Haugaard, Erik Christian

Danish-born author of children's and young adult book; writes in English and is known for his historical fiction.

Danish children's author, born in Denmark in 1923. Best known for his historical novels for young people reflecting his diverse travels.

Erik Christian Haugaard was born April 13, 1923 in Frederiksberg, Denmark. He came to the United States in 1940 after fleeing the Nazi invasion of Denmark, and later served in the Royal Canadian Air Force during World War II. In 1963 he published his first book for children and young adults, Hakon of Rogen's Saga. The story told of a young boy's struggle to protect his inheritance and was set at the end of the Viking period. The book was well received by readers and critics and was a recipient of an American Library Association (ALA) Notable Book Award. Erik Christian Haugaard has been praised by critics as a "master storyteller" with a strong "sense of time, place, and character." His books "present young people in wartime settings" where they must make complicated and difficult decisions and his historical fiction "vividly" portrays "the horrors of war." Haugaard's work have also been lauded for how he "captures the language and speech patterns that admirably suit [the] background and characters" of his stories. He has also received recognition for his 1978 translation of The Complete Fairy Tales and Stories of Hans Christian Andersen, which was widely praised for his "faithfulness to Andersen's language and spirit."

Sources: Something About the Author, v. 68, pp.95-97 Twentieth Century Children's Writers , 3rd ed., pp. 434-435