Torgny Lindgren

For several years he was active as a local politician for the Swedish Social Democratic Party. In the 1980s he converted to the Catholic faith. Lindgren started out as a poet in 1965 but had to wait until 1982 for his breakthrough, with the novel The Way of a Serpent (Swedish: Ormens väg på hälleberget). Lindgren's work was translated into more than thirty languages and was one of Sweden's most internationally successful contemporary writers. He became a member of the Swedish Academy in 1991.

• Name — Torgny Lindgren • Birth Name — Gustav Torgny Lindgren • Born — 16 June 1938 • Birthplace — Raggsjö, Norsjö, Västerbotten, Sweden • Died — 16 March 2017 • Place of death — Rimforsa, Sweden • Occupation — Poet, novelist • Period — 1965–2017 • Notable Works — * The Way of a Serpent • Sweetness • Spouse — Stina • Children — * Aina • Ylva • Torgils

The Way of a Serpent tells the story of a farmer family in a poverty-stricken region in the northern parts of Sweden in the nineteenth century. The family formerly owned its land but had to sell it cheap during a succession of years of famine. The new owner collects his rent as long as there is money in the household, and exploits the women when there is no money. The novel was made into a film by Bo Widerberg in 1986.