XPost: rec.arts.books.tolkien   
   From: mr@sandman.net   
      
   In article ,   
    Troels Forchhammer  wrote:   
      
   > > I don't know of any good swedish authors, and I always want to   
   > > read books in the language they were written.   
   >   
   > I can certainly sympathize with the latter -- I also prefer to read   
   > books in the original language, though I'd rather read a good book in   
   > translation than not read it at all.   
   >   
   > I prefer to read Astrid Lindgren in Swedish (actually I'd say that   
   > Lindgren is a better children's author than Tolkien, and I can still,   
   > at 45, enjoy some of her books, though I wouldn't put her above   
   > Tolkien as an author for adults).   
      
   Well, I don't really *read* Lindgren books. At one time I read it to   
   the kids, but not silently to myself. She is indeed a good author, but   
   I've outgrown here so to speak.   
      
   > Also I rather like Jan Guillaume's books . . .   
      
   Jan Guillou. I think he is a wretchedly bad writer. It's all about   
   weapon-masturbation and less about characters and story. I've read   
   some three or four books from him and I've hated them all.   
      
   > And of course there are some Danish authors that I find worthwhile --   
   > perhaps not on an international scale, but because they express   
   > something (for me) essentially Danish (though there's very few of   
   > Hans Christian Andersen's so-called 'fairy-tales' that I really   
   > like).   
      
   Indeed. Which fall into the same bin as Lindgren.   
      
   > > And well, that sort of limits my choices to english books, since I   
   > > don't know any other language. :)   
   >   
   > Couldn't you also read the folk-tales of Asbjørnsen and Moe (in   
   > Norwegian)?   
      
   Maybe, but if I think Swedish looks weird in written form, what do you   
   think I would regard norwegian? :-D   
      
   > I keep wanting to improve my German enough to be able to read some   
   > books in German (again) -- but I never seem to have the time ;)   
   > (perhaps once I stop working . . .)   
      
   Yes, well, Never-Ending Story is german, no? I suppose I would like to   
   read it in original form. But I don't know german in any capacity :)   
      
      
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