Career
Born in Vårdö, Åland, Sally Salminen was the eighth child of twelve. Already as a child she entertained notions of becoming an author, but she considered herself to be too poor and unknowledgeable to succeed as a writer After her confirmation, she worked in the village grocery store, until she moved to Stockholm, Sweden to work as a maid.
During her tenure in Sweden she took correspondent courses and read books in her spare time.
While in New York, she wrote during her spare time, and it was here she started writing the manuscript for her first (and most famous) novel, Katrina. Finland-Swedish publisher Holger Schildts Förlag announced in 1936 a writing contest, for which Salminen submitted her manuscript.
Katrina became an international success, eventually being translated into more than twenty languages. Sally Salminen married Danish painter Johannes Dürhkopf in 1940, and relocated to Denmark.
Salminen remained a prolific writer, but she was never able to replicate the success of her debut novel, Katrina.
Besides Katrina, and Vid Havet (1963) are considered her most notable works. Family Several of Salminen"s siblings were notable authors in their own right. Her sister Aili Nordgren (née Salminen) (1908–1995) wrote several books
Additionally, Aili Nordgren"s son Ralf Nordgren (1936 – ) and Uno Salminen"s daughter Christina Remmer (since 1941) have authored several books
Another notable author born on Åland, Johannes Salminen, is however not related to Sally Salminen.