Astrid Lindgren, Creator of Pippi Longstocking

Often referred to as Sweden's best-known author, Astrid Lindgren gained international fame for her children's books. When she died in 2002, Lindgren's burial ceremony was televised in Sweden, and her death was headline news internationally. Lindgren's first book was published in 1944, but it was her second book, Pippi Longstocking, that brought her international acclaim. In 2007, the 100th anniverary of Astrid Lindgren's birth, Viking published a new translation of Pippi Longstocking, with lively illustrations by award-winning children's book author and illustrator Lauren Child.

(Cover art courtesy of Penguin Group)