Book Club Discussion Guide
About the Author
The Little Old Lady Who Broke
All The Rules
By Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg
Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg is an established Swedish author, with total sales
of more than one million to her credit. Catharina has produced 18 books in
several genres, including popular science, cartoon and children's. She is perhaps
best known and loved, however, for her historical fiction novels from the Viking
period.
Catharina’s expertise comes from personal experience as a marine archaeologist
and museum curator as well as the diligent research she carries out to
authenticate detail. Her individual writing style, featuring depth of insight, and
sense of surprise and humour, gives her books a special appeal. So much so
that in 1999 she won the prestigious Widding Prize as the best writer of popular
history and historical novels. She had her brake through with the Feel Good
novel "The Little old lady who broke all the rules". This book has been on the
toplists in Sweden, Island, Germany, Italy, Norway and Canada.
Books by Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg:
1. Marinarkeologi—dykaren, arkeologen, fynden (Marine Archaeology—the
Diver, the Archaeologist and the Finds), 1985, Wiken. ISBN 91-7024-235-6.
Popular science.
2. Kampen mot bränningarna (The Battle Against the Breakers), 1991, Wiken;
Book Club Discussion Guide
last reprint 1998, Richters. ISBN 91 7709 582 0. Historical novel on the Dutch
East Indiaman Zeewijk.
3. Den svarta ejderungen (The Black Duck) 1991, Norstedts, ISBN 91-1-9170726. Children’s book.
4. Bland hajar, karlar och vrak. (Among Sharks, Men and Shipwrecks) Raben
Prisma 1995. ISBN 91-518-2781-6.
A book about the authors marin archaelogical expeditions around the world. 5.
Vikingablot (Viking Sacrifice), 1995, Richters. ISBN 91 7705 104 1. Historical
novel (Book 1 of trilogy.)
6. Vikingasilver (Viking Silver), 1997, Richters. ISBN 91 7705 221 8. Historical
novel. (Book 2 of trilogy.)
7. Vikingaguld (Viking Gold) 1999, Richters. ISBN 91-518-4080-4. Historical
novel. (Book 3 of trilogy.)
8. Boken om vikingarna (The Book About the Vikings), 1998, Prisma. ISBN 91518-4393-5. Popular science.
9. Stockholms dolda museer. (The Hidden Museums in Stockholm), 2000,
Ordalaget. ISBN 91-89086-14-7. Popular science.
10. Mäktig mans kvinna. Om vikingafurstinnan Ingegerd. (The Powerful Man’s
Woman. About the Viking Princess Ingegerd), 2001, Richters. ISBN 91 7709 189
2. Historical novel.
11. Tantlexikon (Dictionary for Hags), 2005, Forum. ISBN 91-37-12550-8.
Cartoon book, a humerous appreciation of ageing in women.
12. Forntida kvinnor—jägare, vikingahustru, prästinna (Ancient women—the
Hunter, the Viking Women, the Priest), 2005, Prisma. ISBN 91-518-4080-4.
Popular science.
13. Brännmärkt (Doomed) 2006. Forum. Historic novel.
14. Förföljd (Hunted) 2007. Forum. Historic novel.
15. Befriad (Liberated) 2009. Forum. Historic novel.
16. Tempelbranden (Temple Fire) 2010. Historiska media. Historic novel.
17. Kaffe med Rån (The little old lady who broke all the rules) 2012. Forum.
Detective story.
18. Låna är Silver Råna är Guld (The little old lady who strikes again) 2014.
Forum. Detective story.
FROM WRECKS TO VIKINGS: A PROFILE
Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg
“We will never know who they were, the strangers from the sea—bearers of the
great misfortune—that one day at the end of the eighth century came ashore in
Portland on the English shore. Nobody knows, as those that could have told were
killed.”
The Book About the Vikings, by Catharina Ingelman–Sundberg, 1998.
Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg is one of Sweden’s favourite authors
Book Club Discussion Guide
As a child, Catharina read a lot. At the age of eight she met the great Swedish
author, Olof Lagercrantz.
“What do you want to be when you grow up?” he asked.
“A writer,” she replied.
Catharina’s first interest was history. At university she studied archaeology,
history and the history of art. She worked for fifteen years as a historical scientist,
specialising in marine archaeology—“the joyful journey of diving for history” as
she calls it. She was either member or leader of expeditions in several parts of
the world, often as a pioneer on wreck sites and helping develop methods of
retrieving and preserving artifacts: revealing historical secrets through finds of
delicate porcelain, silver, heavy cannon, massive timbers fascinated Catharina.
Four years were with the Western Australian Museum in Perth, Western
Australia, working on 18th century Dutch East Indiaman sailing ships that had
foundered off the coast; she participated in the raising of Batavia and lead the
exploration and salvage of the Zeewijk.
Catharina retired from the physical rigours of field work to take curatorial
positions at the Maritime museums in Stockholm and Malmo, Sweden, and in
Oslo, Norway. Having satisfied her interest in marine archaeology, it was time for
her to change profession. She joined the school of journalism in Gothenburg,
trying radio and television, but settling forwriting. The Battle Against the Breakers
was published in 1991 and is in its fourth reprint, having sold 60 000 copies.
