Books
This page contains a selection of books about various aspects of Swedish America.
Non-fiction
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En Amerikabok - An American Book by Alf Brorson
Alf Brorson’s interactions with North America began with a visit in 1989, during which he taught an American Studies course at the University of Minnesota. Since then, he has traveled extensively throughout the United States and Canada, recording his impressions of North America and Swedish America along the way. En Amerikabok – An America Book is a collection of previously unpublished articles and letters in a wonderful mix of English and Swedish that anyone with an interest in Swedish America will enjoy.
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History
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Essays on Scandinavian History by H. Arnold Barton
Essays on Scandinavian History (Southern Illinois University Press, 2009) presents accounts of several Swedish rulers including Carl XII, Gustav III, and Gustav IV Adolf. Reprinted in this volume is H. Arnold Barton’s first printed essay “Sweden and the War of American Independence.” This article clearly describes the numerous ways in which Sweden was affected by the American Revolution, and how the parallel activity in Europe and Sweden served to shape relations between North America and Sweden.
Available at Amazon.
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The Old Country and the New: Essays on Swedes and America by H. Arnold Barton
In The Old Country and the New (Southern Illinois University Press, 2007), H. Arnold Barton examines important topics including emigration and relations between North America and Sweden from the mid-1600s through the post-war era. The selection of essays provides scholars and lay readers alike an interesting overview of the Nordic region, particularly of Sweden. One essay included, originally presented in Swedish in Personhistorisk tidskrift, recounts the connections between Sweden and the United States forged by William Widgery Thomas Jr. during the late 1800s and early 1900s.
Available at Amazon.
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The Man Who Made the Monitor: A Biography of John Ericsson, Naval Engineer by Olav Thuselius
John Ericsson, inventor and engineer, was born in 1803 at Långbanshyttan in Värmland, Sweden. Invited to build his design for a screw-propelled ship, Ericsson moved to New York in 1839, where he remained for the rest of his life. He is best remembered for designing the Civil War ironclad warship, the Monitor.
In The Man Who Made the Monitor (McFarland & Company, 2007), Olov Thulesius explores the breadth of Ericsson’s inventions from his earliest engraving machine to his visionary work in the field of solar energy. Thulesius’s biography will engage all readers, as they come to better know this Swedish-American, who is memorialized with statues in Washington, D.C. and Gothenburg, Sweden.
Available at Amazon.
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| Art |
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Zorn in America: A Swedish Impressionist of the Gilded Age by William and Willow Hagans
Anders Zorn, born in 1860, is one of Sweden's most well-known artists, known for his skill in painting, etching, sculpting and printmaking. In America, between 1893 and 1911, he was one of the most sought-after portrait artists, crafting likenesses of prominent figures like Grover Cleveland, William Taft, Theodore Roosevelt and Andrew Carnegie. Zorn in America: A Swedish Impressionist of the Gilded Age (The Swedish-American Historical Society, 2009) traces Zorn's seven trips to America and the over 100 works that he created on his journeys.
Available at The Swedish-American Historical Society .
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The Journey Takers by Leslie Albrecht Huber
Journey Takers (Foundation Books, 2010) is the story of one woman who, through years of extensive genealogical research and travel, sets out to document and understand the lives of her ancestors who emigrated from Germany, England and Sweden - the journey takers. She examines the way these journeys have shaped her own life, and finds parallels between the long-ago lives of her ancestors and her own - most notably, through their shared values of family and faith.
Available at familychronicle.com.
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Chicago Swedes: They spoke from the heart by Lilly Setterdahl
Chicago Swedes is a collection of 340 short stories and 300 accompanying photos that tell the stories of Swedes who emigrated and made their lives in Chicago. Each story is just a snippet, giving a brief window into the person's life, but taken together, they offer a picture of emigrant life in Chicago, particularly during the years of the Great Depression. The stories are summaries of oral interview completed by the author;s husband over the course of four decades, and each lists the location of the original interview record.
Available at Amazon.
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Fiction
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Öresund Bridge by Jeannine Dahlberg
Öresund Bridge (Author House, 2010) is the third novella in a series about Seth Coleman, an architect, and Rachel Ramsey, his wife. In the book, set in 1958, Seth travels to Sweden to give a lecture at Lund University. While there, he runs into a Swedish friend from his college days, Fritz Dahl, who is involved in a top secret project - the design of what will eventually become the Öresundsbron, a bridge connecting Malmö, Sweden with Copenhagen, Denmark. But Seth is not the only one interested in the blueprints Fritz is carrying - corporate pirates are trying to steal the unpatented plans.
Available at Amazon.
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Tina, An Immigrant's Story by Ralph Ekwall
Tina, An Immigrant's Story is the story of Amelia Albertina "Tina" Holmgren, who left Sweden in 1875 with her family and settled in Rockford, Illinois. Although there are fictional elements to the tale, most of the events and characters are factual. Life was not easy for an immigrant in a new land, and the book follows Tina through the adventures of marriage, blizzards, raising children, tornadoes and love and loss.
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