Books with author Henning Mankell

This poignant novel explores how a unilateral decision can change a life.Two things are hard for Joel Gustafson to cope with: not knowing why, and not being able to do anything about it. Joel’s father was once a sailor who lived by the sea. Joel’s mother once lived with them. Joel’s father abandoned the sea. Joel’s mother abandoned Joel and his father. While looking out his window one night, Joel sees a lonely dog on the street. Joel spots the animal again and begins sneaking out night after night, trying to find it. During these nocturnal outings, Joel discovers aspects of life he has never imagined. And then one night he discovers that his father’s bed, too, is empty.As Joel investigates his father’s mysterious absences and continues to search for the dog, he discovers his own inner strength and learns about adult disappointments and needs.

From the dean of Scandinavian noir, comes a riveting installment in the internationally bestselling and universally acclaimed Kurt Wallander series, the basis for the PBS series staring Kenneth Branagh.After killing a man in the line of duty, Kurt Wallander resolves to quit the Ystad police. However, a bizarre case gets under his skin.A lawyer driving home at night stops to investigate an effigy sitting in a chair in the middle of the highway. The lawyer is hit over the head and dies. Within a week the lawyer’s son is also killed. These deeply puzzling mysteries compel Wallander to remain on the force. The prime suspect is a powerful corporate mogul with a gleaming smile that Wallander believes hides the evil glee of a killer. Joined by Ann-Britt Hoglund, Wallander begins to uncover the truth, but the same merciless individuals responsible for the murders are now closing in on him.

Now that he's getting older, Joel Gustafson has a lot to consider. His birthday is next month. He'll be fifteen, and he can't stop thinking about the new liberties that come with being fifteen: he'll be allowed to ride a moped, and he'll no longer need to sneak into the cinema to see an adults-only film. And maybe his father will finally agree to leave their small Swedish town and the two of them will become sailors—something Joel has always dreamed of. Joel's life takes a turn, but nothing like he had anticipated. Joel and his father are unexpectedly faced with an aspect of their past and emotional wounds resurface. Can their relationship survive this complex situation, and the very different ways in which they respond?

One of the world’s best-selling authors has written a moving story about a teenager’s life in Northern Sweden.12-year-old Joel lives with his father in the cold northern part of Sweden. At night he often sneaks out of the house to look for a lonely dog he has seen from his window. On the bridge across the icy river he starts a secret society and has adventures. But one night he discovers that his father’s bed is also empty, and so he will have to come to terms with his father’s newfound love. The harsh reality of Joel’s world comes vividly to life and leaves the reader spellbound.From the Trade Paperback edition.

Readers met Sofia previously in Secrets in the Fire, when, at the age of 9, she lost her legs in a land mine explosion.Now Sofia is almost 20 and pregnant with her third child. Armando, the father of her children, travels to the city to work, coming home on weekends. One Saturday Armando is very late, and as he stands in the shadows beyond the firelight, Sofia knows he is hiding something from her. She makes her way to town to find out what he is doing and is devastated to discover that he is involved with another woman. Sofia ends their relationship, but suffers terribly in the face of Armando’s rage. In a heart-rending conclusion Armando’s life unravels, and Sofia must return to her village to raise her children without him.Shadow of the Leopard is an unforgettable story of love and betrayal, told with clear-eyed compassion and humane and strongly atmospheric insight.

Joel Gustafson’s journey toward becoming a man continues.As it has in the past, the first snow of the year signifies to Joel Gustafson his very own New Year’s Eve. So when the snow begins to fall on a cold November day, Joel gets busy making new resolutions—three, to be exact. As the winter days pass, life becomes ever more complicated. Joel has questions and the answers don’t necessarily come easily, but he is determined to keep his resolutions—for his father, for himself, and for their future. In this companion novel to A Bridge to the Stars and Shadows in the Twilight, readers follow Joel’s journey as he realizes along the way that it will require determination, strength, and valor to truly become a man.

JOEL WILL SOON be 12, and he thinks nothing is going on in the small community where he lives. But he’s wrong. One day, an incident that could easily have been a catastrophe turns into a miracle. Now Joel believes he owes the world a good deed, to prove that he deserved what might have been divine intervention. He thinks up an elaborate scheme, but it doesn’t go as anticipated. Even though his heart is in the right place, feelings are hurt. If he confesses what he’s done and why, will things be put right again? Readers who met Joel Gustafson, his father, and their friends in A Bridge to the Stars will follow, with appreciation, Henning Mankell’s shrewd depiction, in this companion novel, of the surprising changes in Joel’s existence. Mankell deftly explores Joel’s self-discovery, his realization that lives can be altered in a single moment, and his new understanding that a choice between telling the truth and keeping silent can make all the difference.

[Read by Dick Hill] A disillusioned Inspector Kurt Wallander is thrown back into the fray as both hunter and hunted in this new adventure from Sweden's master of crime and mystery. Crestfallen, dejected, and spiraling into an alcohol-fuelled depression after killing a man in the line of duty, Inspector Wallander had made up his mind to quit the police force for good. But when an old acquaintance, a solicitor, seeks Wallander's help and later turns up dead, Wallander realizes that he was wrong not to listen. Warily, he returns to work to head the case. A rookie female detective has joined the force in his absence, and he adopts the role of mentor to her as they fight to unravel the mystery.

[MP3-CD audiobook format in Vinyl case. NOTE: The MP3-CD format requires a compatible audio CD player.] [Read by Dick Hill] A disillusioned Inspector Kurt Wallander is thrown back into the fray as both hunter and hunted in this new adventure from Sweden's master of crime and mystery. Crestfallen, dejected, and spiraling into an alcohol-fuelled depression after killing a man in the line of duty, Inspector Wallander had made up his mind to quit the police force for good. But when an old acquaintance, a solicitor, seeks Wallander's help and later turns up dead, Wallander realizes that he was wrong not to listen. Warily, he returns to work to head the case. A rookie female detective has joined the force in his absence, and he adopts the role of mentor to her as they fight to unravel the mystery.

It is the wise old woman of the village who teaches young Sofia about the secrets in the fire. Within the flames hide all things past and all things yet to be. But not even old Muazena can see the horrors the fire holds for Sofia and her family—not the murderous bandits who drive them from their home, and not the landmine that takes Sofia’s legs. In her long journey toward recovery, Sofia must still deal with growing up. Along the way, she discovers friends, and foes, in places she’d never expected. Through it all, Sofia draws on a strength she never knew she had, a fire of her own that’s been a secret all along. In beautifully spare, unsentimental language, Henning Mankell’s stunning novel puts a very human face on the suffering in Africa.