees the wife and infant child in a cold cave, and having true mercy for this first time, gives a sheepskin to keep the infant warm. It is at this moment, the moment that he shows compassion, that he is able to see the angels all around him, and to comprehend that he is witnessing the miracle of Christmas...

Having enjoyed another of Selma Lagerlöf's Christmas stories, in the form of The Holy Night, and being an admirer of Maja Dusíková's artwork, which I have encountered in such books as The Gift from Saint Nicholas, I was quite excited to track down a copy of What the Shepherd Saw. I was therefore surprised to discover that this was in fact the same story, in somewhat altered form, as that found in The Holy Night. That other book contained a more involved tale, one with a framing device involving a young child whose grandmother has died. In that version, the story of the mysterious man and the shepherd is an inset tale, one told to the child by the grandmother. Here the story of the man and the shepherd is presented by itself, so although both books are clearly based on the same original story, they are different enough that I have not combined them. The story here is moving, highlighting the true meaning of Christmas, and how our ability to perceive that meaning is dependent upon what we have in our hearts - whether we approach it with kindness and compassion, or hardheartedness. I'm amused to see that some reviewers didn't care for it, thinking it some kind of "incorrect" Nativity Story, when of course, it is nothing of the kind. Rather, it is a symbolic miracle story, in which a man to whom the meaning of Christmas is unknown, discovers it, through following his mysterious visitor. Does he actually see the Holy Family, or is it a vision? That is up to the reader to decide, but it is odd to me to reproach a tale of how we approach the Nativity Story, for not being the original "true" Nativity Story.

Leaving that aside, I did find this tale poignant and appealing, and thought the artwork from Dusíková was beautiful. I do think the fuller version to be found in The Holy Night is far more powerful, and I would recommend that one before this, but if What the Shepherd Saw is all that the reader can obtain, I still think it is worth picking up.
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½
Thy Soul Shall Bear Witness! finds the main character, violent drunkard and good-for-nothing David Holm, telling a ghost story to two transients on New Year’s Eve. He says that a friend of his greatly feared dying on New Year’s Eve because the last person to die before the new year would have to drive the death cart for the whole next year, collecting all the souls of the deceased. Unfortunately, David soon learns that his friend was correct when the two men turn on him and leave him for show more dead. In his travels in the death cart, David visits some of the people he influenced when he was alive – the religious do-gooder who he rejected and treated cruelly, his imprisoned brother and his unhappy wife and children.

The book is a kind of fable in the vein of A Christmas Carol and It’s a Wonderful Life. To this end, there are numerous coincidences, convenient information dropping and sentimental epiphanies and conversions, but the book is engrossing anyway. Although there are a few stories of happy redemptions, the poverty and unhappiness of some of the characters is also shown and David is an unpleasant protagonist. The best parts involve the descriptions of the death cart and the job as its driver. Lagerlof spends a lot of time detailing the sorry state of the horse and carriage and the rattling seems endless to David. There are a couple nice stories of people seeing or not seeing the death cart – one has an old woman bantering with the driver and trying to hitch a ride. The occupation is its own punishment – time is stretched out so the year feels like a thousand, the driver has to witness all the violence and pain that accompanies death and he can’t find out what’s on the other side until his year is over. A fast, interesting read.
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½

Lists

Awards

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Associated Authors

Anna Oom Author
A. Panis Illustrator
Lars Klinting Illustrator
Maja Dusíková Illustrator
Thomas Steinfeld Afterword, Übersetzer
H. Baumhauer Illustrator
Wilhelm Schulz Illustrator
Juhani Aho Translator
Wiveca Jongeneel Translator
Maija Karma Illustrator
Ute Thönissen Illustrator
Bertil Lybeck Illustrator
Mary Hamilton Frye Illustrator
Paul Berf Translator
Ary Scheffer Cover artist
Paul Norlen Translator
Arthur G. Chater Translator
Albert Hahn, Jr. Illustrator
Agneta Segol Translator
Per Qvale Translator
Ilon Wikland Illustrator
Charles Mikolaycak Illustrator
Fina Rifà Illustrator
Marie Franzos Translator
S. van Praag Translator
Josep Carner Translator
Susannah Stevens Translator
Jeanette Winter Illustrator
Inger Rydén Illustrator

Statistics

Works
530
Also by
51
Members
7,946
Popularity
#3,050
Rating
3.9
Reviews
181
ISBNs
1,304
Languages
31
Favorited
41

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