Pagine1858–1940 · Mårbacka, Värmland, Sweden · also known as Lagerlöf, Selma Lagerlof
Selma Lagerlöf was a schoolteacher whose first novel, Gösta Berling’s Saga (1891), brought the legends of her home province, Värmland, to life. Asked to write a geography reader for Swedish schools, she produced The Wonderful Adventures of Nils (1906–07), in which a mischievous boy shrunk to elf size flies across Sweden on the back of a goose. In 1909 she became the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Begin with The Wonderful Adventures of Nils.
Part of our Scandinavian Classics reading list — print it, email it to yourself or share it.
Hans Christian Andersen · Søren Kierkegaard · Henrik Ibsen · August Strindberg · Knut Hamsun · Sigrid Undset · Astrid Lindgren
Selma Lagerlöf was a schoolteacher whose first novel, Gösta Berling’s Saga (1891), brought the legends of her home province, Värmland, to life. Asked to write a geography reader for Swedish schools, she produced The Wonderful Adventures of Nils (1906–07), in which a mischievous boy shrunk to elf size flies across Sweden on the back of a goose.
The Wonderful Adventures of Nils is usually considered Selma Lagerlöf’s best-known work, followed by Gösta Berling’s Saga, Jerusalem.
Most readers start with The Wonderful Adventures of Nils.
Both refer to the same writer. Other spellings and names include Lagerlöf, Selma Lagerlof.
Yes — 2 of Selma Lagerlöf’s books are free to read online in Pagine, the free e-reader and reading tracker.