Margit Sandemo
Encyclopedia
Margit Sandemo is a Norwegian-Swedish historical fantasy
author. She has been the best-selling author in the Nordic Countries
since the 1980s, when her novel series of 47 books, The Legend of the Ice People
, was published. She has also written many other book series such as Häxmästaren
and Legenden om Ljusets rike
.
Typical features for works of Margit Sandemo are among other things history
, fantasy
, romance
, suspense and supernatural phenomena. The plots of her books are often very complex and meandering, and continue from one book to another. In the central role are distinct amulets, old writings and symbols, which the main characters decipher in order to solve riddles stage by time, while fighting against evil powers. The events of the majority of her novels take place in Europe
in the Middle Ages
and in the beginning of Modern Times, especially in Norway
and Iceland
. Sometimes the main characters have adventures further away, such as in Spain
and Austria
. Medieval knight castles, bewitched forests and old-fashioned, idyllic manor milieu are among the settings the stories take place in.
Among her literary role models, Sandemo names William Shakespeare
, Fyodor Dostoevsky
, J.R.R. Tolkien, Agatha Christie
and Kjersti Scheen
. She read the whole of works of Shakespeare at the age of eight years, and wasn't much older when she turned to crime novels. Kalevala
, the national epic of the Finnish people, Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne
and King Lear
were her favourites. In the adult age she has read significantly less, fearing subconscious plagiarizing. She says that she has got artistical influences also from the Kalevala motifed paintings of Akseli Gallen-Kallela
and the goblin motifed paintings of Gerhard Munthe. Other sources of inspiration have been classical music
, such as the compositions of Johann Sebastian Bach
and Ludwig van Beethoven
as well as old Europeans folk stories. Besides these she fonds of Star Wars
films, thriller film The Silence of the Lambs directed by Jonathan Demme
and earliest episodes of TV-series X-files. To her mind the newest episodes of the series are pure rubbish.
, Østre Toten
, Valdres
, Norway
. Her father was a Norwegian poet, Anders Underdal, who was born in Valdres in 1880, and died in 1973. Underdal was born out of wedlock, and according to Sandemo herself after an alleged affair between the Nobel-prize winning Norwegian author Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson
(1832–1910) and a 17-year-old croft girl named Guri Andersdotter (d. 1949). Audun Thorsen has written a book contradicting this allegation, entitled Bjørnsons kvinne og Margit Sandemos "familiehemmelighet" (in English
: "Bjørnson's Woman and the "Family Secret" of Margit Sandemo") (Genesis forlag, Oslo
1999.), which the author herself hasn't read, because she thinks "that it would be too great of a shock for her".
During her childhood it was thought that the alleged unmarried affair to Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson
must be kept secret. Even Anders Underdal, who early on gave an account of his origin to his children, fell silent about that matter later in life. Nobody knows why. Sandemo herself doesn't like talking about her ancestry in public.
Sandemo's mother was a Swedish
countess Elsa Reuterskiöld (1892 – 1967), whose occupation was teacher. She was born in Blekinge
for 4th eldest of the nine children of the county chief Axel Gabriel Adam Reuterskiöld (1863 – 1938) and Finnish-Swedish countess Eva Beata Gabriella Oxenstierna (1864 – 1949) from Korsholm
and Wasa
, but she lost her title of nobility when she married unnobled Anders Underdal. Sosialdemocratic Reuterskiöld took an active part in politics. Sandemo is on the mother's side a descendant of numerous Europeans noble families, and over 800 kings and 112 emperors are counted among her ancestors. Her earliest ancestors has been traced as far back as year 350 BC.
Elsa Reuterskiöld met Anders Underdal the first time in her summer holiday journey in a valley in Valdres
. They married quite soon after that in 15 June 1921 and Underdal bought a small farm, where they moved, which was located in Huldrehaugen, Grunke, Moen
, close by Fagernes
. There the couple had five children, Margit the second eldest. She had one elder sister called Eva and three younger brothers, whose names from the oldest to the youngest were: Axel, Anders and Embrik. There is only a seven-year age gap between the eldest and the youngest. One of brothers, Anders, committed suicide in the 1950s at the age of 29. Reuterskiöld and Underdal divorced in 1930, because of her mother thinking her down-to-nature husband ways of life were unsuitable to a noble woman like her. When she moved back to Sweden
, she brought her five children along.
