The Man Who Smiled (original) (raw)

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1994 novel by Henning Mankell

The Man Who Smiled

First edition (Swedish)
Author Henning Mankell
Original title Mannen som log
Translator Laurie Thompson
Language Swedish
Series Kurt Wallander #4
Genre Crime, Mystery novel
Publisher Ordfront
Publication date 1994
Publication place Sweden
Published in English September 2005
Media type Print (Hardcover, Paperback)
Pages 336 pp (Eng. hardback trans.)
ISBN 1-84343-098-3 (Eng. trans.)
OCLC 60513794
Preceded by The White Lioness
Followed by Sidetracked

The Man Who Smiled (original: Mannen som log) is a novel by Swedish crime-writer Henning Mankell, and is the fourth in the Inspector Wallander series, although the English translations have not been published in chronological order.[1][2]

After killing a man in the line of duty (in The White Lioness), Inspector Kurt Wallander finds himself spiraling into an alcohol-fueled depression. He has just decided to leave the police when an old friend, Sten Torstensson, asks him to secretly investigate the recent death of his father in a car accident. At first Kurt dismisses his friend's suspicions as unlikely, but then Sten is found murdered in exactly the same manner as a Norwegian businessman shortly before. Against his previous judgement, Kurt returns to work to investigate what he is convinced is a case of double murder.

In 2003, The Man Who Smiled was adapted by Swedish public broadcaster Sveriges Television into a two-hour television movie, starring Rolf Lassgård as Wallander. The Man Who Smiled has also been adapted into a 90-minute television episode for the BBC's Wallander series starring Kenneth Branagh as Wallander. It was first broadcast on 10 January 2010.

  1. ^ "The Man Who Smiled by Henning Mankell". www.publishersweekly.com. 24 July 2006. Retrieved 31 May 2023.
  2. ^ "THE MAN WHO SMILED | Kirkus Reviews". 15 July 2006.