Astrid Lindgren's personal secretary Kerstin Kvint is dead

4/28/2023, 11:03:42 AM

Highlights: Kerstin Kvint was Astrid Lindgren's personal secretary until her death in 2002. She was also a literary agent and wrote a book about her life. She died at the age of 86 on Friday, according to Saltkråkan AB, a Swedish publishing house. For confidential support call the Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see www.samaritans.org for details. In the U.S. call the National Suicide Prevention Line on 1-800-273-8255.

The literary agent, author and Astrid Lindgren's personal secretary, Kerstin Kvint, has died. This is confirmed by Saltkråkan AB.

Kerstin Kvint started working at the publishing house Rabén och Sjögren as a 15-year-old in 1952 when Astrid Lindgren was head of children's books. Over the years, she came to help Astrid Lindgren with a wide range of tasks.

At Rabén & Sjögren, Kerstin Kvint went from being a production assistant to becoming an export manager. In 1983 she became her own and started the literary agency Kerstin Kvint Literary & Co-Production Agency. Around the same time, she also became personal secretary to Astrid Lindgren, a job that Kerstin Kvint continued with until Astrid Lindgren's death in 2002.

Wrote a book about Astrid

Among other things, she learned to interpret Astrid Lindgren's shorthand and wrote the letters that Astrid Lindgren dictated orally.

– We sat and talked in a normal tone of voice and I wrote so that the pen glowed, Kerstin Kvint said in an interview in Dagens Nyheter in 2016.

In the book "Behind Astrid", Kerstin Kvint herself wrote about their long collaboration. Kerstin Kvint was 86 years old.