Margit Sandemo got never a good relation with her father. He was the strict man, who punished his children to close them into garderoby. During the German occupation in Norway in the II world war he supported nazis openly - the thing Margit could never forgive for him. When he was absent from home, his children dreamed about his death. There would say in his obituary: "Thank you for the God
, who did not let this happen already before". Margit Sandemo has told she has tried deal with him so little as it's possible, because she wants blackpaint nobody.
Without any permanent address, the family had to spend irregular vagrancy life
in corners of the relatives living in manors in different parts on Sweden
, which was in Margit Sandemo's opinion somewhat humiliating. During her time in Sweden
, she missed her birthplace in Valdres
, Norway
, which she still considered her true nationalplace. Also her mother's occupation as a teacher may have been one of the reasons for moving so often. Margit took her compulsory education in a nine-year girl school, after which she studied in various night schools, as in an art school and was as an auditor in Dramaten. She got good grades, the best for behaviour, even though she took never schooling seriously. Sandemo had a gift for arts as a child. She was skilled at painting, singing, playing and poetry, making her mother very proud of her. However, she did not have any dreams to become a novelist. Margit spent her childhood summer in the estate of her grandparents in Blekinge
.
Margit lived a happy childhood until in the age of eight years, when she fell victim to rape
. This was the first of three times and lightest. She was an adventurous tomboy
, who was pleased to do long rambles far away from home. Her family had a dog, who she had in the habit of walk, but he or she has been never with her when she fell victim to violences. The second rape, which victim she fell about in the age of ten years, was exceptionally brutal. The rapist used as his tool an axe, causing a lifelong injury for her, in other words exterminated her urethra
, and after it she has must "trot to a water closet" every half an hour. Rapists were three separate men and always unknown for her from before. She thinks ages of the rapists were something between 40–60 years. Margit hid happened things from all other people, including her own mother until in the age of 60 years, when she took her one close friend's confidence. Sandemo has dealt with these happenings in the 38th volume of the novel series Sagan om Isfolket by her, Små män kastar långa skuggor (in English
: Small Men Throw Long Shadows), yet from a character's point of view. In October 2004, she told in her interview given for a Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet
she killed her third rapist, a wandering pedlar
, which victim she fell in the age of twelve years. By her own words, she had killed this man throwing a big stone at his head and lugged the dead body down a hill and put and hid it in a ditch. The third time had revived both previous times and she had flied into a rage.
When she had finished her autobiography Livsglede in the beginning of year 2010, Margit Sandemos sister Eva Underdal told her she had gotten raped even the fourth time. She had come back to home in late evening in the age of nine, as pale with knees covered in scratches, but she must have reject the memory of this event later. These events discouraged her, which went into that she tried commit suicide in the age of seventeen years with sleeping pills, but three days later she was as health as before that.
In year 1945, Margit met her future husband Asbjørn Sandemo (1917–1999) first time during the haymaking in the West Mountains of Vestre Slidre
in Valdres. Asbjørn, a son of Ludvig Andersen (1879–1972) and Hulda Karlsson (1889–1956) came from Idd
in Halden
and was a plumber
for his education and a new WWII veteran. At this stage, Margit's mother Elsa Reuterskiöld had ended her wandering life style and settled down live at Valsberga in Södermanland
, where Asbjörn and Margit first moved, too, because they hadn't something else place got to go. They get married 29 March 1946 in Strängnäs
. At this stage, they get seven children, which only three grew up; four others were born as dead or were miscarried. Three children are Henrik (b. 24 December 1945), Tove (b. 1949) and Bjørn (b. 1950). The family moved back to Huldrehaugen in Valdres in 1964. Now Margit Sandemo has seven grandchildren and five greatgrandchildren (2009). Eldest grandchild was born in 1969.
