On the Viking Trail: Travels in Scandinavian America

When I noticed that this book is published by the University of Iowa Press, I was a little apprehensive. Would it be dry and academic? No. The book is a good read, warm, entertaining, charming and witty. The author's purpose was to retrace his Swedish roots, but beyond that to understand the experience of Scandinavians in America. So, while the book has a strong Swedish motif, he includes Danes, Norwegians and Finns--although he found that the latter consider themselves to be non-Scandinavians. He uses his imagination and humor to develop themes supplying context and meaning to his searches. The humor is often at the author's expense as real life tramples over his literary constructs. Along the way the reader is enchanted by the many stories of people and places that Lago scatters throughout this fine book. In a gentle and always fascinating style he illustrates the many contributions that Scandinavian immigrants have made to American life. He is a good writer and readers will enjoy his clear, supply prose. Something that I really like about the book is that although his travels and tales are lighthearted, the author develops some deep and penetrating insights about what it means to be an American, what America is and what it means to the world. In these meditations, Lago gives us his own thoughts, not citations and footnotes. In Swedish style, this is done modestly and in a quiet voice. It is clear that he would like nothing more than to share a good discussion about his themes and conclusions with his readers, who will feel that they are holding a conversation with Don Lago, hopefully over a steaming cup of Gevalia coffee.

It is now over 45 years since I left Sweden for USA. Although I quite well follow what is happening in the Swedish-American press I was delighted to learn about so many more places with a Swedish background and history. Buying five books for gifts this Christmas may be an indication how I rate this book. Because I live in Phoenix, AZ, I just might drive up to Flagstaff one day in search for a certain little cabin. I just would love to meet Don Lago. Stig Magnus

When Don Lago went looking for his Swedish roots, it was originally to capture memories that would be lost as Alzheimer's disease ravaged his father's mind. Lago's search began with a recreation of a trip his father had taken years before to Granna, Sweden, the Lago ancestral hometown. That journey convinced Lago that his Swedish roots should matter to him, although he "wasn't sure exactly what they should mean." To find out, he initiated annual trips to Scandinavia and soon extended his study to American Scandinavia: "After I had stayed in Lund, Sweden, I was curious to see Lund, Wisconsin." A former political activist, book reviewer, and kayaking instructor, Lago lives in Arizona, but one could assume from this work that he is rarely home. The account of his peregrinations is the beautiful and thoughtful On the Viking Trail. So much more than a personal account or family tribute, Viking Trail tells of the hardships of immigration, the importance of community, and the roots of American attitudes toward the land. In keeping with his Scandinavian sense of modesty, Lago is surpassingly humble about the book he has written here. On a postcard from a Motel 6 somewhere in Iowa, he wrote me that Viking Trail would be of interest only to those of Scandinavian heritage. Once begun, however, there is no turning back from this travel into Scandinavian America via Lago's volume, there's no putting it down, and there's no forgetting the courage and creativity of these immigrant people and their unique contribution to America. In Viking Trail, not only has Lago found the meaning of his-and his father's-Swedish roots, he's led us to discover our own. [...]

I'm only half way through but I must stop to urge Scandinavian Americans everywhere to read and reread this wise, wonderful and informative exploration of what it means to be a Scandinavian American. Belongs in the library of everyone with a drop of Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian or Swedish blood, or mixture thereof.