FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of the most frequently asked questions about Astrid Lindgren and her authorship. Should you wish to include some question of your own, you are welcome to send us an email at info@astridlindgren.se
How many books has Astrid Lindgren written?
That question is not as easy to answer as you might think – it depends on what and how you count. There are 34 original books and 41 picture-books.
She has also written innumerable scripts for TV, theatre, radio theatre and film. These have given rise to the need for songs and music, and Astrid has written more than 40 song texts.
Then, there are the many books and writings by others which contain selected Astrid Lindgren texts:
• “Original Pippi” – the original manuscript rejected by Bonniers in 1944
• 15 picture books including text from previously published chapter-books (as of 2009)
• Three collections of plays (several of which have also been published in booklet form)
• A booklet containing her speech, Never Violence
• A thought-provoking book about the treatment of domestic animals, Min ko vill ha roligt (“My cow wants to have fun”), which Astrid wrote in collaboration with the veterinary, Kristina Forslund
• A book about the County of Småland, Mitt Småland, in collaboration with Margareta Strömstedt
• An essay on her authorship, Det gränslösaste äventyret (The Boundless Adventure), edited by Lena Törnqvist
• A book of essays about two people’s destinies, Liv kan vara så olika (Our two lives can be so different)
• Five song-books, one of which also includes a story about Pippi Longstocking
• Tour Guides for the Royal Swedish Automobile Club (KAK)
• A whole string of novels and stories that have been published in various magazines and papers
Besides all the above, there are texts by Astrid Lindgren included in many collections of her works, not to mention the countless anthologies and textbooks where her writings may be found in amongst other authors’ texts.
How many of Astrid Lindgren’s books have been sold?
It’s impossible to give an exact figure, but the official estimate is in the vicinity of 145 million copies worldwide.
Which of Astrid Lindgren’s books is the most popular?
The books about Pippi Longstocking are the most popular of all. In Germany, for example, they represent a quarter of all Astrid Lindgren sales. The Pippi books have been translated into more than 60 languages.
When did Astrid Lindgren start writing?
At school, Astrid was already good at writing. In an exercise book from 2nd grade, there is a composition about a man and a bear, for which Astrid was awarded AB (mark: Very Good). Later on, her compositions were read out in front of the class, and at the age of 13 Astrid had her composition, På vår gård (On our Property) published by Wimmerby Tidning (the Vimmerby Times). According to the editor of the paper, her composition was “a sample of stylistic flair seldom seen among our youth”.
In the autumn of 1924 she began as a voluntary worker at Wimmerby Tidning where she was given the task of writing small notices and articles. The subject of one of the articles was the opening of the new railway line between Vimmerby and Ydrefors. In that paper she also had published a series of travelogue articles – one of which is the account of her visit with the author Ellen Key at her property, “Strand” on the shores of Lake Vättern.
From 1933-1944 (the year of her debut as a novelist) Astrid Lindgren also had many fairytales published in various magazines, including Mors hyllning (A Tribute to Mother) and Landsbygdens Jul (A Country Christmas). One of the pieces is about Olle and the aggressive dog, Svipp – a story which turns up again in the Bullerby books.
What was the title of Astrid Lindgren’s debut book?
Britt-Mari lättar sitt hjärta (Confidences of Britt-Mari) – a teenage novel. It was published in 1944 after having won 2nd Prize in Rabén & Sjögren’s girls’ book competition in September that same year.
Which was Astrid Lindgren’s last book?
The very last book Astrid Lindgren created is a picture-book called Jullov är ett bra påhitt, sa Madicken (The Christmas holidays are a great invention, said Mardie) – 1993. Her last big story is Ronia, the Robber’s Daughter (1981).
Is there an Astrid Lindgren museum?
There is no Astrid Lindgren museum as such, but at the cultural centre, “Astrid Lindgrens Näs” in Vimmerby, there is a large, permanent exhibition about Astrid’s life and authorship. That is where you will also find her childhood home, which is still intact and open for guided tours, as well as a research library, etc.
