The Brothers Lionheart

𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐈'𝐦 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐲 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫. 𝐌𝐲 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫, 𝐉𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐋𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭, 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭. 𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐚𝐠𝐚, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐠𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐞𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞; 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐉𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭. - The Brothers Lionheart is a very interesting adventure book, about two brothers' love for each other, and what it means to be brave. The book opens with two brothers: Kalle (or Karl, who Jonathan affectionately calls Rusky) Lion, who is a sickly child, ill with tuberculosis, who is unable to do much of anything because of this illness, and; Jonathan Lion, his older brother, who everyone describes as brave, handsome, and so very good. Jonathan is living his own life outside of the family home going to school, fishing, and doing any number of things that healthy young boys can do. And he recounts all of these things to Kalle, to whom these experiences sound like awfully big adventures. - 𝐉𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐢𝐞. 𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐞. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥, 𝐭𝐨𝐨, 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞, 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐥𝐥. - Sadly, Kalle realises he is going to die, but before that happens a tragic accident occurs and Jonathan dies trying to save Kalle from a fire. This isn't really a spoiler as it happens within the first few chapters, but it is a key event within the book, as Kalle is left longing to rejoin his brother, and to find him in Nangijala - the other world that Jonathan told him about, where they would live together after death. Nowadays it's not unusual for a middle grade book to tackle such big topics as death, grief, loss and love, but back in 1973 when The Brothers Lionheart was written this book was viewed as quite controversial. The Swedish government even considered banning it, as they believed it could be seen as glorifying taking your own life. Having had this knowledge before reading the book, I can definitely understand the thought process behind the concern, given how the plot plays out. However, I would say the idea of an afterlife where things are 'perfect' in The Brothers Lionheart (and Nangijala is by no means perfect, but maybe Nangilima (the afterlife after the afterlife) is) is no different than any religious belief in an afterlife, where supposedly every one of a person's needs will be catered for. It's a bit ironic that the government criticised the book for sickly children longing to escape to a paradise, when this is exactly what religion and the bible preach and that is not forbidden or seen as taboo. - '𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐛𝐞 𝐬𝐨 𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞, 𝐈 𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐞𝐝. '𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐛𝐞 𝐬𝐨 𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐢𝐞, 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲'𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐥𝐝?' '𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰, 𝐑𝐮𝐬𝐤𝐲, 𝐈 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞,' 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐉𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧. '𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞.' - When both brothers are reunited in Nangijala, it appears to Kalle to be a true paradise. They have their own home in Cherry Valley, which is similar to their home on Earth, yet much more cozy and comfortable; they each have a beautiful horse (Grim and Fyalar), and little rabbits that they take care of, and, perhaps most importantly; they are both in peak health, with Kalle no longer sick or coughing. To Kalle, this life seems perfect at first, though he soon realises that all is not as it first appeared, and Nangijala is under threat from a tyrant. - 𝐀𝐧 𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐢𝐠, 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐝𝐨𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝, 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐰𝐬𝐥𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐚𝐱𝐢𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐰 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐬. 𝐋𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞, 𝐭𝐨𝐨, 𝐢𝐧 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐦, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐥, 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐲 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐭. 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐣𝐮𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐬 𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐲 𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐞, 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐚𝐬 𝐢𝐟 𝐢𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞; 𝐢𝐭 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐚𝐬 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐨𝐰𝐧. - I don't want to give away spoilers in case people want to read the book for themselves, but the saga that Jonathan and Kalle embark on leads to them being crowned 'Lionhearts' because of their bravery. They battle tyrants, and dragons, and use their wit and courage to outsmart guards, and to capture traitors, while rescuing their friends from certain death (yes, you can die in this afterlife). I think my favourite depiction in the book was that of Elfrida, and her home in the deep woods. If only we could leave behind our day to day lives and live like Elfrida! - 𝐒𝐨𝐨𝐧 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐑𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐟𝐭 𝐟𝐚𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐮𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭. 𝐈𝐧 𝐚 𝐠𝐥𝐚𝐝𝐞, 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐬, 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐮𝐩𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞, 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭. 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞! 𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞, 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐦𝐨𝐤𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐦𝐧𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐭𝐬 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 ... 𝐄𝐥𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐚 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐭, 𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐲. - Kalle wants to go wherever his brother Jonathan goes, as he doesn't want to be separated from him again. However, one key part of the story that stood out to me was how Kalle often didn't believe he was brave, and how he kept trying to be more brave, just like his brother Jonathan. Kalle was frightened at times, sometimes so much so that he would cry. But, in the words of Neil Gaiman: being brave doesn’t mean you aren’t scared. Being brave means you are scared, really scared, badly scared, and you do the right thing anyway. Kalle was brave all along, he just had to learn to understand what being brave truly meant. - '𝐇𝐚𝐡𝐚, 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐣𝐮𝐦𝐩 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐍𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐚,' 𝐈 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈 𝐥𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞. '𝐘𝐞𝐬, 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧,' 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐉𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧. '𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐬 𝐬𝐨𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐬 𝐰𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝, 𝐰𝐞'𝐥𝐥 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲, 𝐭𝐨𝐨, 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐬. 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐆𝐫𝐢𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐲𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐮𝐬. 𝐖𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲.' - I love stories that include other worlds, and liminal spaces, and would definitely recommend The Brothers Lionheart to other readers who like these kinds of fantasy stories. I could see some elements of the book that seemed to give a nod to other books of this genre, such as where Jonathan was hiding in, and escaping through, a wardrobe, and how Nangijala was 'somewhere on the other side of the stars'. I definitely understand how this book is a firm favourite for many readers, especially for those who read it in childhood. - 𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦, 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐦𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐠𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐲; 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬! 𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦: 𝐲𝐞𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦, 𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐅𝐲𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐫: '𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐢𝐬 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭? 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐦𝐞. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐞𝐥𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐮𝐩 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐨 𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐮𝐥' - I definitely recommend The Brothers Lionheart to readers who like middlegrade fantasy.

