Selma Lagerlöf

Born

in Mårbacka, Värmland, Sweden

November 20, 1858

Died

March 06, 1940

Genre

Magic Realism, Fiction, Children's Books

Influences

Fredrika Bremer ...more

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Selma Ottilia Lovisa Lagerlöf (1858-1940) was a Swedish author. In 1909 she became the first woman to ever receive the Nobel Prize in Literature, "in appreciation of the lofty idealism, vivid imagination and spiritual perception that characterize her writings". She later also became the first female member of the Swedish Academy.

Born in the forested countryside of Sweden she was told many of the classic Swedish fairytales, which she would later use as inspiration in her magic realist writings. Since she for some of her early years had problems with her legs (she was born with a faulty hip) she would also spend a lot of time reading books such as the Bible.

As a young woman she was a teacher in the southern parts of Sweden for ten years befo ...more

Combine Editions
Selma Lagerlöf’s books

Average rating: 3.85 · 26,287 ratings · 1,719 reviews · 458 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Wonderful Adventures of Nils by Selma Lagerlöf, Thea Kliros (Illustrator), Velma Swanston Howard (Translator) 4.04 avg rating — 9,535 ratings — published 1906 — 404 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Gösta Berling's Saga by Selma Lagerlöf, Lillie Tudeer (Translator), Pauline Klaiber-Gottschau (Translator) 3.68 avg rating — 3,505 ratings — published 1891 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Emperor of Portugalia 3.87 avg rating — 3,359 ratings — published 1914 — 56 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Jerusalem by Selma Lagerlöf, Velma Swanston Howard (Translator) 3.97 avg rating — 1,095 ratings — published 1901 — 149 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	En herrgårdssägen 3.62 avg rating — 1,022 ratings — published 1899 — 32 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Herr Arnes penningar 3.44 avg rating — 1,034 ratings — published 1904 — 80 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Löwensköld Ring 3.70 avg rating — 683 ratings — published 1925 — 41 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Löwensköldska ringen / Charlotte Löwensköld 3.80 avg rating — 351 ratings — published 1925 — 12 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Anna Svärd 3.82 avg rating — 275 ratings — published 1928 — 17 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Charlotte Löwensköld by Selma Lagerlöf, Maria Banuș (Translator), Petre Banuș (Translator) 3.89 avg rating — 256 ratings — published 1925 — 12 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Selma Lagerlöf…

Series by Selma Lagerlöf

Nils Holgersson (2 books)
by

Selma Lagerlöf

4.04 avg rating — 9,601 ratings

Löwensköldska ringen (3 books)
by

Selma Lagerlöf

3.80 avg rating — 1,676 ratings

Jerusalem (3 books)
by

Selma Lagerlöf,

Velma Swanston Howard (Translator)

3.96 avg rating — 1,200 ratings

Mårbacka (3 books)
by

Selma Lagerlöf

3.87 avg rating — 326 ratings

Nils Holgersson Audible (5 books)
by

Selma Lagerlöf,

Patrick Bernhard (Narrator),

Sabrina Krause (Narrator),

Henrik Dinkelaker (Narrator),

Kathrin Rüstig (Narrator),

Romeo Möller (Narrator),

Robér Schönborn (Narrator),

Maja Großmann (Narrator),

more…
3.31 avg rating — 61 ratings

More series by Selma Lagerlöf…

Quotes by Selma Lagerlöf

“Nothing on earth can make up for the loss of one who has loved you.”
― Selma Lagerlöf

2472 likes

“Have you ever seen a child sitting on its mother’s knee listening to fairy stories? As long as the child is told of cruel giants and of the terrible suffering of beautiful princesses, it holds its head up and its eyes open; but if the mother begins to speak of happiness and sunshine, the little one closes its eyes and falls asleep with its head against her breast. . . . I am a child like that, too. Others may like stories of flowers and sunshine; but I choose the dark nights and sad destinies.”
― Selma Lagerlöf, Gösta Berling's Saga

41 likes

“What Gosta,' he said to himself, 'can you no longer endure? You have been hardened in poverty all of your life; you have heard every tree in the forest, every tuft in the meadows preach to you of sacrifice and patience. You, brought up in a country where the winter is severe, and the summer joy is very short, have you forgotten the art of bearing your trials?
'Oh Gosta, a man must bear all that life gives him with a courageous heart and a smile on his lips, else he is no man. Sorrow as much as you will. If you love your beloved, let your conscience burn and chafe within you, but show yourself a man and a Varmlander. Let your glances beam with joy, and meet your friends with a gay word on your lips! Life and nature are hard. They bring forth courage and joy as a counterweight against their own hardness, or no one could endure them...”
― Selma Lagerlöf

10 likes

See all Selma Lagerlöf's quotes »

Polls

April 2017 Old School Classic Poll

Villette by Charlotte Brontë 1853, 573 pages

64 votes, 20.9%

The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper 1826, 410 pages

44 votes, 14.4%

Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev 1862, 244 pages

38 votes, 12.4%

Dead Souls by Nikolai Gogol 1842, 512 pages

31 votes, 10.1%

The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle 1883, 400 pages

28 votes, 9.2%

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs 1861, 176 pages

27 votes, 8.8%

The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 1774, 149 pages

26 votes, 8.5%

Ruth by Elizabeth Gaskell 1853, 432 pages

21 votes, 6.9%

The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman by Laurence Sterne 1767, 784 pages

11 votes, 3.6%

Gösta Berling's Saga by Selma Lagerlöf 1891, 368 pages

10 votes, 3.3%

The Female Quixote by Charlotte Lennox 1752, 464 pages

6 votes, 2.0%

306 total votes

7 comments

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Combine Editions
Selma Lagerlöf’s books