New Swedish Books, Autumn 2018 1
39 Autumn 2018 Lars Berge (b. 1974) Project: Wolf
Publisher Albert Bonniers Förlag www.albertbonniersforlag.se Rights Albert Bonniers Förlag Anna-Karin Korpi anna-karin.korpi@ bonnierforlagen.se Selected Works Svinn 2016 Bullerbysyndromet 2015 Kontorsninja 2013 Project: Wolf In 2012 a fatal tragedy occurred in Kolmården Wildlife Park, Sweden’s largest zoo, when a female zoo keeper was mauled by a pack of wolves. The zoo management and media described the event as a one-off fluke, as unexpected as it was horrific. In this reportage, writer and journalist Lars Berge questions this claim. According to Berge, this death could have easily been avoided. But Project: Wolf is more than just a well-written investigation into a preventable death; it is also a poignant study on nature and culture, history and modernity, man and beast, politics and commercial enterprise. It illustrates how the popular image of wolves has changed, from dangerous wild animals to something closer to a sweet hound. Through comprehensive research of contemporary and historical sources, Berge shows how a new wolf identity was launched, and how the wolf became a trademark for the positive aspects of nature as an experience product. Of course, wolves in themselves are neither good nor evil. Project: Wolf shows how frighteningly easy it is for mankind to ignore this fact. Photo: Johanna Hanno