Now That Night Is Near

Astrid Lindgren (1907-2002) was born in Sweden. After college, she worked in a newspaper office and a Swedish publishing house. Her most famous and beloved book, Pippi Longstocking, was originally published in Swedish in 1950, and was later translated into many other languages. It was followed by two sequels, Pippi Goes on Board and Pippi in the South Sea. Ms. Lindgren had a long, prolific career, writing more than 100 picture books, poems, short stories, plays, screenplays, and novels. In 1958, she won the Hans Christian Andersen Medal, the highest international award in children’s literature.

Marit Törnqvist is an acclaimed Swedish illustrator and recipient of the prestigious Golden Plaque. Marit has illustrated books by Astrid Lindgren and the Wall Street Journal praised her picture book Tom’s Christmas Fish: “Marit Törnqvist’s snug watercolors quickly situate us amid the pastel buildings and stone bridges of the Czech capital.”