Astrid Lindgren (third from left) with her father, Samuel Ericsson (left) and mother, Hanna Jonsson (right). She is pictured here with her younger sisters Stina (1911), and Ingegerd (1916), and her older brother Gunnar (1906).
Mother: Hanna Jonsson
Samuel August and Hanna Ericsson, Astrid Lindgren's parents.
(Outrageous Pippi Longstocking has no parents around and n...)
Outrageous Pippi Longstocking has no parents around and no rules to follow, so she lives according to her own daredevilish ways. She's been treating her friends Tommy and Annika to wild adventures, too--like buying and eating seventy-two pounds of candy, or sailing off to an island in the middle of a lake to see what it's like to be shipwrecked. But then Pippi's long lost father returns, and she might have to leave Villa Villekulla!
(When Pippi’s father, the king, sends for her, she decides...)
When Pippi’s father, the king, sends for her, she decides to take her best friends Tommy and Annika with her to Kurrekurredutt Island. The island is fantastic and Pippi has one crazy adventure after another! Pippi is even made a princess - Princess Pippilotta.
(Imagine Eric's delight when, one day, a little man with a...)
Imagine Eric's delight when, one day, a little man with a propeller on his back appears hovering at the window! It's Karlson and he lives in a house on the roof. Soon Eric and Karlson are sharing all sorts of adventures, from tackling thieves and playing tricks to looping the loop and running across the rooftops. Fun and chaos burst from these charming, classic stories.
(Seacrow Island is a remarkable story, filled with sweetne...)
Seacrow Island is a remarkable story, filled with sweetness and sorrow, humor and suspense, and peopled with the vivid, unexpected, wonderfully winning characters we’ve come to expect from the creator of the unforgettable Pippi Longstocking.
(On the night Ronia was born, a thunderstorm raged over th...)
On the night Ronia was born, a thunderstorm raged over the mountain, but in Matt's castle and among his band of robbers there was only joy - for Matt now had a spirited little black-haired daughter. Soon Ronia learns to dance and yell with the robbers, but it is alone in the forest that she feels truly at home. Then one day Ronia meets Birk, the son of Matt's arch-enemy. Soon after Ronia and Birk become friends the worst quarrel ever between the rival bands erupts, and Ronia and Berk are right in the middle.
(Whether he's teaching his pet pig to dance, being chased ...)
Whether he's teaching his pet pig to dance, being chased by a mad cow or wrestling a robber, Emil's adventures never stop. Hens, dogs, little sisters - and adults - all flee his path. But Emil doesn't mean to be bad, it's just that trouble - and fun - follow him wherever he goes.
Astrid Lindgren was a Swedish writer, best known for several children's books, such as Pippi Longstocking, Emil i Lönneberga, Karlsson-on-the-Roof, and the Six Bullerby Children. She was also a children’s book editor for Rabén & Sjögren publishers for more than twenty years.
Background
Astrid Lindgren was born as Astrid Anna Emilia Ericsson on the 14th of November 1907 near Vimmerby, Sweden; the daughter of Samuel August Ericsson, a tenant farmer, and Hanna Jonsson. She had two sisters, Stina and Ingegerd, and a brother, Gunnar Ericsson.
Her childhood years were full of love and laughter, which came from her parents. Many of the settings and characters in Astrid’s books can be traced back to her own childhood.
Education
In 1914 Astrid Lindgren started her elementary education. After three years of elementary school Astrid continued on to secondary school. Astrid liked secondary school very much and had a great teacher in languages, Assistant Master Tengström, who encouraged her writing and often read her essays aloud to the class. When she was thirteen she got an essay published. It was called "At Our Farm" and was printed in the Vimmerby newspaper. Upon finishing school, Lindgren took a job with a local newspaper in Vimmerby, but soon left it and moved to the capital city of Stockholm. There she learned to become a typist and stenographer.
Lindgren worked as a journalist and secretary before becoming a full-time author. In 1944 Lindgren published the novel 'Britt-Marie lättar sitt hjärta' (Britt-Marie Unburdens Her Heart). The next year her book about Pippi Longstocking, a character she invented to amuse her children, appeared. The book made her reputation and was followed by several sequels including 'Pippi Goes on Board' (1946) and 'Pippi in the South Seas' (1948).
An equally popular character is found in Emil i Lönneberga (1963; Emil in the Soup Tureen), which was followed by a sequel in 1970. Other well-known characters include the children from Bullerbyn, portrayed in three books from the 1940s and 1950s, and Nils Karlsson-Pyssling (1949), a poetic tale of a lonely child and his world of imaginary creatures.
In Mio, min Mio (1954; Mio, My Son) and Bröderna Lejonhjärta (1973; The Brothers Lionheart) Lindgren turned with equal success to the world of folklore, and in Ronja Rövardotter (1981; Ronia, the Robber’s Daughter), she let the undaunted Ronja and her friend Birk experience both the dangers and hardship and the beauty and mystique of an animated forest.