This is a good translation of the Swedish classic. This is a great story to read aloud as both adults and children will love the adventure and heart but kids 9+ will like to read it themselves too. The story itself is perhaps not for the faint-hearted but kids deal with the heavy subject matter at the beginning much better than we often give them credit for. Still, prepare for a few tears before the real adventure begins. While the main characters are boys, I have never known girls not to enjoy the story and get caught up in the adventure and excitement of Jonathan and Rusky's quest to save the land of Nagiyala, or identify with Rusky's feelings when he has to face foes and dangers far bigger than any little boy should have to. Astrid Lindgren is a master storyteller and while this book is a far cry from the jokiness of Pippi Longstocking, your child will surely love it just as much. A great recommendation for all those parents who would like their kids to read something other than Beast Quest (which are actually pretty good for what they are!).

Being danish and growing up in the 70's I read this book when it first came out..I must have been about 10. It made a huge impression on me then. I remember it as magical and epic and utterly absorbing. Now my own son i 7 and has learned danish although we live in Scotland. He can't read danish, though so I thought I would read this aloud for him. Unfortunately my own copy has gone missing so I had to get him a new. The paperback is not as nice as my old hard back copy - this is a classic to be read and reread and passed on, so I recommend to get the hard back. Anyhow, the story had certainly not lost it's magic for me. The story grips you from the fist page with the most hard wrenching, sad and moving start you can imagine. This does not lend itself well to reading aloud - I was in tears by the end of chapter one and choking on the words. Luckily the sadness is soon expelled by a new cheerful beginning for the hero of the story, Tvebak (I'm not sure how this is translated in the english version, but in Danish it means "rusk" or "crust of bread") and his brother, Jonathan. The story is about hope and the fight for freedom - and about the strong bond between brother. You HAVE to let your child read this book. They will love it - boys and girls alike. The book is a 10 stars for me but I have to say that the translation to English is not brilliant. It is clear that this is translated by a Scandinavian - and one not using English on a daily basis. My son who is so young picked up the strangeness of the translation and I found it distracting as well. It's a shame as the language in the original is so simple and beautiful