Diving at Birka, Sweden’s first Viking town, and discovering a defence system
from the Viking era, resulted in the first of Catharina’s historical fiction Viking
trilogy. Viking Sacrifice, along with the sequels Viking Silver and Viking Gold,
have been translated into Norweigan, Danish, Roumanian and German.
Together they have sold more than 90 000 copies and are still selling. English
translations are underway.
The Book About the Vikings, describing the history and lifestyle of the Vikings,
also continues to attract readers, having reached about 20 000 sales.
Catharina says a few words about being an author:
In writing historical fiction, as well as having the usual people and plot concept,
you have to know what you’re writing about. It could be a marten hunt, sewing a
dress or going sailing. How did one do these things at the time of, for example,
the Vikings? Thorough research is required. Then comes the combining of the
research and the imagination. You can have 80 to 90 scenes in just one book
requiring organization. All these things consume time and brain power. There is
no short cut. You really have to love what you’re doing, and I do.
Book Club Discussion Guide
I safeguard the facts from research for my novels. They go into a recycling
depository, whereby no information is lost, but remains available for reuse in new
contexts. Most books on Vikings are about politics and war. But I need women
and children in my novels. My recycling collection, which comes from many
sources, provides me with details on both. Few people would notice but, as an
author, you continue to learn and experiment.
People should have fun when they read my books. And get history lessons along
the way. A girl I knew had not studied properly for an examination but passed
anyway, using facts she remembered from reading Viking Sacrifice. That’s
rewarding.
Catharina is already working on a new book contract. Set in the Middle Ages it
takes place in Stockholm, Sweden. It is a follow up of the book “Brännmarkt”
based on the true story of the Käpplinge murders, at the time when Swedes,
Germans and pirates were fighting for power in Scandinavia. It is along the
Viking trilogy line: a love and adventure novel in the historical fiction style.
After that? Catharina thinks it would be amusing to try a contemporary novel …
Book Club Discussion Guide
About the Book
The Little Old Lady Who Broke
All The Rules
By Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg
79-year-old Martha Anderson dreams of escaping her care home and robbing
a bank. She has no intention of spending the rest of her days in an armchair
and is determined to fund her way to a much more exciting life-style. Along
with her four oldest friends - otherwise known as the League of Pensioners Martha decides to rebel against all of the rules imposed upon them. Together,
they cause an uproar with their antics: protesting against early bedtimes and
plastic meals. As the elderly friends become more daring, their activities
escalate and they come up with a cunning plan to break out of the care home
and land themselves in a far more attractive Stockholm establishment. With
the aid of their Zimmer frames, they resolve to stand up for old aged
pensioners everywhere - Robin Hood style. And that's when the adventure
really takes off.
Book Club Discussion Guide
Discussion
Questions
The Little Old Lady Who Broke
All The Rules
By Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg
1. How did you experience the book? Were you engaged immediately, or did it
take you a while to
"get into it"? How did you feel reading it—amused,
sad, disturbed, confused, bored...?
2. Describe the main characters—personality traits, motivations, inner qualities.
• Why do characters do what they do?
• Are their actions justified?
• Describe the dynamics between characters
(in a marriage, family, or friendship).
• How has the past shaped their lives?
• Do you admire or disapprove of them?
• Do they remind you of people you know?
3. Do the main characters change by the end of
the book? Do they grow or mature? Do they learn something about themselves
and how the world works?
4. Is the plot engaging—does the story interest you? Is this a plot-driven book: a
fast-paced page-turner? Or does the story unfold slowly with a focus on
character development? Were you surprised by the plot's complications? Or did
you find it predictable, even formulaic?
5. Talk about the book's structure. Is it a continuous story...or interlocking short
stories? Does the time-line more forward chronologically...or back and forth
between past and present? Does the author use a single viewpoint or shifting
viewpoints? Why might the author have chosen to tell the story the way he or she
did—and what difference does it make in the way you read or understand it?
6. What main ideas—themes—does the author explore? (Consider the title, often
a clue to a theme.) Does the author use symbols to reinforce the main ideas?
(See our free LitCourses on both Symbol and Theme.)
Book Club Discussion Guide
7. What passages strike you as insightful, even profound? Perhaps a bit of dialog
that's funny or poignant or that encapsulates a character? Maybe there's a
particular comment that states the book's thematic concerns?
8. Is the ending satisfying? If so, why? If not, why not...and how would you
change it?
9. If you could ask the author a question, what would you ask? Have you read
other books by the same author? If so how does this book compare. If not, does
this book inspire you to read others?
10. Has this novel changed you—broadened your perspective? Have you
learned something new or been exposed to different ideas about people or a
certain part of the world?
Book Club Discussion Guide
Book Club Reviews
The Little Old Lady Who Broke
All The Rules
By Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg
'A shining expression of how joyous life is. It is not dangerous to grow old if you
are like Martha and the gang' Hyllan, blogg 'The funniest book this year!'
Magazine Familjen, Norway 'A book which should be read by people of all ages'
Radio P4 'A hilarious farce ... highly entertaining with very well crafted characters'
Frettabladid newspaper, Iceland 'It has humour, brilliant dialogue, irony and
warmth. A light-hearted and enjoyable detective comedy with breath-taking
events, which provide many smiles but also reflection on life' PRO Pensionaren
'Criminally fun!' Bonniers Bokklubb 'Very imaginative, fun and filled with gallons
of humour!' Katarina Mazetti