Tunstrom, Goran

▪ 2001

      Swedish novelist, poet, and playwright (b. 1937, Sunne, Swed.—d. Feb. 5, 2000, Stockholm, Swed.), was widely regarded as Sweden's foremost contemporary author. His largely autobiographical works were sensitive explorations of childhood, family relationships, and the struggle to transcend grief. He published his first book, a poetry collection entitled Inringning, in 1958. It was not until the 1970s, however, that he established his literary reputation with a trilogy of novels set in his native Sunne: De heliga geograferna (1973), Guddöttrarna (1975), and Prästungen (1976). He later published Juloratoriet (1983; The Christmas Oratorio, 1995); perhaps his best-known novel, the book won Tunström the Nordic Literature Prize and was made into a film in 1996. Among his other notable works were the novels Ökenbrevet (1978) and Tjuven (1986) and the play Chang Eng (1987).

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