Pippi Longstocking

She is the strongest girl in the world, with long red hair, braided into pigtails and a heart as big as the whole outdoors.

Pippi lost her mother when she was a baby, and her father, a sea captain, disappeared in a storm. Pippi believes that he is a South Sea cannibal king. She is so strong that she can lift up horses. Pippi is also untidy, wears mismatching stockings, and loves her freedom.

The three books that make up the Pippi Longstocking series are fun, fanciful adventure stories. The three titles are Pippi Longstocking, Pippi Goes on Board and Pippi in the South Seas.

All of our kids have read and enjoyed these.

Astrid Lindgren was born 1907 on a farm in a small Swedish town. She loved to read as a child, especially any book where the heroine was a girl. She and her husband had two children. Astrid would tell them stories and one of the stories developed into Pippi Longstocking.

Her daughter, Karin came up with Pippi’s full name which is Pippilotta Delicatessa Windowshade Mackrelmint Efraim’s Daughter Longstocking. Now, that’s a real mouthful. Pippi was first published in 1945 and has received numerous awards. In her lifetime Mrs. Lindgren wrote over 100 books.