Selma Lagerlöf

Selma Lagerlöf (1858-1940) was a Swedish writer and first female recipient of the Nobel Prize for Literature (1909), as well as the first woman to be granted membership into the Swedish Academy (1914) – the body that awards the prize. Lagerlöf grew up on an estate known as Mårbacka in the Swedish province of Värmland. Her childhood was marred by illness and most of her time was spent at home, either reading or writing. The seeds of her authorship were planted already at seven year old. In 1885, she studied to become a teacher and started her vocation as a schoolteacher, all the while honing her writing on the side. Her first novel, Gösta Berlings Saga was published in 1891; four years later she made the decision to devote herself entirely to writing. Aside from her authorship, Lagerlöf was politically engaged and was an active proponent of female suffrage, speaking at the International Woman Suffrage Alliance in 1911, as well as at the victory party in 1919 once the law had been passed. The conception and design behind our bookends stem from Swedish renowned industrial designer, Jan Landqvist and are made in the small town of Gnosjö in the south of Sweden.