While Margit chose her professional career, she knew only that it should be artistic. She tried out, for example, painting
, tree-cutting, textile art
, sculpture
, folk singing and acting in the plays by Ingmar Bergman
. She did office work during two months, too. Once she tried out stone-cutting, but due to it their sewers were blocked up and they were forced to explode out them with dynamite
. Then all plaster water had to wash away. However, she was really satisfied with nothing of these professions.
decided serialized that in a magazine. Sandemo, who wished that would will be published in the form of book, couldn't in the beginning accept that, but she calmed down soon. Whole series of serial novels followed the debut work. Margit wrote her thirty first novels at Siesta Café Konditori, the railway coffee bar in Fagernes. She has yet habit of drafting her novels first there. Later all serial novels by her were published as a forty-volume series of novels called Margit Sandemos bästa följetonger (The Best Serial Novels by Margit Sandemo).
Her books, which weave supernatural themes with historical facts, have made her well-loved throughout Nordic countries
and beyond. Her books can be read in Danish
, Finnish
, German
, Hungarian
, Icelandic
, Norwegian
, Polish
and Swedish
. In early 2007, it was revealed that her series Isfolket would be published in English for the first time.
She has written some stand-alone books, but her main claims to fame are her series. Of her extensive series, Sagan om Isfolket is perhaps that for which she is best known. It comprises 47 books, which follow generations of a family from the 16th century until present day as they battle a terrible curse.
and the Devil
behind her, who tried seduce her. Sandemo got an idea about 47 books comprising serie of novels The Legend of the Ice People
from this picture, although in the beginning she thought that the serie will comprise only eight books. The first volume, Spellbound
, published in year 1982.
) was published in English
in the UK by The Tagman Press on 30 June 2008. Sandemo came to London to promote its publication. A further five books from the series were also published in 2008.
The English publications of the books have now been discontinued, which means the website is no longer updated. Unofficial fan sites exist at http://www.margitsandemo.se, http://isfolket.margitsandemo.se and http://margitsandemo.info
Historical fantasy
Historical fantasy is a sub-genre of fantasy and related to historical fiction, which makes use of specific elements of real world history. It is used as an umbrella term for the sword and sorcery genre and sometimes, if fantasy is involved, the sword-and-sandal genre too...
author. She has been the best-selling author in the Nordic Countries
Nordic countries
The Nordic countries make up a region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic which consists of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden and their associated territories, the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland...
since the 1980s, when her novel series of 47 books, The Legend of the Ice People
The Legend of the Ice People
The Legend of the Ice People is a 47-volume story of a family bloodline. The author of the series is Margit Sandemo. The novels are based in historical facts, mostly occurring in Scandinavia, but the fantastic is never far off. The series first began as a feuilleton in the Norwegian magazine Hjemmet...
, was published. She has also written many other book series such as Häxmästaren
Häxmästaren
Häxmästaren in Swedish and Heksemesteren in Norwegian is a series of books by Norwegian-Swedish author Margit Sandemo. This series is Margit Sandemos second, following the extremely popular The Legend of the Ice People.The series starts of with the Norwegian girl Tiril and Icelandic Warlock Móri...
and Legenden om Ljusets rike
Legenden om Ljusets rike
Legenden om Ljusets rike or Sagnet om Lysets rike in some Scandinavian language is a set of fantasy novels by Norwegian-Swedish writer Margit Sandemo. It includes twenty titles. This set of novels can be read in Norwegian, Swedish, Icelandic and Polish...
.
Typical features for works of Margit Sandemo are among other things history
Historical novel
According to Encyclopædia Britannica, a historical novel is-Development:An early example of historical prose fiction is Luó Guànzhōng's 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which covers one of the most important periods of Chinese history and left a lasting impact on Chinese culture.The...
, fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
, romance
Romance novel
The romance novel is a literary genre developed in Western culture, mainly in English-speaking countries. Novels in this genre place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and must have an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Through the late...
