In this edition of Bookstr: Around the World, our journey will take us to a country in the northern reaches of Europe, Sweden. Originally a Florida native, I moved to Stockholm, Sweden in 2018 and have spent the last nearly seven years attempting to discover what Sweden is all about. From an American perspective, I feel most people know Sweden for its affordable and practical IKEA furniture, catchy ABBA pop beats, or scrumptious Swedish meatballs (known as köttbullar over here). But now as a resident of this chilly landscape, the country and culture can be a bit complicated and it did take me a minute to discover what Swedishness is. Diving into a country’s literature is a brilliant way to discover this concept.
So pour yourself a nice, warm cup of glögg and grab a lussekatt to snack on before it’s time to get mysig and enjoy these Swedish reads.
Beartown (2016) by Fredrik Backman
Some Americans may have heard of Fredrik Backman for his other novel originally titled A Man Called Ove, but renamed to A Man Called Otto — a movie that was adapted in the United States with Tom Hanks in the starring role. Beartown revolves around a struggling, dying, small town called Björnstad (literally translated to Bear Town). In Björnstad, the official pastime is ice hockey, a sport that is popular in most of Sweden. However, when a tragic and violent incident shakes the very core of the town before their vital hockey match, the community leans on each other to pull them through this horrible event.
Stockholm Series I: City of My Dreams (1960) by Per Anders Fogelström
In Fogelström’s classic series, the city of Stockholm is described as the books’ main character. The Stockholm Series spans five books and details a century of the city’s development through the eyes of the working class. The initial novel, City of My Dreams, centers on the life of Henning Nilsson, as he moves from the slow farm life to bustling city life in Stockholm. Set in the working class neighborhood south of the city center, Södermalm, Fogelström details Nilsson’s experiences between 1860 and 1880, an era important with the rise of industrialization.
The Emigrants: The Emigrant Novels: Book I (1949) by Vilhelm Moberg
Besides being an author, Vilhelm Moberg was also a historian specializing in the lives of Swedes. For his Emigrant series, his journey took him to the Minnesota Historical Society to research the lives of Swedish immigrants to the US. With this knowledge, he applied accurate details of immigrant life to his novels. In the first book, The Emigrants, Moberg details the lives of Karl Oskar and Kristina Nilsson, a family of farmers living in Småland, southern Sweden, who decide to immigrate to America in search of a better life. Their journey in 1850 is riddled with hardship and tensions as they struggle with the rough passage on the Atlantic, ultimately settling in the United States Midwest.
The People of Hemsö (1887) by August Strindberg
A playwright, novelist, and writer of short stories, August Strindberg is a highly celebrated figure in Swedish literature. His combination of psychology and naturalism developed into Expressionist drama. In his 1887 novel entitled The People of Hemsö, this historical fictional narrative follows the drama of Carlsson as he is hired by a widow named Mrs. Flod. Set in the isolated and community-strong islands of the Stockholm archipelago, the townspeople grow suspicious of Carlsson as they believe he is taking advantage of the old widow.
The Long Ships (1941) by Frans G. Bengtsson
A scholar of antiquated, historical literature (with a doctoral thesis on Chaucer), Frans Bengtsson’s main focus with his novel The Long Ships explored the political landscapes of the Viking age. Classified as historical adventure fiction, The Long Ships is set in the 10th century and follows the life of Orm, also known as “Red” due to his hair color and fierce temper. As tensions flare between Scandinavia and Ireland, further clashes occur due to the struggles between the rise of Christianity and the foundational Norse Pagan beliefs.
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared (2009) by Jonas Jonasson
Exploring the struggles of mundane life as we age, Jonasson’s novel follows the hilarious adventure of Allan Karlsson, who breaks out of his retirement home ahead of his 100th birthday celebration. Initially set in Malmköping, a small village an hour and a half west of Stockholm with a population of 2,180 people, the slow life in the retirement home does not match Karlsson’s previous adventures, so he sets on a journey to find that adventurous spark again.
Kallocain (1940) by Karin Boye
Swedish poet and novelist Karin Boye penned Kallocain in 1940 while Europe was being ravished by World War II. This dystopian science fiction details the journey of Leo Kall, a scientist who constructed a drug called “kallocain”, which intended to transform a human into a “happy, healthy cell in the state organism.” Set in a totalitarian world-state, this novel is grouped with such classics as Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four and Huxley’s Brave New World as a call to action to warn future generations.
Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren
Astrid Lindgren is a national treasure in Sweden, to the extent that her face appears on the twenty krona banknote, alongside Pippi Longstocking herself. Lindgren has contributed so much to children’s literature, but her most famous work that has transitioned internationally is Pippi Longstocking. Comparable to the independent and vigorous strength of Lindgren, Pippi is written to reflect those attributes, as she seeks out adventures and rebellion with her spotted horse, Lilla Gubben. As of 2024, Lindgren’s tale has been so influential that it has been translated into 78 languages.
I hope this mix of contemporary novels and Swedish classics gives you a better perspective on what Sweden is about. From Vikings to cherished troll-like childhood classics, the Swedish world of literature has a lot to be explored.
To explore more of Europe, check out our article Around the World With Bookstr: Portugal!
For more classic literary reads, check out our bookshop Keeping It…Classic…Recs That Is!
