Nils Holgersson's Wonderful Journey Through Sweden (B56-1)

The Wonderful Journey of Nils is so well known in Swedish culture that a picture of Nils Holgersson, on the back of a goose flying over the plains of Scania, is printed on the reverse side of the Swedish 20 krona banknote. The background for publication was a commission from the National Teachers Association in 1902 to write a geography reader for the public schools. Lagerl""f devoted three years to Nature study and to familiarizing herself with animal and bird life. She sought out hitherto unpublished folklore and legends of the different provinces that she ingeniously woven into her story.