"From a Swedish Homestead" by the Swedish author Selma Lagerloef is a varied collection of stories, mostly set in Dalarne or Vaermland in Sweden, but also some stories or legends from Kungahalla on the west-coast at the time between Heathendom and early Christianity plus some Legends from Italy and Belgium. The first nine sections, "The Story of a Country House", is a short Novel, originally published on its own, but here part of the collection. It is the story of how a young orphan girl, Ingrid, is the instrument of saving the student Gunnar Hede, who has lost his wits and memory by a terrible experience, trying to save his home, his Country House, and who wanders the roads as a Pedlar, but at the same time afraid of most everything, especially animals. As told by Lagerloef it is a both fascinating and sweet story, as are all the others.
Selma Lagerlöf
**Selma Lagerlöf** (1858–1940) est une figure majeure de la littérature suédoise et la première femme à recevoir le **prix Nobel de littérature en 1909**. Née dans la région rurale du Värmland, elle puise son inspiration dans les contes et croyances populaires de sa Suède natale. Son œuvre, marquée par un mélange de réalisme et de merveilleux, explore des thèmes universels comme l’amour, la foi, la mémoire et la condition féminine. *L’Empereur du Portugal*, publié en 1914, est considéré comme l’un de ses romans les plus émouvants.
