Maj Sjöwall
Template:Use dmy dates Template:Short description Template:Infobox writer
Maj Sjöwall (Template:IPA; 25 September 1935 – 29 April 2020) was a Swedish author and translator. She is best known for her novels about the police detective Martin Beck. She wrote these novels in collaborative work with her partner Per Wahlöö.
Biography
Maj Sjöwall was the daughter of Margit Trobäck and CEO Will Sjöwall.<ref name="auto">Template:Cite news</ref>
After completing school, Sjöwall was employed at Åhlén & Åkerlunds publishers between 1954 and 1959; Wahlström & Widstrands publishers between 1959 and 1961; and then Esselte publishers between 1961 and 1963.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Sjöwall was best known for the collaborative work with her partner Per Wahlöö on a series of ten novels about the exploits of Martin Beck, a police detective in Stockholm.<ref name="auto1">Template:Cite news</ref> They also wrote several novels separately.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The fourth of the Beck novels, Den skrattande polisen, was published in 1968; a translation of this novel, The Laughing Policeman, won an Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Novel from the Mystery Writers of America in 1971. This novel was also adapted into the film The Laughing Policeman, starring Walter Matthau.<ref name="auto1"/> In 2013, Sjöwall received a fifth Lenin Award.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
After the death of Wahlöö, Sjöwall continued working as a translator, writing columns for magazines and as an author.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> With Danish author Bjarne Nielsen, she published the novel Dansk Intermezzo in 1989.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 1990, she and author Tomas Ross published the thriller Kvinnan som liknade Greta Garbo.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Personal life
Sjöwall married her first husband, magazine editor Gunnar Isaksson, in 1955, and they divorced in 1958.<ref name="auto"/> She married again in 1959 to photographer Hans J. Flodquist; they divorced in 1962.<ref name="auto"/>
Sjöwall had a 13-year relationship with Wahlöö, which lasted until his death in 1975.<ref>The queen of crime The Observer 22 November 2009</ref>
Sjöwall died on 29 April 2020, at the age of 84, after a prolonged illness.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Bibliography
Martin Beck novels written with Per Wahlöö
- Roseanna (1965)<ref name="SVTObituary">Template:Cite web</ref>
- Mannen som gick upp i rök (1966)<ref name="SVTObituary" />
- Mannen på balkongen (1967)<ref name="SVTObituary" />
- Den skrattande polisen (1968)<ref name="SVTObituary" />
- Brandbilen som försvann (1969)<ref name="SVTObituary" />
- Polis, polis, potatismos (1970)<ref name="SVTObituary" />
- Den vedervärdige mannen från Säffle (1971)<ref name="SVTObituary" />
- Det slutna rummet (1972)<ref name="SVTObituary" />
- Polismördaren (1974)<ref name="SVTObituary" />
- Terroristerna (1975)<ref name="SVTObituary" />
Other books
- Dansk Intermezzo (1989). Martin Beck novel written with Bjarne Nielsen.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref>
- Kvinnan som liknade Greta Garbo (1990). Written jointly with Tomas Ross.<ref name="SVTObituary" />
- Sista resan och andra berättelser (2007).<ref name="SVTObituary" /> Collection of short stories written by Sjöwall and Wahlöö.<ref name=":0" />
Adaptations
The novels about Martin Beck were adapted into several successful films, and Beck has been portrayed by several of Sweden's best-known actors.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The best-known portrayal of Beck is by actor Peter Haber, who has appeared in 42 films or TV episodes in the role.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
References
Further reading
External links
Template:Martin Beck Template:Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Novel Template:Authority control