Göran Tunström

Göran Tunström (14 May 1937 in Borgvik, Grums Municipality – 5 February 2000 in Stockholm) was a Swedish author. He grew up in Sunne, Värmland County. Tunström's style is personal and intimate, and has a clear autobiographical tone. Although active as an established author for nearly four decades, it was particularly after his The Christmas Oratorio was adapted as a movie in 1996 that he became widely known to the (Swedish) public. He participated in the Oslo International Poetry Festival.

Göran Tunström
Göran Tunström around 1960
Born	14 May 1937 Karlstad, Sweden
Died	5 February 2000 (aged 62) Stockholm
Occupation	Writer
Period	1960–2000
Genre	Biography, novel, poem, short story
Literary movement	Modernism
Notable works	The Christmas Oratorio The Thief
Spouse	Lena Cronqvist
Children	Linus

He was married to artist Lena Cronqvist, and was the father of theatre and film director Linus Tunström.

Biography

Tunström was raised in Sunne, Värmland County.[1] He made his debut with the poetry collection Inringning in 1958.[1] In the late 1950s, he lived on the Greek island of Hydra and became friends with Leonard Cohen and the Norwegian author Axel Jensen.

Sunne, the author's home town, plays an important role in his works. Swedish as well as international celebrities appear in the town and take part in the story. The cover paintings of his first two books about Sunne (De heliga geograferna and Guddöttrarna) are made by the painter Tage Åsén from the same town.

In 1983, Tunström made his breakthrough with The Christmas Oratorio.[1] The Christmas Oratorio was adapted into a film version in 1996. His last novel, Berömda män som varit i Sunne, won the August Prize in 1998.[1]

Göran Tunström died in his home in Stockholm 5 February 2000.[1]

Selected works

• Inringning (poetry collection, 1958)
• Karantän (novel, 1960)
• Maskrosbollen (novel, 1962)
• De heliga geograferna (novel, 1973)
• Guddöttrarna (novel, 1975)
• Prästungen (novel, 1976)
• The Letter from the Wilderness (Swedish: Ökenbrevet, novel, 1978)
• The Christmas Oratorio (Swedish: Juloratoriet, novel, 1983)
• The Thief (Swedish: Tjuven, novel, 1986)
• Glittering (Swedish: Skimmer, novel, 1996)
• Berömda män som varit i Sunne (novel, 1998)

References

1. "Aftonbladet nyheter: Göran Tunström förd till sista vilan". aftonbladet.se. Retrieved 8 August 2015.