7.8 /10 1 Votes
Original title Mannen som log Country Sweden Series Kurt Wallander #4 Originally published 1994 Publisher Ordfront | 3.9/5 Goodreads Translator Laurie Thompson Language Swedish Publication date 1994 Genres Crime Fiction, Mystery | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Preceded by The White Lioness, The Dogs of Riga Followed by Sidetracked, The Troubled Man Similar Sidetracked, The Fifth Woman, Faceless Killers, The Dogs of Riga, One Step Behind | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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.
Contents
Synopsis
After killing a man in the line of duty (in The White Lioness), Inspector Kurt Wallander finds himself spiralling into an alcohol-fuelled 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.
Adaptations
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.