, suspense and supernatural phenomena. The plots of her books are often very complex and meandering, and continue from one book to another. In the central role are distinct amulets, old writings and symbols, which the main characters decipher in order to solve riddles stage by time, while fighting against evil powers. The events of the majority of her novels take place in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
and in the beginning of Modern Times, especially in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
and Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
. Sometimes the main characters have adventures further away, such as in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. Medieval knight castles, bewitched forests and old-fashioned, idyllic manor milieu are among the settings the stories take place in.
Among her literary role models, Sandemo names William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
, Fyodor Dostoevsky
Fyodor Dostoevsky
Fyodor Mikhaylovich Dostoyevsky was a Russian writer of novels, short stories and essays. He is best known for his novels Crime and Punishment, The Idiot and The Brothers Karamazov....
, J.R.R. Tolkien, Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Christie DBE was a British crime writer of novels, short stories, and plays. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best remembered for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections , and her successful West End plays.According to...
and Kjersti Scheen
Kjersti Scheen
Kjersti Scheen is a Norwegian journalist, illustrator, novelist, crime writer and children's writer. She made her literary debut in 1976 with the children's book Fie og mørket. Her novel Teppefall from 1994 introduced a series of crime novels with ex actress "Margaret Moss" as the main character...
. She read the whole of works of Shakespeare at the age of eight years, and wasn't much older when she turned to crime novels. Kalevala
Kalevala
The Kalevala is a 19th century work of epic poetry compiled by Elias Lönnrot from Finnish and Karelian oral folklore and mythology.It is regarded as the national epic of Finland and is one of the most significant works of Finnish literature...
, the national epic of the Finnish people, Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne
A. A. Milne
Alan Alexander Milne was an English author, best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh and for various children's poems. Milne was a noted writer, primarily as a playwright, before the huge success of Pooh overshadowed all his previous work.-Biography:A. A...
and King Lear
King Lear
King Lear is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The title character descends into madness after foolishly disposing of his estate between two of his three daughters based on their flattery, bringing tragic consequences for all. The play is based on the legend of Leir of Britain, a mythological...
were her favourites. In the adult age she has read significantly less, fearing subconscious plagiarizing. She says that she has got artistical influences also from the Kalevala motifed paintings of Akseli Gallen-Kallela
Akseli Gallen-Kallela
Akseli Gallen-Kallela was a Finnish painter who is best known for his illustrations of the Kalevala, the Finnish national epic . His work was considered very important for the Finnish national identity...
and the goblin motifed paintings of Gerhard Munthe. Other sources of inspiration have been classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
, such as the compositions of Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
and Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
as well as old Europeans folk stories. Besides these she fonds of Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
films, thriller film The Silence of the Lambs directed by Jonathan Demme
Jonathan Demme
Robert Jonathan Demme is an American filmmaker, producer and screenwriter. Best known for directing The Silence of the Lambs, which won him the Academy Award for Best Director, he has also directed the acclaimed movies Philadelphia, Rachel Getting Married, the Talking Heads concert movie Stop...
and earliest episodes of TV-series X-files. To her mind the newest episodes of the series are pure rubbish.
Childhood and youth
Margit Sandemo was born 23 April 1924 in a farm in LenaLena, Norway
Lena is the administrative centre of Østre Toten municipality, Norway.Lena is the trading center for the municipality and is surrounded by mostly farmland. Its population is 1,092. Located here are five schools and Toten folk high school. Lena is a quite small place even for Norway...
, Østre Toten
Østre Toten
Østre Toten is a municipality in Oppland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Toten. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Lena.-Name:...
, Valdres
Valdres
Valdres is a traditional district in central, southern Norway, situated between Gudbrandsdal and Hallingdal.Administratively, Valdres belongs to Oppland. It consists of the municipalities Nord-Aurdal, Sør-Aurdal, Øystre Slidre, Vestre Slidre, Vang and Etnedal. The main town in the region is...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. Her father was a Norwegian poet, Anders Underdal, who was born in Valdres in 1880, and died in 1973. Underdal was born out of wedlock, and according to Sandemo herself after an alleged affair between the Nobel-prize winning Norwegian author Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson
Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson
Bjørnstjerne Martinius Bjørnson was a Norwegian writer and the 1903 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. Bjørnson is considered as one of The Four Greats Norwegian writers; the others being Henrik Ibsen, Jonas Lie, and Alexander Kielland...