I'm giving this 5 stars even though it didn't quite work out the way I planned. We love Lindgren's Pippi Longstocking books and thought this would be a step on, so I bought it to read to my 7 year old son. However, having skimmed the first chapter, I realised it was a little too grown up for him. There is a death of a young child right at the start, and although it is very sensitively handled I felt it would just be a bit too upsetting at that age. However, having started to read it myself I couldn't put it down. The prose has a beautiful heroic style, like the folk tales it is based on. The relationship between the brothers a beautifully depicted. I also found it really refreshing to have a book written from the point of view of the younger, less strong child, rather than the classic, brilliant-at-everything hero. It's really a book about bravery, and what it really means to be brave - why it's important and where it comes from inside us. I think this would be a fantastic book for a mature 9 or 10 year old, but would also offer a lot for an early teen - although it's told from the point of view of a 10 year old the themes are very grown-up.

I just love this book since I have read it as a child till now. I am still coming back to it. While growing up one can see new dimensions of the story. Some claim the book is too difficult or scary for kids...well, have a look what they are watching now in TV, what kind of games they are playing, on which activities they participate and then tell me the book is too much for them ;-) This kind of literature can make people better. To make them think about better things in life. It shows them what is love, courage, friendship, hope, determination. Some people say the concept of death in this book is what makes it inappropriate for children. Not really. It is us who did hide death in our life, who are denying it. It is here and children need to know it to be able to cope in their life, to be able to walk with their eyes open and see things as their are. What do you think more educative? Your kid reading about somebody dying for a reason in a fictional book or your kid sitting in front of a playstation and "shooting" fictional enemies by his own hand? I want my kids to be human and appreciative of life. Thats why I will give them this book to read.

This book has the most brilliant beginning. Narrator Karl is ten, living in poverty in yesteryear Sweden...and he's dying. The moment when he overhears this fact, the terror and sadness are allayed by his wonderful older brother promising him a wonderful time 'on the other side'. But this fabled other world is no land of angels and harps, but an adventurous world of sagas and campfires, the land of Nangiyala. (Spoiler alert) Yet things don't quite work out that way; after a house fire, in which the elder 'Lionheart' brother, Jonathan, saves his invalid sibling's life, it is in fact he who arrives there first. When Karl eventually meets him, it is in a glorious land, but one ravaged by an evil force... A bit CS Lewis, but the reader can't help seeing similarities with the rise of Nazism: evil overlords in helmets building walls, enforcing curfews, issuing death sentences and despoiling the villagers; locals turning traitor...albeit with dragons, sea serpents etc adding to the drama. Certainly a religious sub-text, which the reader can engage with or ignore. And an absolutely brilliant and beautiful ending, which takes the reader (who thinks all is now well) entirely by surprise. Fabulous!

Having been to the Astrid Lingren "Junibacken" author's gallery in Stockholm we were keen to buy this book from extracts we witnessed on the story train. Unfortunately there it was priced at 179 Krone £17.90 so this was unaffordable, that price was a shock even given my knowledge of expensive Swedish prices. I was happy to see it here, rather cheaper! This book was varied, exciting, happy, sad a really good mix just perfect for my daughter and a good ending to an excellent holiday.

I read this when I was about 8, I suppose, and it stayed in my mind for almost 40 years. I tracked down a 2nd hand copy for my daughter, but the pictures just weren't right, so I was delighted to find it on Amazon, reprinted with the lovely Ion Wikland illustrations. A charming, thought-provoking, heart-breaking, life-affirming story.