Swedish children's writer
Maria Gripe
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Born
| Maja Stina Walter
(
1923-07-25
)
25 July 1923
Vaxholm
, Sweden
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Died
| 5 April 2007
(2007-04-05)
(aged 83)
Ronninge
, Sweden
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Occupation
| Journalist, writer
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Language
| Swedish
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Nationality
| Swedish
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Period
| 1954?1997
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Genre
| children's literature
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Maria Gripe
, born
Maja Stina Walter
(25 July 1923 ? 5 April 2007), was a Swedish author of books for children and young adults, which were often written in magical and mystical tone. She has written almost forty books, with many of her characters presented in short series of three or four books (e.g., the Hugo and Josephine books, the Shadow series, and the titles about Lotten).
[1]
For her lasting contribution to children's literature, she received the
Hans Christian Andersen Medal
for Writing in 1974.
[2]
[3]
Biography
[
edit
]
Maja Stina Walter was born in
Vaxholm
,
Uppland
, Sweden. When Maria was six, her family moved from Vaxholm to
Orebro
. They moved again to
Stockholm
for her secondary schooling and studies at
Stockholm University
.
In 1946 she married the artist
Harald Gripe
, who created cover illustrations for most of her books. His illustration career, in fact, began in connection with his wife's debut as the author of
I var lilla stad
("In our little town"). Maria Gripe's first major success was
Josephine
(1961), the first of a series of novels that later included
Hugo and Josephine
and
Hugo
.
During most of her adult life, Maria Gripe lived in
Nykoping
, where an adaptation of her book
Agnes Cecilia
was filmed. After a long period of dementia, Maria Gripe died at 83 in a nursing home in
Ronninge
outside Stockholm; her husband Harald had predeceased her by 15 years. Their daughter
Camilla Gripe
is also a children's author.
Writing style
[
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]
Much of her writing, particularly the later work, is suffused with a supernatural or mystical element. Fairy-tales were recurring motifs and these were often intertwined with psychological realism presented in a poetic style.
[4]
The change in her writing style from her less mature work was partly a result of the influence of
Edgar Allan Poe
,
Charlotte
and
Emily Bronte
, and
Carl Jonas Love Almquist
, and partly a reaction to violence in entertainment that had begun to gain ground in cultural expression; Gripe sought to manufacture plot tension in less overt ways.
A prominent feature of Maria Gripe's writing is a respect for individuals and their unique characteristics, a trait which is especially perceptible in the
social realism
of the
Elvis
series, which she co-wrote with her husband Harald in the 1970s.
[5]
Another recurring leitmotif in Gripe's books is shadow, particularly in the series which began with
Skuggan over stenbanken
("The shadow on the stone bench", 1982).
[6]
Books in English translation
[
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]
- Josephine
(
Josefin
, 1961)
- Hugo and Josephine
(
Hugo och Josefin
, 1962)
- Pappa Pellerin's Daughter
(
Pappa Pellerins dotter
, 1963)
- The Glassblower's Children
(
Glasblasarns barn
, 1964)
- In the Time of the Bells
(
I klockornas tid
, 1965)
- Hugo
(
Hugo
, 1966)
- The Land Beyond
(
Landet utanfor
, 1967)
- The Night Daddy
(
Nattpappan
, 1968)
- Julia's House
(
Julias hus och nattpappan
, 1971)
- Elvis and his Secret
(
Elvis Karlsson
, 1972)
- Elvis and his Friends
(
Elvis! Elvis!
, 1973)
- The Green Coat
(
...ellen, dellen...
, 1974)
- Agnes Cecilia
(
Agnes Cecilia ? en sallsam historia
, 1981)
Adaptations and translations
[
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]
Gripe wrote 38 books, translated into 30 different languages, making her one of Sweden's most prolific writers. Her last published book was
Annas blomma
("Anna's Flower", 1997). Several of Gripe's books have been filmed, such as
Glasblasarns barn
("The Glassblower's Children") and
Agnes Cecilia - en sallsam historia
("Agnes Cecilia: a singular history"), directed by
Anders Gronros
in the 1990s. In 1967,
Kjell Grede
directed
Hugo and Josephine
, considered the first Swedish children's film, which received critical acclaim for its artistic value as well as for the story itself.