(1832–1910) and a 17-year-old croft girl named Guri Andersdotter (d. 1949). Audun Thorsen has written a book contradicting this allegation, entitled Bjørnsons kvinne og Margit Sandemos "familiehemmelighet" (in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
: "Bjørnson's Woman and the "Family Secret" of Margit Sandemo") (Genesis forlag, Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
1999.), which the author herself hasn't read, because she thinks "that it would be too great of a shock for her".
During her childhood it was thought that the alleged unmarried affair to Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson
Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson
Bjørnstjerne Martinius Bjørnson was a Norwegian writer and the 1903 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. Bjørnson is considered as one of The Four Greats Norwegian writers; the others being Henrik Ibsen, Jonas Lie, and Alexander Kielland...
must be kept secret. Even Anders Underdal, who early on gave an account of his origin to his children, fell silent about that matter later in life. Nobody knows why. Sandemo herself doesn't like talking about her ancestry in public.
Sandemo's mother was a Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
countess Elsa Reuterskiöld (1892 – 1967), whose occupation was teacher. She was born in Blekinge
Blekinge
' is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden , situated in the south of the country. It borders Småland, Scania and the Baltic Sea.The name "Blekinge" comes from the adjective bleke, which corresponds to the nautical term for "dead calm"....
for 4th eldest of the nine children of the county chief Axel Gabriel Adam Reuterskiöld (1863 – 1938) and Finnish-Swedish countess Eva Beata Gabriella Oxenstierna (1864 – 1949) from Korsholm
Korsholm
Korsholm is a municipality of Finland. The town of Vaasa was founded in Korsholm parish in 1606 and today the municipality completely surrounds the city. It is a coastal, mostly rural municipality, consisting of a rural landscape and a large, fractured archipelago...
and Wasa
Vaasa
Vaasa is a city on the west coast of Finland. It received its charter in 1606, during the reign of Charles IX of Sweden and is named after the Royal House of Vasa...
, but she lost her title of nobility when she married unnobled Anders Underdal. Sosialdemocratic Reuterskiöld took an active part in politics. Sandemo is on the mother's side a descendant of numerous Europeans noble families, and over 800 kings and 112 emperors are counted among her ancestors. Her earliest ancestors has been traced as far back as year 350 BC.
Elsa Reuterskiöld met Anders Underdal the first time in her summer holiday journey in a valley in Valdres
Valdres
Valdres is a traditional district in central, southern Norway, situated between Gudbrandsdal and Hallingdal.Administratively, Valdres belongs to Oppland. It consists of the municipalities Nord-Aurdal, Sør-Aurdal, Øystre Slidre, Vestre Slidre, Vang and Etnedal. The main town in the region is...
. They married quite soon after that in 15 June 1921 and Underdal bought a small farm, where they moved, which was located in Huldrehaugen, Grunke, Moen
Moen, Troms
Moen is a village area and administrative centre of the municipality of Målselv in Troms county, Norway. The population is 838. Moen is located in the Målselvdalen valley about north of the village of Andselv and Bardufoss Airport....
, close by Fagernes
Fagernes
is the largest settlement in the valley of Valdres, Norway, with a population of 1,801. Fagernes is the administrative centre of the municipality of Nord-Aurdal.See video from the Fagernes Town : *...
. There the couple had five children, Margit the second eldest. She had one elder sister called Eva and three younger brothers, whose names from the oldest to the youngest were: Axel, Anders and Embrik. There is only a seven-year age gap between the eldest and the youngest. One of brothers, Anders, committed suicide in the 1950s at the age of 29. Reuterskiöld and Underdal divorced in 1930, because of her mother thinking her down-to-nature husband ways of life were unsuitable to a noble woman like her. When she moved back to Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, she brought her five children along.
