Magnhild Haalke was a Norwegian novelist.

Magnhild Haalke was born in Vikna

Vikna

Vikna is a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Namdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rørvik. Other villages in Vikna include Austafjord, Garstad, and Valøya.-General information:...

, an island off the Namdalen

Namdalen

Namdalen is a traditional district in the central part of Norway, consisting of the municipalities Namsos, Grong, Overhalla, Røyrvik, Fosnes, Nærøy, Høylandet, Namdalseid, Flatanger, Lierne, Leka, Namsskogan, and Vikna, all in Nord-Trøndelag county. The district has two towns: Kolvereid and Namsos...

 coast in Nord-Trøndelag

Nord-Trøndelag

is a county constituting the northern part of Trøndelag in Norway. As of 2010, the county had 131,555 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth-least populated county. The largest municipalities are Stjørdal, Steinkjer—the county seat, Levanger, Namsos and Verdal, all with between 21,000 and...

, Norway. Before she took up writing she worked as a teacher for 30 years in Sør-Odal

Sør-Odal

Sør-Odal is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Odalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Skarnes....

. In 1922, she married her second cousin, Hjalmar Kristian Haalke (1894–1964) who was an artist.

She made her literary debut in 1935 with the novel Allis sønn. Her deep psychological insight and great environmental descriptions ensured her a lasting place in Norwegian literature. Eventually she wrote nearly 30 books. Haalke made use of strong, colorful language and lush figures of speech. Her novels often focused on adult insensitive treatment of defenseless youth. The role of the mother in childhood development was a frequent subject. In several books she wrote of values relating to childhood environment and family traditions.

Her trilogy Åkfestet (1936), Dagblinket (1937) and Rød haust? (1941) describes the fate of a woman growing up on a small farm. The trilogy was later reworked into Grys saga (1950, two books).

The trilogy Karenanna Velde (1946), Kaja Augusta (1947) and Kvinneverden (1954) is from a rural district on the coast of Trøndelag

Trøndelag

Trøndelag is the name of a geographical region in the central part of Norway, consisting of the two counties Nord-Trøndelag and Sør-Trøndelag. The region is, together with Møre og Romsdal, part of a larger...

.

Haalke was awarded Gyldendal's Endowment

Gyldendal's Endowment

Gyldendal's Endowment was a literature prize which was awarded in the period 1934–1995 by the Norwegian publisher Gyldendal Norsk Forlag. The prize was awarded to significant authors, regardless of which publisher the author was associated with...

 in 1949 and the Dobloug Prize

Dobloug Prize

The Dobloug Prize is a literature prize awarded for Swedish and Norwegian fiction. The prize is named after Norwegian businessman and philanthropist Birger Dobloug pursuant to his bequest. The prize sum is . The Dobloug Prize is awarded annually by the Swedish Academy.-Prize winners:...

 in 1980. She was the first recipient of Mads Wiel Nygaards Endowment

Mads Wiel Nygaards Endowment

Mads Wiel Nygaard's Endowment is an annually awarded literary prize from the publishing house Aschehoug. The prize is a recognition of superior literary work. The publisher's editorial management makes the award based on their collective judgement of merit. Applications are not accepted.The...

, which she was awarded in 1953, which she shared with novelist, Lizzie Juvkam (1883–1969). From 1954, she received a national artist salary from the national government.

Selected works

• Allis sønn, 1935
• Åkfestet, 1936
• Dagblinket, 1937
• Trine Torgersen, 1940
• Rød haust?, 1941
• Kan vi bygge en bedre menneskeslekt?, 1946 (lecture)
• Karenanna Velde, 1946
• Kaja Augusta, 1947
• Grys saga (contains Åkfestet, Dagblinket og Rød haust?), 2 volumes, 1950
• Kvinneverden, 1954
• Serinas hus, 1955
• Munter kvinne, 1957
• Dragspill, 1958 (short stories)
• Kommer far i dag?, 1969
• Sol og skygge, 1971 (short stories)
• Mot nytt liv, 1978 (autobiographical)