Millennium novel named among 2010's best books
Online retail giant Amazon has named the final installment of the Millennium trilogy, "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest," in its list of "Best Books of the Year... So Far" as the film of the second instalment opens in US cinemas.
The English translation of the third book by Stieg Larsson was released at the end of May and is currently second on the New York Times' hardcover fiction and Amazon's bestseller lists.
Meanwhile, the first two installments, "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and "The Girl Who Played With Fire," remain first and second respectively on Times' paperback trade fiction and mass-market fiction bestseller lists. The books are third and fifth respectively among Amazon's bestsellers and the trilogy bundle is 47th.
The accolade comes on the eve of the North American premiere of the second Millennium film, which opens on Friday in a number of cities. The film's premiere runs concurrently with the first film, which is still being released throughout the US.
The Girl Who Played with Fire has received mixed reviews compared with the first film, which was directed by Danish director Niels Arden Oplev. That screenplay was also helmed by two Danes, Nikolaj Arcel and Rasmus Heisterberg. The highest-grossing film ever to come out of Sweden, it was released on DVD on Tuesday.
For the last two installments, Swedes Daniel Alfredson directed and Jonas Frykberg wrote the screenplay. In a recent interview, Alfredson weighed in on Hollywood's search for the heroine, troubled bisexual hacker Lisbeth Salander.
"I wish them luck, really," Alfredson said in a recent telephone interview from Stockholm to the Canadian Press. "Because they will never find a Lisbeth like we did. She's the original. Everyone will be compared with her."
The original actress is Noomi Rapace, who has expressed her reluctance to reprise the role in an English-language remake.
As of April 5th, 2009, the first movie has grossed 84.64 million kronor ($11.25 million) in Sweden and $9.09 million in the US as of Sunday. In addition to the US and Canada, the second film will also be released in the UK at the end of next month and in Japan in mid-September. It was released in France at the end of June.
Even as the trilogy continues to break Swedish film and publishing records around the world, the heirs of Larsson's estate, his brother and father Joakim and Erland Larsson, and Stieg Larsson's partner, Eva Gabrielsson, have come no closer to resolving their inheritance dispute.
The Larssons announced last month that talks had broken down with Gabrielsson after making her a "customised" offer, while Gabrielsson responded that she had "flatly refused" the 20 million kronor offer and a board seat in the company that manages the Millennium books.
Gabrielsson had previously given up the battle for the blockbuster Millennium books, but stood firm over control of Larsson's other works.
Larsson died suddenly of a heart attack at age 50 in 2004 before his Millennium trilogy was published. He died without a will and since he and his partner of 32 years were not married and had no children, his estate went to his father and brother, in accordance with Swedish law.
That included royalties from the books and the sale of film rights to the books, which have sold millions of copies worldwide.
Comments
See Also
The English translation of the third book by Stieg Larsson was released at the end of May and is currently second on the New York Times' hardcover fiction and Amazon's bestseller lists.
Meanwhile, the first two installments, "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and "The Girl Who Played With Fire," remain first and second respectively on Times' paperback trade fiction and mass-market fiction bestseller lists. The books are third and fifth respectively among Amazon's bestsellers and the trilogy bundle is 47th.
The accolade comes on the eve of the North American premiere of the second Millennium film, which opens on Friday in a number of cities. The film's premiere runs concurrently with the first film, which is still being released throughout the US.
The Girl Who Played with Fire has received mixed reviews compared with the first film, which was directed by Danish director Niels Arden Oplev. That screenplay was also helmed by two Danes, Nikolaj Arcel and Rasmus Heisterberg. The highest-grossing film ever to come out of Sweden, it was released on DVD on Tuesday.
For the last two installments, Swedes Daniel Alfredson directed and Jonas Frykberg wrote the screenplay. In a recent interview, Alfredson weighed in on Hollywood's search for the heroine, troubled bisexual hacker Lisbeth Salander.
"I wish them luck, really," Alfredson said in a recent telephone interview from Stockholm to the Canadian Press. "Because they will never find a Lisbeth like we did. She's the original. Everyone will be compared with her."
The original actress is Noomi Rapace, who has expressed her reluctance to reprise the role in an English-language remake.
As of April 5th, 2009, the first movie has grossed 84.64 million kronor ($11.25 million) in Sweden and $9.09 million in the US as of Sunday. In addition to the US and Canada, the second film will also be released in the UK at the end of next month and in Japan in mid-September. It was released in France at the end of June.
Even as the trilogy continues to break Swedish film and publishing records around the world, the heirs of Larsson's estate, his brother and father Joakim and Erland Larsson, and Stieg Larsson's partner, Eva Gabrielsson, have come no closer to resolving their inheritance dispute.
The Larssons announced last month that talks had broken down with Gabrielsson after making her a "customised" offer, while Gabrielsson responded that she had "flatly refused" the 20 million kronor offer and a board seat in the company that manages the Millennium books.
Gabrielsson had previously given up the battle for the blockbuster Millennium books, but stood firm over control of Larsson's other works.
Larsson died suddenly of a heart attack at age 50 in 2004 before his Millennium trilogy was published. He died without a will and since he and his partner of 32 years were not married and had no children, his estate went to his father and brother, in accordance with Swedish law.
That included royalties from the books and the sale of film rights to the books, which have sold millions of copies worldwide.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.