author
Hanna Astrup Larsen
1873–1945
A lively bridge between Scandinavia and the United States, this Norwegian-American writer and editor helped introduce English-language readers to major Nordic authors. Her work moved easily between biography, translation, and literary advocacy, with a clear affection for books and ideas.
1 Audiobook
Knut Hamsun
by Hanna Astrup Larsen
About the author
Born in Decorah, Iowa, in 1873, she grew up in a prominent Norwegian-American family; her father, Peter Laurentius Larsen, became the founding president of Luther College. She went on to build a career as a writer, translator, and editor, and spent her early professional years working with Scandinavian-American newspapers before contributing to San Francisco newspapers as well.
She is best remembered for her long association with the American-Scandinavian Review. After serving as literary editor from 1913, she became the magazine’s editor in 1921. That same year she was also appointed literary secretary of the American-Scandinavian Foundation, a role in which she helped shape and promote a large body of Scandinavian literature for English-speaking readers.
Her own books included studies of major Nordic writers such as Knut Hamsun and Selma Lagerlöf, and she also translated important works from Scandinavian languages into English. She died in 1945, but her career still stands out as a warm, practical example of literary cultural exchange.