The Wonderful Adventures of Nils

About this book

Nils Holgersson, a lazy, mischievous fourteen-year-old farm boy in southern Sweden who torments animals, is shrunk by an elf to the size of a thumb. When the family's tame white gander flies off to join a flock of wild geese, Nils clings to its neck, and he travels with the flock, led by the wise old goose Akka, the whole length of Sweden to Lapland and back, learning the speech of the animals, the history and geography of his country and, slowly, kindness.

Context and significance

Selma Lagerlöf (1858–1940) wrote the book in 1906 and 1907 at the request of Swedish teachers who wanted a geography reader for schools, and it became a classic of children's literature around the world. In 1909 she became the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. This translation is by Velma Swanston Howard. Compare The Jungle Book.

About the author