Nordic Countries Reading List

It was very much a list of non-Nordic authors. And since you mentioned an interest in Viking history I really have to add Röde Orm (Usually called The Long Ships in English) by Frans G. Bengtsson to the list. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Long_Ships

And for people living in North America, The Emigrants by Vilhelm Moberg might be of particular interest. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Emigrants_(novel_series)

Evan, GREAT list, thank you! Very admirable how much you researched your Nordic trip ahead of time. I'm slowly reading "Children of Ash and Elm: A History of the Vikings" (by Neil Price), he's a professor of Archeology here at Uppsala University, such a good writer! And Kajsa Norman is Swedish & Anu Partanen is Finnish... so your list included a nice diversity of writers, thanks again!

I started planning the trip back in 2019 but because of Covid the trip was delayed for a few years so I had lots of time to read books on the Nordic countries

Kajsa Norman might be Swedish and Anu Partanen Finnish, but they both live on the other side of the Atlantic.

Hi Evan, wanted to add a Norwegian author Lars Mytting to your list. I’m currently reading “The Reindeer Hunters”, book 2 of a historical novel series. We’ve been to Norway 3 times and fell in love with the beauty and culture of the country.

From a bit of a different slant, if anyone has an interest in WWII, The Shetland Bus by David Howarth is an excellent recounting of the courageous Norwegian fishermen who ran their boats back and forth from the Norway coast to Scotland's Shetland Island bring in covert operatives, ammo, guns, money and supplies and taking back intel and refugees from the Nazis. At night. In winter. Across the stormy North Sea.

I was surprised at the very close ties between Shetland/Orkney and Norway - both Viking heritage and WWII.

Hi Evan, wanted to add a Norwegian author Lars Mytting to your list.
I’m currently reading “The Reindeer Hunters”, book 2 of a historical
novel series. We’ve been to Norway 3 times and fell in love with the
beauty and culture of the country.

Thanks for the suggestion. I did some research and it’s part of a trilogy. Over the holidays I read The Bell in the Lake which is the first book in the series. It was good and I look forward to reading the second book which is The Reindeer Hunters that you mention. It looks like the third book has been published, although it seems like an English translation isn't available at this time.

Another book I read over the holidays was Burial Rites by Hannah Kent. The book is fiction but based on the events of the last public execution in Iceland. It’s an excellent book and I really enjoyed it.

Burial Rites by Hannah Kent. The book is fiction but based on the events of the last public execution in Iceland. It’s an excellent book and I really enjoyed it.

I really like this author. The Good People I may have enjoyed even a bit more than Burial Rites (it's about Ireland).