Peder Sjögren (1905–1966), born as ''Gösta Sjögren'', was a Swedish writer who fought in the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

and the

Continuation War The Continuation War, also known as the Second Soviet–Finnish War, was a conflict fought by Finland and Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union during World War II. It began with a Finnish declaration of war on 25 June 1941 and ended on 19 ...

. Many of his books were based on those experiences.

Life and works

Gösta Tage Filip Sjögren was born in 1905, outside

Växjö Växjö () is a city and the seat of Växjö Municipality, Kronoberg County, Sweden. It had 71,282 inhabitants (2020) out of a Municipalities of Sweden, municipal population of 97,349 (2024). It is the administrative, cultural, and industrial ce ...

, in the province of

Småland Småland () is a historical Provinces of Sweden, province () in southern Sweden. Småland borders Blekinge, Scania, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name ''Småland'' literally means "small la ...

, and at the age of 10 moved to

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

. Aged 17, he was sent to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, after which he travelled to

the Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

and

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

.Problem while searching in The Literature Collection
/ref> As an

antifascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were op ...

during the

, he joined the

International Brigades The International Brigades () were soldiers recruited and organized by the Communist International to assist the Popular Front (Spain), Popular Front government of the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. The International Bri ...

and was wounded in combat. His experiences in the war provided him with themes for several of his novels. After his recovery, he was arrested as a suspected spy, but subsequently escaped from Spain on a British warship. Having worked as a journalist, his best articles were collected into his first book, ''Bar barbar'' (1937). In spite of this book and occasional radio plays and short stories, Sjögren did not attract attention until the appearance of Black Palms (''Svarta palmkronor'', 1944), which became a film by Lars-Magnus Lindgren in 1968.Svarta palmkronor (1968)
/ref> His second novel, '' Bread of Love'' (''Kärlekens bröd'', 1945), was based on his experiences as a volunteer in the Finnish

of 1941-44. A film of the book directed by

Arne Mattsson Arne Mattsson (2 December 1919 – 28 June 1995) was a Sweden, Swedish film director. Biography Born in Uppsala, the early films of Mattsson were mostly Comedy, comedies. His biggest success was ''One Summer of Happiness, Hon dansade en sommar ...

(1953) was banned in Finland. Sjögren married Vera Alexandrova in 1937 then Lilian Fidler in 1954. He committed suicide in 1966, five days after his second wife died.

Bibliography

* ''Bar Barbar''. Stockholm: Bonniers, 1937. (Reportage) * ''Svarta palmkronor'' (Black Palms). Stockholm: Medéns, 1944; Vingförlaget, 1952; Folket i bild, 1958. (Novel) * ''Kärlekens bröd'' (Bread of Love). Stockholm: Medéns, 1945; Folket i bild, 1954. (Novel) * ''Jag vill gå ned till Thimnath'' (I Will Down to Thimnath). Stockholm: Medéns, 1947; Tidens bokklub, 1956. (Novel) * ''Mannen som försökte smita'' (The Man Who Tried to Bolt). Stockholm: Norstedts, 1949. (Novel) * ''Damen'' (The Lady). Stockholm: Norstedts, 1951. (Novel) * ''Bikten'' (The Confession). Stockholm: Norstedts, 1954. (Short stories) * ''Ta ner stjärnorna'' (Take Down the Stars). Stockholm: Norstedts, 1957. (Novel) * ''Till minne'' (In Memory). Stockholm: Norstedts, 1959. (Four dialogues) * ''Vårt nummer'' (Our Number). Svenska radiopjäser. Stockholm: Sveriges radio, 1959. (Radio play) * ''Högmodet'' (Pride). Dödssynderna: Sju enaktare (The Deadly Sins: Seven One-Acters). By Per Edström et al. Stockholm: Bonniers, 1959. (Radio play) * ''Möte i parken'' (Meeting in the Park). Svenska radiopjäser. Stockholm: Sveriges radio, 1962. (Radio play) * ''Elis''. Stockholm: Norstedts, 1964. (Novel)

References

External links

Full biography by Richard B. Vowles
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sjogren, Peder 1905 births 1966 deaths 1966 suicides Continuation War International Brigades personnel Swedish male writers Swedish people of the Spanish Civil War Suicides in Sweden Swedish anti-communists Swedish volunteers in the Winter War People from Växjö Municipality