It is also possible to take a virtual walk in Astrid´s apartment on Dalagan 46in Stockholm. This is the apartment to which Astrid and her family moved in 1941 and where she lived all her life. The apartment is kept entirely intact but is not open to the public for visits, except in this way.
http://www.astridlindgren.se/sites/default/files/dalagatan/index.html
How many children did Astrid Lindgren have?
She had two children – her son, Lasse (1926-1986) and her daughter, Karin (born 1934).
Is it true that an asteroid has been named after Astrid Lindgren?
Yes. In 1988, the USSR Academy of Sciences named asteroid #3204 after Astrid Lindgren. Astrid is said to have exclaimed: “Well, from now on you’ll have to call me Asteroid Lindgren.” The asteroid was discovered by the Russian astronomer, Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh on 1st September, 1978.
The asteroid is not, however, Astrid Lindgren’s only connection with astronomy. “Astrid-1” is the name of the first Swedish micro-satellite sent up from Russia in 1995, with instruments named after characters in Astrid Lindgren´s books.
But that’s not all. In 2006, the Swedish astronomer, Marie Rådbo persuaded the International Astronomical Union (IAU) to name a crater on Venus after Astrid Lindgren (craters on Venus are often named after historical women or goddesses).
Into how many languages have Astrid Lindgren’s books been translated?
No other Swedish author has had their books translated into as many languages as Astrid Lindgren. But it is difficult to be precise as to how many, partly because of how one differentiates between languages, dialects and language variants.
Counting the total number of translations of Astrid Lindgren’s texts into other languages or language variants, there are as many as 94 different translations.
1. Afrikaans
2. Albanian
3. Arabic
4. Aramaic
5. Armenian
6. Azerbaijani
7. Basque
8. Belarusian
9. Bengali
10. Bosnian
11. Bulgarian
12. Catalan
13. Chinese
14. Croatian
15. Cymraeg (Welsh)
16. Czech
17. Danish
18. Dutch and Flemish
19. Dutch Low Saxon
20. English – US
21. English – UK
22. Esperanto
23. Estonian
24. Faroese
25. Fering-Frisian
26. Finnish
27. French
28. Gaelic
29. Georgian
30. German
31. Greenlandic
32. Hebrew
33. Hindi
34. Hungarian
35. Icelandic
36. Indonesian
37. Interlingua
38. Irish (Gaelic)
39. Italian
40. Japanese
41. Kajkavian (Croatian)
42. Kazak
43. Khmer
44. Korean
45. Kurmanji (a Kurdish language)
46. Kyrgyz
47. Latin
48. Latvian
49. Lithuanian
50. Lule-Saamic (one of the languages of the Sami people)
51. Macedonian
52. Marathi (according to Kerstin Kvint) Pippi
53. Meänkieli (a northern Finnish dialect)
54. Modern Greek
55. Moldavian
56. Mongolian
57. Mooring-Frisian (northern dialect)
58. Nepalese
59. New Norwegian
60. North Saamic
61. Norwegian
62. Persian
63. Pitebondska (a Swedish-Finnish dialect)
64. Plattdeutsch (Low German), see also Dutch Low Saxon
65. Polish
66. Portuguese (both Brazilian and Portuguese)
67. Romansh – a Swiss national language, spoken by less than 1 % of the population
68. Romany
69. Rumanian – see also Moldavian
70. Russian
71. Serbian
72. Seselwa (Seychelles Creole)
73. Singhalese
74. Slovakian
75. Slovenian
76. Somali
77. Sorani (a Kurdish language)
78. Spanish
79. Swahili
80. Swiss German
81. Sylt-Frisian
82. Tamil
83. Tartar
84. Thai
85. Tigrinya (a Semitic language of Eritrea)
86. Transpiranto (a parody language of Esperanto)
87. Turkish
88. Turkmen
89. Ukrainian
90. Urdu
91. Uzbek
92. Vietnamese
93. Zulu
94. Älvdalska (a dialect of Northern Dalarna)
Frisian – see Mooring, Sylt and Fering
Kurdish – see Kurmanji and Sorani
Gaelic – see Irish
Suryoyo – see Aramaic
Welsh – see Cymraeg