Ebba Haslund

Ebba Margareta Haslund Halvorsen (12 August 1917 – 10 July 2009) was an American-Norwegian novelist, writer of short stories, playwright, essayist, children's writer, literary critic, radio speaker and politician.

Early and personal life Haslund was born in Seattle, Washington as the daughter of Frantz Philip Haslund (1883–1974) and Ebba Margareta Gillblad (1890–1957). Haslund has described her father as an "adventurer", and they travelled regularly during her early life. She became a student in 1935, and studied languages in both England, Germany and France before World War II. She graduated from the University of Oslo in 1941 with the cand.philol. degree. In 1940 she married businessman Sverre Fjeld Halvorsen (1910–2005), The following year came the publication of her first novel, Siste halvår, about the adolescence of young girls. The independent continuation Det hendte ingenting (1948) was virtually ignored by the press at the time, but has later been regarded as one of her most important books. It was translated into English in 1987, Hafslund's literary breakthrough was proclaimed with the emerging of Middag hos Molla (1951), and again with her next novel, Krise i august (1954). —from 1961 to 1963 and chaired the Norwegian Writers for Children from 1965 to 1970. In the Norwegian Authors' Union she was a board member from 1966 to 1970, vice chairman from 1970 to 1971 and chairman from 1971 to 1975. She was a member of the board of Riksteateret from 1969 to 1977, a member of the Norwegian Language Council from 1976 to 1980 and a deputy member of the Arts Council Norway from 1977 to 1980. She received the Ossietzky Award in 2006 and the Fritt Ord Honorary Award in 2007.