Margaret Skjelbred

Margaret Skjelbred (born 25 January 1949) is a Norwegian poet, children's writer, novelist and short story writer. Her awards include Prøysenprisen and the Amalie Skram Prize.

Early life and education

Born in Stokke on 25 January 1949,

From 1990 she became a full-time writer. The children's book (1993) was the first in a series of five books. Her novel from 1997 is set in rural Vestfold in the early 1900s. It was the first in a trilogy, the two next novels were titled (1998) and (1999). Her novel came in 2004. The autobiographical novel from 2009 deals with growing up in a Haugean family. In her novel (2011) the protagonist Alva is an old woman looking back on a joyful childhood which turned into darkness when her father died in an accident. Alva and her mother then have to move in with her grandparents on their small farm, where her grandfather rules the house in the spirit of strong pietistic Lutheranism. Her first short story collection was from 2019, with childhood stories from the 1950s and 1960s.