Selma Lagerlöf poetically recorded old Norse fairytales and profoundly influenced Swedish identity. Her work was so brilliant, she was the first woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1909. In old age, she turned her poetic pen to her own life, recalling winters in the 1860s at her beloved Varmland farmhouse, Mårbaka.
For our annual Christmas Special, we bring her poignant memoirs to life, accompanied by an audio feast of traditional Swedish music. God Jul!
Music featured in this episode was generously shared by Blås, Balg & Tagel, Haga Vokalensemble, MrsBean 1987, Kevin MacLeod, Aaron Kenny, DJ Williams, The Westerlies, and Wayne Jones.
You can find a digital copy of Mårbaka and all Selma Lagerlöf's books at Gutenberg Project.
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THE WARRIOR Zenobia
THE OPTIMIST Émilie du Châtelet
THE MUSE Carolyn Cassady
THE SCULPTOR Edmonia Lewis
THE FLY GIRL Ruth Nichols
THE CHRISTMAS SPECIAL 2018 Ursula Bloom
THE AERONAUT Sophie Blanchard
THE EMPRESS Nur Jahan
THE AMBULANCE DRIVER Maud Fitch
WITCHES & MEDIUMS & GHOSTS, OH MY! 2018 Halloween Special
THE REVOLUTIONARY Mae Mallory
THE TRUE LOVE Dorothy Osborne
THE SINGLE LADY Marjorie Hillis
THE MARTYRS Perpetua and Felicitas
THE LADY NOVELIST Constance Fenimore Woolson
THE ASTRONOMER Caroline Herschel
THE COMPOSER Alma Mahler
THE BAKER Sally Lunn
THE JOURNALIST Claudia Jones
THE SAXON Hrotsvitha of Gandersheim
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