Nothing like a good murder....
I continue to read through the works of Henning Mankell, the fine Swedish fiction writer behind the Wallander series of murder mysteries. I've read One Step Behind, Firewall and I'm currently halfway through Sidetracked, which may be the best Wallander book I've read yet. I also bought, but have yet to start, Before the Frost.
As you will read from the other story posted on my Community of Sweden page, I am travelling to Sweden in July to explore the places brought to life in the books of Mankell and Stieg Larsson. VisitSweden is arranging the trip and i am planning to publish a travel story of my journey in a Canadian newspaper when I return. The trip will take me to Skane, the coastal region of south-west Sweden that includes Malmo and Ystad. It's Ystad that features prominently in Mankell's work, for this small seaside town is the home of inspector Kurt Wallander. After reading so much about the place I am axious to see this city with my own eyes, so see how it compares with the image of the town created in Mankell's novels.
The trip will also take me to Stockholm, the Swedish capital. I spent a week in Stockholm a few years ago and am quite familiar with this picturesque city. Stockholm plays a prominent role in Larsson's Millennium trilogy. The Stockholm neighbourhood of Sodermalm is home to Larsson's crusading journalist character Mikael Blomkvist and his computer hacker partner Lisbeth Salander.
Keep visiting this page for regular updates throughout the trip. If my daily travel blog is not posted here, I will try and provide a link to the blog location.
In the meantime, I do recommend that book lovers and those interested in Swedish culture explore the works of these two fine writers. Mankell's Wallander character is particularly interesting. In many ways he is a miserable, often even contemptuous man. I honestly would not go out of my way to have a drink with the guy but despite his demons, Wallander remains driven to bring to justice the killers whose murderous acts threaten the foundations of his country.
-Andrew Lupton