Astrid Lindgren was immensely productive during the 1950s and 60s. She wrote at least one book a year, she travelled the world to talk about her books, gave lots of interviews and wrote thousands of letters.
Concurrent with her writing, she worked as a children’s book editor for Rabén & Sjögren, which she started in 1946 and held it until 1970, when she retired from her position. When she started in 1946 Rabén & Sjögren was a small publishing company on the brink of bankruptcy. Only a few years later it was the leading publisher of children’s literature in the Nordic region.
Lindgren’s words played a significant role in taking down a government and she influenced several Swedish laws both directly and indirectly. She fought for the rights of children, for equality, ecology and animal welfare, as well as against violence and oppression, and was opposed to corporal punishment.
In terms of party politics Lindgren was convinced that she belonged with the social democrats from as early as the 1930s. In 1976 Astrid Lindgren also jumped straight into public political debate. Astrid wrote a big spread article for debate in the form of a fairytale to which she gave the name, Pomperipossa in Monismania. The article was a blistering attack on the Social Democratic government and its taxation policies. In the ensuing debate Astrid also articulated her criticism against the dictatorial power which in many people’s opinion was being wielded by the governing party.
In 1980 it was time for the next big controversial political issue - the Swedish nuclear power referendum. Astrid Lindgren was deeply involved in the issue and became one of the most famous proponents of Option 3 - the proposal that sought to cease using nuclear power, to close power stations and to ban uranium mining.
The animal welfare campaign extended over a period of ten years between the 80s and 90s and Astrid Lindgren became a force to be reckoned with in the pro-environmental movement.
In the autumn of 1985, she entered into a new debate – this time the subject was Swedish animal-treatment policies. She wrote quite a number of articles inExpressen, which raised people’s awareness of how badly pigs, cattle, chickens and other domestic animals were treated in Sweden. Her constant concern with animal welfare was active in passing a new law in 1988 controlling factory farming, which put Sweden among the most developed countries on this issue.
Views
Quotations:
"A childhood without books – that would be no childhood. That would be like being shut out from the enchanted place where you can go and find the rarest kind of joy."
"Give the children love, more love and still more love – and the common sense will come by itself."
"I have never tried that before, so I think I should definitely be able to do that."
"But still, if it's true, how can it be a lie?"
"Don't you worry about me. I'll always come out on top."
"If I have managed to brighten up even one gloomy childhood – then I’m satisfied."
"When some people think you are big and some think you are little then perhaps you are just exactly the right age."
"There’s no order in nothing, and I can’t find everything."
"If you are very strong, you must also be very kind."
"Life is something you have to take care of - don't you realize that?"
"There were two things that made our childhood what it was - security and freedom."
Personality
Astrid Lindgren was a committed humanist and a person who thought for herself. She held on to her beliefs with both courage and seriousness, as well as humour and love. Lindgren’s humor and love for humanity was legendary. She represented the Swedish spirit for the rest of the world. She spoke out on behalf of living life against violence. Her books have put across loving relationships, liberation and fondness for nature.
Connections
While working in a local newspaper in Vimmerby, Lindgren had a relationship with the chief editor, who was married and a father. He proposed Lindgren marriage in 1926 after she became pregnant. She declined, later giving birth to her son, Lars.
In 1932 she married her employer, Sture Lindgren (1898–1952), who left his wife for her. Three years later, in 1934, Lindgren gave birth to her second child, Karin, who would become a translator. The character Pippi Longstocking was invented for her daughter to amuse her while she was ill in bed. The family moved in 1941 to an apartment on Dalagatan, with a view over Vasaparken, where Lindgren remained until her death on 28 January 2002 at the age of 94, having become blind.
Father:
Samuel August Ericsson
Mother:
Hanna Jonsson
husband:
Sture Lindgren
Son:
Lars Lindgren
Daughter:
Karin Nyman
Sister:
Stina Ericsson
Sister:
Ingegerd Ericsson
Brother:
Gunnar Ericsson
References
Astrid Lindgren: A Critical Study
A new critical biography of the woman who penned Pippi Longstocking travels to Sweden in the first half of the twentieth century to discover the writer and editor whose love of fairy tales enlivened a lifetime of literary accomplishment.
2000
Astrid Lindgren: Storyteller to the World
A biography emphasizing the inspiration behind the internationally honored writer, Astrid Lindgren, and her beloved character Pippi Longstocking, the feisty carrot-topped heroine, who is loved by 40 million readers around the world.
2016
Astrid Lindgren: The Woman Behind Pippi Longstocking
The first English‑language biography of Astrid Lindgren provides a moving and revealing portrait of the beloved Scandinavian literary icon whose adventures of Pippi Longstocking have influenced generations of young readers all over the world.