Lagerlöf secured her reputation as a children's-book author with  The Wonderful Adventures of Nils long considered a masterpiece of children's literature. Written at the request of Swedish school authorities and first published in 1906 it is the enchanting and remarkably original tale of Nils Holgersson a mischievous boy of 14 who is changed by an elf into a tiny being able to understand the speech of birds and animals.

Brilliantly weaving fact and fiction into a breathtaking and beautiful fable the story recounts Nils's adventures as he is transported over the countryside on the back of a goose. From this vantage point Nils witnesses a host of events that provide young readers with an abundance of information about nature geography folklore animal life and more.