On an afternoon in November 1951, reporters left their offices in the city and hurried out to Lidingö, a quiet residential suburb on an island several miles from Stockholm, in search of the writer's residence. There was no listing in the telephone directory, and there had never been very much reason to venture that way before. Pär Lagerkvist had long been recognized as one of the foremost writers in Scandinavia and was not unknown elsewhere in Europe, but for years he had consistently refused to see the press or make any public statement about himself or his work. “To answer questions about what I eat and drink … is ridiculous, I think, and to say something in a few minutes about a more important subject is nonsense,” he had said.