One of Sweden’s most prominent writers, Stig Dagerman (1923-1954) edited a youth newspaper at age nineteen and was cultural editor of a daily paper at age twenty-two. He was a prolific journalist, playwright, poet, and fiction writer. Wedding Worries, his last novel and often considered his best, is finally available in English, co-translated (with Paul Norlén) by the author’s daughter Lo Dagerman, a filmmaker, theater producer, and frequent commentator on her father’s work. Set in his childhood village of Älvkarleby, the book chronicles the Palm family’s celebration of their young daughter Hildur’s marriage to the much older village butcher, beginning that morning with a mysterious knocking on the bride’s window, ending twenty-four hours later after a bacchanalian feast filled with unexpected drama. The story is told through a variety of characters, all of whom will be transformed by this passage. Lo Dagerman will be in conversation with Linda Zachrison, Cultural Counselor at the Swedish Embassy.
