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Lindgren Astrid
(1907—2002)

Astrid Anna Emilia Lindgren (née Ericsson was a Swedish author and screenwriter. She is the world's 18th most translated author and has sold roughly 145 million copies worldwide. She is best known for the Pippi Longstocking, Karlsson-on-the-Roof and the Six Bullerby Children book series.

Astrid Lindgren grew up in Näs, near Vimmerby, Småland and many of her books are based on her family and childhood memories and landscapes. However, Pippi Longstocking, one of her most famous books, was set in Gotland.

Lindgren was the daughter of Samuel August Ericsson and Hanna Johnsson. She had two sisters and a brother, Gunnar Ericsson, who eventually became a member of the Swedish parliament.

Upon finishing school, Lindgren took a job with the a local newspaper in Vimmerby. When she became pregnant with the chief editor's child in 1926, he proposed marriage. She declined and moved to Stockholm, learning to become a typist and stenographer (she would later write most of her drafts in stenography). In due time, she gave birth to her son, Lars, in Copenhagen and left him in the care of a foster family.

Although poorly paid, she saved whatever she could and travelled as often as possible to Copenhagen to be with Lars, often just over a weekend, spending most of her time on the train back and forth. Eventually, she managed to bring Lars home, leaving him in the care of her parents until she could afford to raise him in Stockholm.

In 1931, she married her boss, Sture Lindgren (1898–1952). Three years later, in 1934, Lindgren gave birth to her second child, Karin, who became a translator. The character Pippi Longstocking was invented for her daughter to amuse her while she was ill and bed-ridden. Lindgren later related that Karin had suddenly said to her, "Tell me a story about Pippi Longstocking," and the tale was created in response to that remark.

The family moved in 1941 to an apartment on the Dalagatan, with a view over Vasaparken, where Lindgren lived until her death in 2002, at the age of 94. Lindgren was almost blind a few years before her death.

Lindgren worked as a journalist and secretary before becoming a full time author. She served as a secretary for the 1933 Swedish Summer Grand Prix. In 1944 Lindgren won second prize in a competition held by the newly founded publishing house Rabén & Sjögren with her novel Britt-Marie lättar sitt hjärta (Britt-Marie unburdens her heart). A year later she won first prize in the same competition with the children's book Pippi Långstrump (Pippi Longstocking), which has since become one of the most beloved children's books in the world. She had already sent Pippi Longstocking to the Bonniers publishing house but it was rejected. While Lindgren almost immediately became a much appreciated writer, the irreverent attitude towards adult authority that is a distinguishing characteristic of many of her characters has occasionally drawn the ire of some conservatives.

The women's magazine Damernas Värld sent Lindgren to the USA in 1948 to write short essays. Upon arrival she is said to have been upset by the discrimination against Black Americans. A few years later she published the book Kati in America, a collection of short essays inspired by the trip. In 1956, she won the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis. In 1958, Lindgren became the second recipient of the Hans Christian Andersen Award, an international award for youth literature. On her 90th birthday, she was pronounced Swede of the Year by a radio show. In its entry on Scandinavian fantasy, The Encyclopedia of Fantasy named Lindgren the foremost Swedish contributor to modern children's fantasy. Its entry on Lindgren summed up her work in glowing terms: "her niche in children's fantasy remains both secure and exalted. Her stories and images can never be forgotten."

Belarus, 2010, Children read book

German Federal Republic, 2001, Pippi Longstocking

German Federal Republic, 2007, Astrid Lindgren

Macedonia, 2009, Pippi Longstocking

Russia, 1992, Karlsson-on-the-Roof

Russia, 2012, Eric and Karlsson-on-the-Roof

Sweden, 1969, Pippi Longstocking

Sweden, 1987, Eric and Karlsson-on-the-Roof

Sweden, 1987, Bullerby Children

Sweden, 1987, Madicken

Sweden, 1987, Mio, Min Mio

Sweden, 1987, Nils