War of the Worlds insect-style – Entomological children‘s adventure fiction before World War I

Children‘s adventure fiction. It‘s spring outside and since insects are the new big subject at my son‘s Kindergarden, we‘ve recently been reading the abbreviated and revised version of Waldemar Bonsels‘s children‘s classic „Maya the Bee“ („Die Biene Maja und ihre Abenteuer“). Published in 1912, the book reads like a strikingly modern animal novel, which, though …

Death of a Captain

100th death anniversary of Walter Christmas. 100 years ago, on 20 March 1924, the Danish newspaper Politiken announced the sudden and unexpected death of the author Captain Walter Christmas. Two days earlier, Christmas had been attending the premiere of the play Blændværk at the Royal Theatre. Even before the curtain went up, he was suddenly …

Man between the spots: Why I am writing about Walter Christmas

Walter Christmas's 100th death anniversary. When I started my postdoc project, my original intention was to have the book published in March 2024 - right on time for the 100th anniversary of Walter Christmas's death on 18 March 1924. - - - Two maternity leaves later, I am still in the process of writing the …

Telling the tale of the story-teller Part 1: H. C. Andersen’s House in Odense

Methodology. Travel Guide. I am writing a book about a story-teller. Walter Christmas, the subject of my research, was not only the author of the famous Danish Peder-Most novels. He was also someone who told tales - to himself and about himself - throughout his adventurous life. Stuck with few archival resources helping to separate …