Reviews
Curated and edited by Darcy Hurford
REVIEW
Hon var ingen Florence Nightingale
Åsa Moberg has written a remarkable biography of Nightingale that deals with the many aspects of her impressive work, not only her nursing but also her activities as a major feminist.
REVIEW
Den sista vintern
Together with Mankell and Nesser, Åke Edwardson represents the best in modern Swedish crime fiction.
REVIEW
Anders Sparrmans resa – en biografisk roman
Per Wästberg’s biographical novel of one of Carl Linné’s most inscrutable apostles.
REVIEW
Barndom
Bo Carpelan's impressionistic description of the life of a small boy from infancy to 13 years of age in 1930s Finland.
REVIEW
Fienden inom oss
Contrary to the conventional police drama, Jan Guillou's novel raises more questions than it answers, not only about the guilt or otherwise of those eventually convicted, but also about the destruction of aspects of democracy by the very processes that are supposed to protect it.
REVIEW
Edelcrantz förbindelser
The protagonist of Malte Persson's historical novel, like a more solemn and scientifically-inclined Mrs. Dalloway, is surrounded by interesting individuals with stories of their own.
REVIEW
Den larmande hopens dal
Erik Andersson's novel takes the reader on an odyssey through the province of Västergötland, aptly compared by one character to the Iowa corn belt in the United States.
REVIEW
Ett annat liv
When is an autobiography a novel? The question is relevant because Enquist’s book won the 2008 August Prize – in the fiction category.
REVIEW
Glädjestranden
Ellen Matsson's inheritance story is part psychological drama, part minutely-observed social history, part poetry.
REVIEW
Orgelbyggaren
Robert Åsbacka's novel on the search for art in everyday life, with characters who are ordinary people appreciative of Beckett’s plays and Baroque organ music.
REVIEW
Orkanpartyt
Klas Östergren's novel based on Old Norse tales reimagines the gods as a Mafia-like clan.
REVIEW
Kinesen
Henning Mankell’s novel is a fascinating and intriguing murder mystery. But it is also much more than that.
REVIEW
Fem knivar hade Andrej Krapl
The five knives become the leitmotif of Hannele Mikaela Taivassalo's novel. One of these knives, which have ornately decorated handles, is carried in a rather unusual place: its blade is tucked into a hymn book which is, in turn, tucked down the back of the young woman’s trousers, causing abrasions on her back.
REVIEW
Kicki & Lasse
Seasoned author Peter Kihlgård is bidding for our attention with an experiment in form.
REVIEW
När tiden tog slut
Göran Sahlberg's exuberant yet wistful novel with its vivid, tragic-comic account of a very unusual childhood evokes an era when Sweden felt it stood centre-stage in the world.