The story of Bo Vilhelm Olsson, who becomes Mio and ends up in the Land in the Far Away where he is tasked with fighting the evil knight Kato, is one of Astrid Lindgren's most beloved stories. A grand, beautiful and poetic saga that evokes thoughts about life and death, good and evil, and the power of love.Astrid Lindgren said that she got the idea for the book when she was walking through Tegnérlunden in Stockholm and passed a lonely boy on a bench. It was a dark autumn evening and he looked so lonely and sad. And she let him live at Upplandsgatan 13 because she saw him disappear into that gate.The book was the first of Astrid's stories that Ilon Wikland illustrated, which was the beginning of a long collaboration.In September 2020, a new edition came out with illustrations by Johan Egerkrans.
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The first to bring Astrid Lindgren's books abroad was the publisher Damm & Søn in Oslo, with their Norwegian edition of "Pippi Longstocking" already appearing in 1946. This marked the beginning of a long-standing relationship. Today, most of her books in Norway are published by Cappelen Damm, a publishing house formed through the merger of Cappelen and Damm. Astrid's book adaptations into films also became popular in Norway, as did her famous songs. One of Astrid Lindgren's favorite books was "Hunger" by the Norwegian author Knut Hamsun; she often mentioned it as one of her greatest reading experiences.