[Fantasy] The Brothers Lionheart by Astrid Lindgren (1973) (Age 8 and up)

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The Brothers Lionheart by Astrid Lindgren (1973) Astrid Lindgren (Author), Ilon Wikland (Illustrator), Joan Tate (Translator) Age Range: 8 and up | Paperback: 192 pages | Hardcover: 231 pages Description: (1) Scotty's big brother Jonathan tells him about Nangiyala, a land on the other side of the stars, where you go after you die. Because Scotty is little and afraid and he's sick and soon he'll die. "In Nangiyala you have adventures from morning to evening and at night, too. Because it's in Nangiyala that all sagas happen," Jonathan tells Scotty. It sounds so good that Scotty doesn't want to be without Jonathan in Nangiyala, where together they will become the Brothers Lionheart... (2) There's no one Karl Lion loves more than his older brother, Jonathan, who is brave, strong, and handsome - everything Karl believes he is not. Karl never wants to be parted from him. But Karl is sick, and knows he's going to die. To comfort him, Jonathan tells him stories of Nangiyala, the wonderful place he'll be going to when he dies, and where he will wait until Jonathan is ready to join him there. Then the unthinkable happens ...Jonathan is killed in an accident. Heartbroken, Karl longs for the day he'll be reunited with his brother. When the time comes, he finds Nangiyala just as wonderful as he'd imagined. However, Nangiyala is under threat. A cruel tyrant is determined to claim it as his own, and at his command is a terrible beast that is feared throughout the land. Karl must summon all of his courage to help his brother prepare for the battle that lies ahead ...'I adored Astrid Lindgren as a child' Francesca Simon, author of the 'Horrid Henry' books. Reader Review: Swedish children's author best known for her Pipi Longstocking books based on a character invented by her ailing daughter. In Brothers Lionheart a sickly ten year old about to die turns to his older brother for comfort. He is told of the wondrous land of the afterlife, Nangijala, where fantastical sagas are the order of the day. A unique children's book that tackles life and death head on. Review "I adored Astrid Lindgren as a child" --Francesca Simon, author of the 'Horrid Henry' books. "The greatest gift of an author is that their work should stay with the reader forever. This story will." --Amazon --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. Language Notes Text: English, Swedish (translation) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. From the Publisher The Brothers Lionheart is a remarkable book. Astrid Lindgren surely gains new stature in a probing world far removed from Pippi Longstocking -- this one is far deeper, and more demanding of courage, than any of Lindgren's previous works. Even on a surface level, the story must be her most unusual and unexpected; but what sticks in the mind are the endlessly fascinating quesions she raises. Lindgren is speculating not only on the human situation but on the very nature of what may or may nor lie very darkly beyond it. It may be unsettling, but that's exactly as it should be. --Lloyd Alexander About the Author Born in Sweden in 1907. During the course of her life she wrote over 40 books for children. She once commented: 'I write to amuse the child within me, and can only hope that other children may have some fun that way too.' Many of her stories are based upon her memories of childhood, and filled with lively and unconventional characters. Perhaps the best known is Pippi Longstocking, first published in Sweden in 1945. It was an immediate success with children, and was later published in England in 1954. During her lifetime, Lindgren was awarded dozens of Swedish and international prizes for her writing, among them the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen medal in 1958. In 1989 a theme park dedicated to her - Astrid Lindgren's World - was opened in the author's home town of Vimmerby. She died in 2002. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. .....

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Amazon Customer Review: Belongs to the canon of best books January 18, 2005 By Tsila Sofer Elguez Format:Hardcover The first two chapters of this wonderful book were so overwhelmingly sad I almost choked while reading them aloud to my son. A mother's greatest fears come alive in these chapters and at some points I could not believe I was reading a children's book. While the rest of the story is a little less sad (at least on its apparent side) it works on our deepest fears, mainly loosing a loved one, being alone. These however are my observations as an adult. I am sure my son's perceptions are not similar at all and that as an adult I feel this book in a different level. I enjoyed reading the other reviewers that describe their memory of reading this book as children. My experience was different, having read this book for the first time slowly, for several weeks, aloud to my son. My feelings are thus those of a grownup and maybe this makes this book even sadder to me (I do not want to plunge into the discussion of should children know how sad the world is - I have no good answer). In any case this is a marvelous adventure book for all ages whose power stems from many aspects. For me it was mainly the candid descriptions of the narrator, Scotty, who regards himself as a coward and who is moved to great acts of courage by his love to Jonathan, his beautiful, brave and kind brother. The love for Jonathan is really Scotty's driving force. The book really belongs to the canon of best children books ever. On the first level this is an adventure book. The good: a beautiful hero, who always seems to know the right words, a fight for freedom, acts of bravery and self-sacrifice. The evil: a cruel leader, always finding new horrible ways of torture, demonic creatures, treachery and deceit. On the second level this fight for freedom is taking place in a mystical world-beyond who has another world-beyond, a notion that is both scary and comforting (there is always where to go but it seems the problems never end). On yet another level I felt the story works on our deepest fears: death, oppression, darkness, monsters, loneliness and separation from your loved ones which are really the most important aspect of life or of living. I am thinking to myself that maybe the message is that death is better if you stay with your loved ones? is this too horrible to think? The reading therefore can be pleasing, emotional and thought provoking for different ages and is remembered a long while after the reading. .....