Steve Sem-Sandberg
He made his literary debut in 1976 with the two science fiction novels Sländornas värld and Sökare i dödsskuggan. He was awarded the Dobloug Prize for fiction in 2005. He was born in 1958 in Oslo but grew up in Stockholm.
Steve Sem-Sandberg
Bengt Oberger · CC BY 3.0
- Name
- Steve Sem-Sandberg
- Birth Name
- Snorre Steve Sem-Sandberg
- Born
- 1958
- Birthplace
- Oslo, Norway
- Nationality
- Sweden
- Occupation
- linguist · translator · journalist · literary critic · writer · novelist
- Fields
- journalism · linguistics · literary criticism · literature
- Education
- International Writing Program
- Honours
- Aftonbladet Literary Award · Dobloug Prize · Samfundet De Nio's Grand Prize · August Prize · Prix Médicis étranger
- Languages
- Swedish
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Documentary summary
He made his literary debut in 1976 with the two science fiction novels Sländornas värld and Sökare i dödsskuggan. He was awarded the Dobloug Prize for fiction in 2005. He was born in 1958 in Oslo but grew up in Stockholm.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
Steve Sem-Sandberg (born 1958) is a Swedish journalist, linguist and literary critic, among other activities. The journalist was born in Oslo.
Steve Sem-Sandberg studied at International Writing Program. The journalist worked for Svenska Dagbladet and is a member of Swedish Academy. Steve Sem-Sandberg held the position of seat 14 of the Swedish Academy and worked in Stockholm and Vienna. The journalist is active in journalism, linguistics and Linguistics.
Genres include holocaust, Holocaust literature and science fiction. Languages used include Swedish. Steve Sem-Sandberg received Aftonbladet Literary Award, August Prize and Dobloug Prize, among others.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 27 September 2026
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Authority files
wikidata · Q1445641 · wikipedia · Steve Sem-Sandberg
In this article
Biography
Biography
He worked at Svenska Dagbladet from 1988 to 2008. His 2009 novel, The Emperor of Lies, was awarded the August Prize. It recounts the life of the Łódź Ghetto and its leader Chaim Rumkowski in Nazi-occupied Poland during World War II. Daphne Merkin in The New York Times said that he had succeeded in writing "a freshly felt, fully absorbing novel about the Holocaust," an even more difficult task as he was writing about a known historical figure in Rumkowski.
Steve Sem-Sandberg studied at International Writing Program. The recorded working language is Swedish. The field of work recorded is journalism, linguistics and literary criticism. Subjects and genres recorded for the work are science fiction and holocaust. Places of work recorded in the authority are Stockholm and Vienna. Employment is recorded with Svenska Dagbladet. Positions recorded include seat 14 of the Swedish Academy. Distinctions recorded are Aftonbladet Literary Award, Dobloug Prize, Samfundet De Nio's Grand Prize and August Prize.
Steve Sem-Sandberg, svensk författare, kritiker och översättare, på Bokmässan i Göteborg 2022.
Mattias Blomgren
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Steve Sem-Sandberg • Birth Name — Snorre Steve Sem-Sandberg • Born — 1958 • Birthplace — Oslo, Norway • Period — 1976–present • Notable Works — * Theres (1996) • Allt förgängligt är bara en bild (1999) • Ravensbrück (2003) • Härifrån till Allmänningen (2005) • The Emperor of Lies (2011)
Works
Works
• Sländornas värld and Sökare i dödsskuggan, novels (1976) • De ansiktslösa, novel (1987) • I en annan del av staden, essays (1990) • Den kluvna spegeln, reportage (1991) • En lektion i pardans, novel (1993) • Theres, novel (1996) • "Allt förgängligt är bara en bild", novel (1999) • Prag (no exit), essays (2002) • Ravensbrück, novel (2003) • Härifrån till Allmänningen, novel (2005) • De fattiga i Łódź, novel (2009) (English: The Emperor of Lies, 2011) • Tre romaner, omnibus (2011) • De utvalda, novel (2014) (English: The Chosen Ones, 2016) • Stormen, novel (2016) (English: The Tempest, 2019) • W, novel (2019) (English: W. A novel, 2022) • Jägarna i Armentières, short stories (2020) • The Ocean, novel (2022) • De heligas stad (2025)
Career and activity
Career and activity
Steve Sem-Sandberg worked in journalism, linguistics, literary criticism, literature and science fiction. He was employed by Svenska Dagbladet. Recorded position is seat 14 of the Swedish Academy. He belonged to Swedish Academy. He worked at Stockholm and Vienna.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1958
Steve Sem-Sandberg born at Oslo.
1999
Allt förgängligt är bara en bild / Steve Sem-Sandberg is dated 1999.
Where the work is held
Recognition and collections
Steve Sem-Sandberg received Aftonbladet Literary Award, Dobloug Prize, Samfundet De Nio's Grand Prize, August Prize and Prix Médicis étranger.
Awards and honours
• 1996 Aftonbladet's literary prize • 2005 Dobloug Prize • 2007 Premiul Marin Sorescu (first ever winner of the award) • 2008 Karl Vennbergs pris • 2009 August Prize • 2010 Kerstin M Lundberg-priset • 2013 Jan Michalski Prize for Literature, shortlist, The Emperor of Lies • 2014 Bonnier Scholarship Fund for Writers • 2016 Prix Médicis etranger, winner, Les élus • 2016 Gerard Bonniers pris, Swedish Academy • 2018 Natur & kultur's special grant for good literary achievements • 2020 Eyvind Johnsonpriset for W. A novel • 2021 Delblancpriset • 2024 Selma Lagerlöf Prize
Literature
Scholarly footprint
A count of publications is evidence of attention, not of standing, and is given here only as a measure.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Arneberg, Sofie. Steve Sem-Sandberg. Store norske leksikon. Norsk nettleksikon.
- 2.Norsk nettleksikon. Doblougprisen. Store norske leksikon.
- 3.Stiskalo, Sandra. Steve Sem-Sandberg: ”Mitt liv är helt styrt av skrivandet”. Dagens Nyheter. 2019-09-13.
- 4.Daphne Merkin, "The Man Who Ruled the Lodz Ghetto", New York Times, 4 September 2011, accessed 17 May 2013
- 5.Aftonbladet. 1996: Steve Sem-Sandberg. 9 March 2011.
- 6.Doblougprisen (Store norske leksikon)
- 7.Jan Michalski Foundation. Edition 2013.
- 8.M.A.O. Jan Michalski Prize shortlist. complete review. 14 September 2013.
- 9.Vincy Thomas. Le Médicis 2016 couronne Ivan Jablonka, Jacques Henric et Steve Sem-Sandberg. Livres Hebdo. 2 November 2016.
- 10.An island's dark secrets: The Tempest, by Steve Sem-Sandberg, reviewed. The Spectator. 9 February 2019.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Wikidata, structured authority record Q1445641: Steve Sem-SandbergWikimedia Foundation
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 15 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Books
38,960 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
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