Born in Copenhagen, Denmark, Peter Høeg worked as a sailor, ballet dancer and actor before becoming a writer. He published his first novel, A History of Danish Dreams (1988), to positive reviews. However, Smilla's Sense of Snow (1992) earned Høeg immediate and international literary celebrity. His books have been published in more than 30 countries. His newest novel, The Elephant Keepers' Children, about three siblings and how they deal with their eccentric parents, was published by Other Press on October 23, 2012.
On your nightstand now:
Gummi-Tarzan (Rubber-Tarzan) by Ole Lund Kirkegaard (to read to my four-year old son when I put him to bed).
Favorite book when you were a child:
Tarzan (not the rubber one) and the Jewels of Opar by Edgar Rice Burroughs.
Your top five authors:
The top... 500.
Books you've faked reading:
The Bible and the Koran.
Book you're an evangelist for:
The Adventures of Tintin by Hergé. His books changed and lifted the standard of storytelling in the '60s and '70s.
Book you've bought for the cover:
Rembrandt's Whore. I don't remember the name of the author, but it is such a good book. [Editor's note: the author is Sylvie Matton.]
Book that changed your life:
Højere bevidsthed (Higher consciousness) by Jes Bertelsen.
Favorite line from a book:
"In the moment of love the nature of mind nakedly dawns." --by one of the Karmapas, in a book published by Rangjung Yeshe Publications.
Book you most want to read again for the first time:
Any book by Jorge Luis Borges, Michael Connelly, P.O. Enquist.
Book you finished in 24 hours:
The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum.