Jostein Gaarder
| Jostein Gaarder | |
|---|---|
 Gaarder in 2009
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| Born | 8 August 1952 Oslo, Norway |
| Occupation | Novelist, short story writer |
| Nationality | Norwegian |
| Genres | Children's literature, fiction |
| Notable work(s) | The Solitaire Mystery, Sophie's World, 'The Orange Girl' |
| Notable award(s) | See below |
Jostein Gaarder (Norwegian: [ˈju:staɪn ˈgɔːrdər]; born in Oslo on August 8, 1952) is a Norwegian intellectual and author of several novels, short stories and children's books. Gaarder often writes from the perspective of children, exploring their sense of wonder about the world. He often uses metafiction in his works, writing stories within stories.
Gaarder was born into a pedagogical family. His best known work is the novel Sophie's World, subtitled A Novel about the History of Philosophy. This popular work has been translated into fifty-three languages; there are over thirty million copies in print.[1]
In 1997, he established the Sophie Prize together with his wife Siri Dannevig. This prize is an international environment and development prize (USD 100,000 = 77,000 €), awarded annually. It is named after the novel.
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Awards and prizes[edit source | edit]
- 1990 - Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature for the year's best children's or youth's literature, for Kabalmysteriet (The Solitaire Mystery)
- 1993 – Norwegian Booksellers' Prize for I et speil, i en gåte (Through a Glass, Darkly).
- 1994 – Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis for Sophie's World.
- 1995 – Premio Bancarella for Il Mondo di Sofia, the Italian translation of Sophie's World.[2]
- 1997 – Buxtehude Bull for Durch einen Spiegel, in einem dunklen Wort, the German translation of I et speil, i en gåte.[3]
- 2004 – the Willy-Brandt Award in Oslo.
- 2005 – Commander, The Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav.
- 2005 – an Honorary degree at Trinity College, Dublin.[4]
Environmental and human rights activism[edit source | edit]
Jostein Gaarder has been involved in the promotion of human rights and sustainable development for several years, establishing the Sophie Prize in 1997.
He has also vehemently criticized the Israeli occupation of Palestine and the treatment of the Palestinians. In August 2006, Jostein Gaarder published an op-ed in one of the major daily newspapers in Norway, Aftenposten.[5][6] This was written in response to the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict and condemned certain aspects of Israeli politics and Judaism. Gaarder also argued against recognizing the state of Israel in its current form. The article described Judaism as "an archaic national and warlike religion", contrasting it with the Christian idea that the "Kingdom of God is compassion and forgiveness". The op-ed resulted in the Jostein Gaarder controversy. Gaarder disputed allegations of anti-Semitism and sought to clarify that he did not mean to offend anyone. He stated that the piece was written in a state of moral outrage over the death toll in Lebanon.
List of works[edit source | edit]
- Diagnosen og andre noveller (The Diagnosis and Other Stories) (1986)
- Froskeslottet (The Frog Castle) (1988)
- Kabalmysteriet (The Solitaire Mystery) (1990) ISBN 0-425-15999-X
- Sofies verden (Sophie's World) (1991) ISBN 0-425-15225-1
- Julemysteriet (The Christmas Mystery) (1992) ISBN 0-374-12329-2 (1995 edition illustrated by Stella East ISBN 82-03-24090-9)
- Bibbi Bokkens magiske bibliotek (Bibbi Bokken's magic library) (together with Klaus Hagerup(1993) ISBN 82-00-21210-6
- I et speil, i en gåte (Through a Glass, Darkly) (1993) ISBN 0-7538-0673-8
- Hallo? Er det noen her? (Hello? Is Anybody There?) (1996) ISBN 0-374-32948-6
- Vita Brevis (Brief Life) (also appeared in English as That Same Flower) (1996) ISBN 0-7538-0461-1
- Vita Brevis: A Letter to St Augustine (1998) ISBN 0-7538-0461-1
- Maya (1999) ISBN 0-7538-1146-4
- Sirkusdirektørens datter (The Ringmaster's Daughter) (2001) ISBN 0-7538-1700-4
- Appelsinpiken (The Orange Girl) (2004) ISBN 0-297-84904-2
- Sjakk Matt (Checkmate) (2006)
- De gule dvergene (The Yellow Dwarves) (2006)
- Slottet i Pyreneene (The Castle in the Pyrenees) (2008)
References[edit source | edit]
- ^ (Norwegian) "Gaarder, Jostein". Aschehoug. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ (Italian)"Albo d'Oro". Premio Bancarella. Retrieved 2010-10-08.
- ^ (Norwegian) "Gaarder, Jostein". NRK. November 8, 2002. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "‘Sophie’s World’ author Jostein Gaarder and TCD Medical Officer for 30 years among distinguished recipients of Honorary Degrees at TCD". Trinity College, Dublin. December 16, 2005. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ (Norwegian) "God’s chosen People". Aftenposten. 5 August 2006. Retrieved 2006-08-07.
- ^ Gaarder, Jostein. ""God's Chosen People." Retrieved on 2006-08-25
External links[edit source | edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jostein Gaarder |
- Jostein Gaarder's biography and foreign sales at Aschehoug Agency
- Jostein Gaarder at Aschehoug
- Jostein Gaarder
- The Sophie Prize
- A list of all his books and publishers
- Commentary on the book: Sophie's World
- Jostein Gaarder in Goodreads
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