Margit Sandemo got never a good relation with her father. He was the strict man, who punished his children to close them into garderoby. During the German occupation in Norway in the II world war he supported nazis openly - the thing Margit could never forgive for him. When he was absent from home, his children dreamed about his death. There would say in his obituary: "Thank you for the God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
, who did not let this happen already before". Margit Sandemo has told she has tried deal with him so little as it's possible, because she wants blackpaint nobody.
Without any permanent address, the family had to spend irregular vagrancy life
Vagrancy (people)
A vagrant is a person in poverty, who wanders from place to place without a home or regular employment or income.-Definition:A vagrant is "a person without a settled home or regular work who wanders from place to place and lives by begging;" vagrancy is the condition of such persons.-History:In...
in corners of the relatives living in manors in different parts on Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, which was in Margit Sandemo's opinion somewhat humiliating. During her time in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, she missed her birthplace in Valdres
Valdres
Valdres is a traditional district in central, southern Norway, situated between Gudbrandsdal and Hallingdal.Administratively, Valdres belongs to Oppland. It consists of the municipalities Nord-Aurdal, Sør-Aurdal, Øystre Slidre, Vestre Slidre, Vang and Etnedal. The main town in the region is...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, which she still considered her true nationalplace. Also her mother's occupation as a teacher may have been one of the reasons for moving so often. Margit took her compulsory education in a nine-year girl school, after which she studied in various night schools, as in an art school and was as an auditor in Dramaten. She got good grades, the best for behaviour, even though she took never schooling seriously. Sandemo had a gift for arts as a child. She was skilled at painting, singing, playing and poetry, making her mother very proud of her. However, she did not have any dreams to become a novelist. Margit spent her childhood summer in the estate of her grandparents in Blekinge
Blekinge
' is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden , situated in the south of the country. It borders Småland, Scania and the Baltic Sea.The name "Blekinge" comes from the adjective bleke, which corresponds to the nautical term for "dead calm"....
.
Margit lived a happy childhood until in the age of eight years, when she fell victim to rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
. This was the first of three times and lightest. She was an adventurous tomboy
Tomboy
A tomboy is a girl who exhibits characteristics or behaviors considered typical of the gender role of a boy, including the wearing of typically masculine-oriented clothes and engaging in games and activities that are often physical in nature, and which are considered in many cultures to be the...
, who was pleased to do long rambles far away from home. Her family had a dog, who she had in the habit of walk, but he or she has been never with her when she fell victim to violences. The second rape, which victim she fell about in the age of ten years, was exceptionally brutal. The rapist used as his tool an axe, causing a lifelong injury for her, in other words exterminated her urethra
Urethra
In anatomy, the urethra is a tube that connects the urinary bladder to the genitals for the removal of fluids out of the body. In males, the urethra travels through the penis, and carries semen as well as urine...
, and after it she has must "trot to a water closet" every half an hour. Rapists were three separate men and always unknown for her from before. She thinks ages of the rapists were something between 40–60 years. Margit hid happened things from all other people, including her own mother until in the age of 60 years, when she took her one close friend's confidence. Sandemo has dealt with these happenings in the 38th volume of the novel series Sagan om Isfolket by her, Små män kastar långa skuggor (in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
: Small Men Throw Long Shadows), yet from a character's point of view. In October 2004, she told in her interview given for a Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet
Aftonbladet
Aftonbladet is a Swedish tabloid founded by Lars Johan Hierta in 1830 during the modernization of Sweden. It is one of the larger daily newspapers in the Nordic countries. Aftonbladet is owned by the Swedish Trade Union Confederation and Norwegian media group Schibsted, and its editorial page...
she killed her third rapist, a wandering pedlar
Peddler
A peddler, in British English pedlar, also known as a canvasser, cheapjack, monger, or solicitor , is a travelling vendor of goods. In England, the term was mostly used for travellers hawking goods in the countryside to small towns and villages; they might also be called tinkers or gypsies...
, which victim she fell in the age of twelve years. By her own words, she had killed this man throwing a big stone at his head and lugged the dead body down a hill and put and hid it in a ditch. The third time had revived both previous times and she had flied into a rage.
