The+Girl+with+the+Dragon+Tattoo+by+Steig+Larsson

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=Book Summary= Cases rarely come much colder than the decades-old disappearance of teen heiress Harriet Vanger from her family's remote island retreat north of Stockholm, nor do fiction debuts hotter than this European bestseller by muckraking Swedish journalist Larsson. At once a strikingly original thriller and a vivisection of Sweden's dirty not-so-little secrets (as suggested by its original title, //Men Who Hate Women//), this first of a trilogy introduces a provocatively odd couple: disgraced financial journalist Mikael Blomkvist, freshly sentenced to jail for libeling a shady businessman, and the multipierced and tattooed Lisbeth Salander, a feral but vulnerable superhacker. Hired by octogenarian industrialist Henrik Vanger, who wants to find out what happened to his beloved great-niece before he dies, the duo gradually uncover a festering morass of familial corruption—at the same time, Larsson skillfully bares some of the similar horrors that have left Salander such a marked woman. Larsson died in 2004, shortly after handing in the manuscripts for what will be his legacy. //-- Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.//

=About the Author=

Stieg Larsson, who lived in Sweden, was the editor in chief of the magazine Expo and a leading expert on antidemocratic right-wing extremist and Nazi organizations. He died in 2004, shortly after delivering the manuscripts for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. Timeline of Larsson's life (Interactive with photos from NYTimes): @http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/05/23/magazine/20100523-stieg-larsson.html

=Possible Discussion Questions= 1. Careful observation is the foundation of any successful journalist's or private investigator's career. Discuss how the various characters' outward appearance aligned with their true personality in this novel.

2. Lisbeth Salander's character is enigmatic and antisocial throughout much of the book. What do you see as the catalyst for the slow emergence of her personality?

3. Lisbeth judges everyone harshly, including herself. What do you think of her assessment of Blomkvist?

4. While poverty, social injustice, parental abuse, and difficult childhoods are often cited as explanations for criminal behavior, Lisbeth believes in free will and choice. Do you agree?

5. What propels Blomkvist to lay aside his professional ethics and take on the investigation proposed by Vanger?

6. The relationship between Blomkvist and Cecilia is fraught from the beginning. How does Cecilia come to terms with it? What do you think about her decision?

7. How successfully does Larsson develop Lisbeth's connection to her mother? Is there anything about their relationship that helps shed light on Lisbeth's behavior?

8. Were you surprised by the book's portrayal of right-wing fanaticism and violence against women in a country known for its liberal views?

9. Which character's duplicity -- or innocence -- did you find the most unexpected? Which one emerged as your favorite?

10. Discuss Mikael Blomkvist's role in the investigation. Do you feel that he made as important a contribution as Lisbeth? Why or why not?

11. The narrative contained a number of plot twists. Who did you imagine sent the framed flowers to Vanger each year? ( Questions issued by publisher .)

=Related Articles= SPOILER ALERT... Don't read until you've finished the book...

http://online.wsj.com/article/NA_WSJ_PUB:SB10001424052748704220704575367202148711296.html
 * Finding a Cover for** **The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo**

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2010/mar/15/girl-with-the-dragon-tattoo
 * The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: feminist, or not?**

http://movies.yahoo.com/photos/collections/gallery/2787/casting-news-the-search-for-lisbeth-salander#photo0
 * Casting Salander...**

__**//PLUS//**__... a site with more interesting links on this book and related subjects: http://www.shmoop.com/girl-with-dragon-tattoo/resources.html