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Best of Scandinavia in 14 Days: Recommended Reading & Viewing

Scandinavia is rich in history, art and culture. Any preliminary reading, viewing or listening you can do will help you get the most from your trip. For more information on any of these books, visit your favorite bookstore or check out amazon.com; for video information, go to imdb.com. Rick Steves guidebooks are available at our office in Edmonds and also on our website's Travel Store.

Recommended Reading

Non-Fiction

• Lonely Planet: Scandinavia
• Time Out: Copenhagen
• Insight Guides: Norway, Sweden
• Sweden: The Nation's History — Franklin Daniel Scott
• The Vikings — Else Roesdahl
• Conquered, Not Defeated: Growing Up in Denmark During the German Occupation of World War II — Peter Tveskov
• Kon-Tiki — Thor Heyerdahl
• Culture Shock! Denmark; Sweden; Norway
• Hans Christian Andersen : A New Life — Jens Andersen
• Scandinavian Folk & Fairy Tales — edited by Claire Booss
• Getting Lost: Mishaps of an Accidental Nomad — Dave Fox

Fiction

• Kristin Lavransdatter — Sigrid Undset
• Music and Silence — Rose Tremain
• Growth of the Soil, Hunger — Knut Hamsun
• Faceless Killers (first of the Kurt Wallender mysteries) — Henning Mankell
• Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tales
• The Wonderful Adventures of Nils — Selma Lagerlöf
• Smilla's Sense of Snow — Peter Høeg
• The Emigrants — Vilhelm Moberg
• A Doll's House; Hedda Gabler — Henrik Ibsen
• Sophie's World — Jostein Gaarder
• Hanna's Daughters — Marianne Fredriksson
• For children of all ages: Pippi Longstocking or anything by Astrid Lindgren

Films with a Nordic Accent

The Seventh Seal • Smiles of a Summer Night • Fanny & Alexander • My Life as a Dog • Babette's Feast • Pelle the Conqueror • The Emigrants/The New Land • Song of Norway • Elling • Cool & Crazy • Italian for Beginners • Insomnia (2001 original by Erik Skjoldbaerg) • As It Is In Heaven • Together • After the Wedding • The Heroes of Telemark • Hamsun • The Celebration • The Pathfinder (original 1987 version)

Mood Music

• Classical: Edvard Grieg (Norway), Carl Nielsen (Denmark)
• Pop/Folk/New Age: Secret Garden, Sissel, Annbjørg Lien (Norway); Väsen, Groupa, ABBA (Sweden), Boot (Sweden), Hedningarna (Sweden)