When she had finished her autobiography Livsglede in the beginning of year 2010, Margit Sandemos sister Eva Underdal told her she had gotten raped even the fourth time. She had come back to home in late evening in the age of nine, as pale with knees covered in scratches, but she must have reject the memory of this event later. These events discouraged her, which went into that she tried commit suicide in the age of seventeen years with sleeping pills, but three days later she was as health as before that.
In year 1945, Margit met her future husband Asbjørn Sandemo (1917–1999) first time during the haymaking in the West Mountains of Vestre Slidre
Vestre Slidre
Vestre Slidre is a municipality in Oppland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Valdres. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Slidre...
in Valdres. Asbjørn, a son of Ludvig Andersen (1879–1972) and Hulda Karlsson (1889–1956) came from Idd
Idd
Idd is a parish and former municipality in Halden, Østfold county, Norway.The parish of Id was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 . The rural municipality was merged with the city of Halden January 1, 1967...
in Halden
Halden
is a both a town and a municipality in Østfold county, Norway. The seat of the municipality, Halden is a border town located at the Tista river delta on the Iddefjord, the southernmost border crossing between Norway and Sweden.-History:...
and was a plumber
Plumber
A plumber is a tradesperson who specializes in installing and maintaining systems used for potable water, sewage, and drainage in plumbing systems. The term dates from ancient times, and is related to the Latin word for lead, "plumbum." A person engaged in fixing metaphorical "leaks" may also be...
for his education and a new WWII veteran. At this stage, Margit's mother Elsa Reuterskiöld had ended her wandering life style and settled down live at Valsberga in Södermanland
Södermanland
', sometimes referred to under its Latin form Sudermannia or Sudermania, is a historical province or landskap on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Östergötland, Närke, Västmanland and Uppland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic sea.In Swedish, the province name is...
, where Asbjörn and Margit first moved, too, because they hadn't something else place got to go. They get married 29 March 1946 in Strängnäs
Strängnäs
Strängnäs is a locality and the seat of Strängnäs Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden with 12,296 inhabitants in 2005. It is located by Lake Mälaren and is the episcopal see of the Diocese of Strängnäs, a former Roman Catholic and present Lutheran Diocese, with the Strängnäs Cathedral, built...
. At this stage, they get seven children, which only three grew up; four others were born as dead or were miscarried. Three children are Henrik (b. 24 December 1945), Tove (b. 1949) and Bjørn (b. 1950). The family moved back to Huldrehaugen in Valdres in 1964. Now Margit Sandemo has seven grandchildren and five greatgrandchildren (2009). Eldest grandchild was born in 1969.
While Margit chose her professional career, she knew only that it should be artistic. She tried out, for example, painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
, tree-cutting, textile art
Textile art
Textile art may refer to:*Any one of the textile arts, those arts and crafts that use plant, animal, or synthetic fibers to construct practical or decorative objects*Fiber art, the creation of fine art using textile arts techniques and materials...
, sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
, folk singing and acting in the plays by Ingmar Bergman
Ingmar Bergman
Ernst Ingmar Bergman was a Swedish director, writer and producer for film, stage and television. Described by Woody Allen as "probably the greatest film artist, all things considered, since the invention of the motion picture camera", he is recognized as one of the most accomplished and...
. She did office work during two months, too. Once she tried out stone-cutting, but due to it their sewers were blocked up and they were forced to explode out them with dynamite
Dynamite
Dynamite is an explosive material based on nitroglycerin, initially using diatomaceous earth , or another absorbent substance such as powdered shells, clay, sawdust, or wood pulp. Dynamites using organic materials such as sawdust are less stable and such use has been generally discontinued...
. Then all plaster water had to wash away. However, she was really satisfied with nothing of these professions.