[7]
In 1976,
Kay Pollak
also filmed
Elvis! Elvis!
(
Elvis and his friends
), which Gripe co-wrote with him after his serial
The Secret Reality
made a profound impression on the author.
[7]
There is also
Marianne Ahrne
who directed the 1989 television series
Flickan vid stenbanken
("The girl by the stone bench", based on the "Shadow" series).
[5]
Dramatized versions of
Tordyveln flyger i skymningen
("The scarab flies at dusk") and
Agnes Cecilia
were produced as radio serials, and an audio version of
Tanten
("The elderly lady"), narrated by
Margaretha Krook
, was also recorded for radio. Gripe also wrote the original
Swedish television
script for
Trolltider
("Magic Time", 1979).
[5]
Recognition for Gripe's work
[
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]
The biennial
Hans Christian Andersen Award
conferred by the
International Board on Books for Young People
is the highest recognition available to a writer or illustrator of children's books. Gripe received the writing award in 1974.
[2]
[3]
Stockholm University
Literature professor
Boel Westin
praised Maria Gripe to a writer for
Svenska Dagbladet
, declaring that her
Shadow
books presented an exciting narrative that enabled readers to feel as if they were participants: "She has meant a lot. She renewed children's prose."
[5]
Literary researcher
Ying Toijer-Nilsson
, who wrote a biography
Skuggornas fortrogna
("Confidant to shadows") of the author, echoed the remarks, saying that she would miss "the warm and humorous human being who was Maria Gripe." The biographer continued: "She has done a lot for the children's book world, and she got her readers to think about philosophy, about the world and about death." Toijer-Nilsson pointed out that Gripe's books also have "a significant tendency to support the social advancement of women."
[5]
Her books have won many awards. She was the first recipient of
Expressens Heffaklump
in 1966. She was the 1979 Swedish winner of the
Dobloug Prize
for Swedish and Norwegian fiction. In 1985 she was awarded the
Nordic Children's Book Prize
.
[
clarification needed
]
Gripe's publisher Bonnier Carlsen established the Maria Gripe Prize in 2005, which is a literary prize awarded annually.
[8]
[4]
See also
[
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]
References
[
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]
- ^
Haase, Donald (2008).
The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Folktales and Fairy Tales: G-P
. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. pp.
433
.
ISBN
9780313334412
.
- ^
a
b
"Hans Christian Andersen Awards"
.
International Board on Books for Young People
(IBBY). Retrieved 1 August 2013.
- ^
a
b
"Maria Gripe"
(pp. 50?51, by Sus Rostrup).
The Hans Christian Andersen Awards, 1956?2002
. IBBY.
Gyldendal
. 2002. Hosted by
Austrian Literature Online
. Retrieved 2013-08-01.
- ^
a
b
Duggan, Anne; Haase, Donald; Callow, Helen (2016).
Folktales and Fairy Tales: Traditions and Texts from around the World, 2nd Edition
. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. p. 436.
ISBN
9781610692540
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
"
Maria Gripe har avlidit
" ("Maria Gripe has died"), a April 2007,
Svenska Dagbladet
. Retrieved 3 August 2011.
- ^
Ingrid Nettervik,
I barnbokens varld
("In the children's book world", Malmo: Gleerup, 1994.
ISBN
91-40-63795-6
.
- ^
a
b
Neiiendam, Jacob (2005).
The Cinema of Scandinavia
. London: Wallflower Pres. pp.
172
.
ISBN
1904764231
.
- ^
"Gripe, Maria ? Illustrator presentation page"
.
bonnierrights.se
. Retrieved
27 September
2018
.
Further reading
[
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]
External links
[
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]
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