The Red Room

First published in 1879, it received mixed reviews in Sweden, but gave Strindberg the status of a genius in Denmark. The book built up his reputation through Scandinavia and is considered the first modern Swedish novel and gave him the acknowledgement as the founder of the genre.

The Red Room is a satire on life in Stockholm and the hypocrisy within it, and the reader will be able to see it through the eyes of Arvid Falk, a young man and Strindberg’s alter ego. Arvid and his bohemian friends experience society as less than ideal and that it’s often gainless to be honest. They all struggle to survive in their way of life and they meet regularly at Berns Salonger to discuss the duplicity and corruption within politics, journalism, publishing, theatre, philanthropy, and business.

Strindberg himself marketed the book heavily, since it was written during a period of his life when he was under huge financial pressure. It sold very well, 6 000 copies in just the first two years, and helped him to establish himself a writer to be taken seriously.
 

Emma Kreü
 



 Writer portrait 

August Strindberg

August Strindberg (1849-1912) was a Swedish writer, playwright and painter and is commonly seen as one of Sweden’s most important writers. Many of his works are considered to be classics within Swedish literature and his The Red Room (1879) has frequently been described as the first modern Swedish novel and Strindberg as the father of the genre.



Publications

Miss Julie

by August Strindberg
Love, lust and class – brutal clashes between the genders.

The Red Room

by August Strindberg
Criticizing the moral and hypocrisy in 1870s Stockholm.

The Inferno

by August Strindberg
Paranoia, occultism and artistry together in the company of Strindberg in Paris.

Books of special interest

The Merman

by Carl-Johan Vallgren
A story about the darkness that lives in all humans, even though most of us try to deny it.

Echoes from the Dead

by Johan Theorin
This is the first novel in the author’s planned quartet of books taking place on the Swedish island of Öland.

The Dogs of Riga

by Henning Mankell
The second book in the Kurt Wallander series.

Simon and the Oaks

by Marianne Fredriksson
A beautiful story about sons and their mothers.

New Collected Poems

by Tomas Tranströmer
Tomas Tranströmer is the 2011 Nobel Prize laureate in Literature. This books contains his collected work from his debut in 1954 with "17 Poems" to his most recent publications.

The Red Room

by August Strindberg
Criticizing the moral and hypocrisy in 1870s Stockholm.

Children's books

The Wonderful Adventures of Nils

by Selma Lagerlöf
“The Wonderful Adventures of Nils”, written in 1906 to 1907, came to be when Selma Lagerlöf was asked to write a book that could teach Swedish geography to school children.

Pippi Longstocking

by Astrid Lindgren
Pippi Longstocking lives alone in the big house “Villekulla“. Her father is busy pirating at sea and ruling as king of Kurrekurredutt Isle. But she is not lonely, as she has her friends Tommy and Annika, her horse Little buddy and her monkey Mr. Nilsson.

Bridget and the Moose Brothers

by Pija Lindenbaum
Bridget is all alone. She wants a sibling. A small one who can fit in her doll bed. Or maybe a big brother. Outside her building she meets the moose brothers and invites them to her room, having big plans to become their little sister.

When Owen's Mom Breathed Fire

by Pija Lindenbaum
Owen´s mom is always very busy. Every morning she is in a great hurry to get Owen up and to school and herself to work. But one day she has been turned into a big dragon and no longer knows how to be a mum.

The Diamond Mystery

by Martin Widmark
The first part in the popular series about Jerry and Maya, the children who are running their very own detective agency.

The Literary Magazine lists

Money

by Victoria Benedictsson
“Money” is Benedictsson's first novel, publish...

The Merman

by Carl-Johan Vallgren
Coming from a shattered family, the children Nella and Robert ...

Miss Julie

by August Strindberg
It’s Midsummer night in 1874 at a Count’s estate s...

The Red Room

by August Strindberg
First published in 1879, it received mixed reviews in Sweden, ...

New Collected Poems

by Tomas Tranströmer
Tomas Tranströmer is the 2011 Nobel Prize laureate in Lit...

The Dogs of Riga

by Henning Mankell
It’s the winter of 1991 and a small life raft with two d...

Italian Shoes

by Henning Mankell
On a small, isolated island in the Stockholm archipelago, Fred...

I Die, But the Memory Lives On

by Henning Mankell
A nonfictional fable about a growing tradition in countries in...

The Man from Beijing

by Henning Mankell
On a freezing day in January, a body is found in the snow in t...

The Ice Princess

by Camilla Läckberg
Published in 2002, this is Camilla Läckberg’s debut...

About The Literary Magazine

The Literary Magazine of Swedish books and writers – is a web-based literary magazine that specialises in Swedish literature. The Literary Magazine covers the latest in Swedish literature with articles and reviews.

The Literary Magazine is produced by the lagest Swedish literary magazine, LitteraturMagazinet, and based out of Stockholm, Sweden.

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