Literary career
Margit wrote her debut novel Tre Friare (Three Suitors) at the age of forty. At that time, she had no experience writing; however, she had already outlined thirty of the following novels in her mind. She has said that being a novelist is something you are born to do, rather than become. Tre Friare was rejected from different publishers more than hundred times, until the publisher of Ernst G. Mortensen in OsloOslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
decided serialized that in a magazine. Sandemo, who wished that would will be published in the form of book, couldn't in the beginning accept that, but she calmed down soon. Whole series of serial novels followed the debut work. Margit wrote her thirty first novels at Siesta Café Konditori, the railway coffee bar in Fagernes. She has yet habit of drafting her novels first there. Later all serial novels by her were published as a forty-volume series of novels called Margit Sandemos bästa följetonger (The Best Serial Novels by Margit Sandemo).
Her books, which weave supernatural themes with historical facts, have made her well-loved throughout Nordic countries
Nordic countries
The Nordic countries make up a region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic which consists of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden and their associated territories, the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland...
and beyond. Her books can be read in Danish
Danish language
Danish is a North Germanic language spoken by around six million people, principally in the country of Denmark. It is also spoken by 50,000 Germans of Danish ethnicity in the northern parts of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, where it holds the status of minority language...
, Finnish
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
, Icelandic
Icelandic language
Icelandic is a North Germanic language, the main language of Iceland. Its closest relative is Faroese.Icelandic is an Indo-European language belonging to the North Germanic or Nordic branch of the Germanic languages. Historically, it was the westernmost of the Indo-European languages prior to the...
, Norwegian
Norwegian language
Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...
, Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
and Swedish
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
. In early 2007, it was revealed that her series Isfolket would be published in English for the first time.
She has written some stand-alone books, but her main claims to fame are her series. Of her extensive series, Sagan om Isfolket is perhaps that for which she is best known. It comprises 47 books, which follow generations of a family from the 16th century until present day as they battle a terrible curse.
Legend of the Ice People
In year 1980 the publishing house Schibsted förlag suggested writing of a historical series of novel to Margit Sandemo. First she didn't get excited about this idea and she decided continue to write serails for magazines. Among her own words, she changed her mind when she saw in year 1981 a picture about a medieval church painting in news paper. There was a woman making butter in a butter churnButter churn
A butter churn is a device used to convert cream into butter. This is done through a mechanical process, frequently via a pole inserted through the lid of the churn, or via a crank used to turn a rotating device inside the churn.-Process:...
and the Devil
Devil
The Devil is believed in many religions and cultures to be a powerful, supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The nature of the role varies greatly...
behind her, who tried seduce her. Sandemo got an idea about 47 books comprising serie of novels The Legend of the Ice People
The Legend of the Ice People
The Legend of the Ice People is a 47-volume story of a family bloodline. The author of the series is Margit Sandemo. The novels are based in historical facts, mostly occurring in Scandinavia, but the fantastic is never far off. The series first began as a feuilleton in the Norwegian magazine Hjemmet...
from this picture, although in the beginning she thought that the serie will comprise only eight books. The first volume, Spellbound
Spellbound
- Film and television :* Spellbound , with Lois Meredith* Spellbound , directed by John Harlow* Spellbound , directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Ingrid Bergman and Gregory Peck...
, published in year 1982.
Books published in English
Spellbound by Margit Sandemo (the first book in the Sagan om Isfolket series, translated as The Legend of the Ice PeopleThe Legend of the Ice People
The Legend of the Ice People is a 47-volume story of a family bloodline. The author of the series is Margit Sandemo. The novels are based in historical facts, mostly occurring in Scandinavia, but the fantastic is never far off. The series first began as a feuilleton in the Norwegian magazine Hjemmet...
) was published in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
in the UK by The Tagman Press on 30 June 2008. Sandemo came to London to promote its publication. A further five books from the series were also published in 2008.
Official website
The Margit Sandemo Official Website was launched in 2008. It contains news and information about the publication of her books in the UK. Other features include an English language forum and "Messages from Margit", updated by the author herself.The English publications of the books have now been discontinued, which means the website is no longer updated. Unofficial fan sites exist at http://www.margitsandemo.se, http://isfolket.margitsandemo.se and http://margitsandemo.info