Stieg Larsson: Behind the Dragon Tattoo

In The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest, Lisbeth Salander wages a battle against Swedish government institutions which mistreated her for so many years.  She - and the people who help her - do their best to expose corrupt insiders who plagued a system designed to help, not hurt, society's most vulnerable individuals.

For much of the book, Salander lives in a confined space.  How is she supposed to do her job when she cannot move about as she wishes? 

Lisbeth begins her fight-back at Sahlgrenska University Hospital, in Gothenburg (Göteborg).  Located in the western part of Sweden, the city is home to many boats (about 20,000 of them) and picturesque parts of town (where wooden buildings are the norm).

Meanwhile, back in Stockholm, the wheels of justice begin to turn - perhaps in the right direction, perhaps in the wrong - at police headquarters (on Bergsgatan) while different plans (at "the Section") are set in motion (elsewhere in the city).

The following are other key places in Hornets' Nest:

• Saltsjöbaden - location of Erika Berger's home, where she lives with her husband, Greg Backman.

• Stäket, near Lännersta Sound - the home of Advocate Annika Giannini (Blomkvist's sister).

• Stockholm's Court House - with its very impressive door - is known as the Rådhuset.  It is located on the island of Kungsholmen (which means, in English, "King's Island").

• Stockholm's Police Headquarters, on Kungsholmen.

• Kronoberg Prison (Kronobergshäktet) - on  Kungsholmen.

• Home of Monica Figuerola (of the Security Police), on Pontonjärgatan.

• Norr Mälarstrand - Monica's jogging path.

• Home of Göran Mårtensson (part of "the Section"), on Vittangigatan.

Now that you have completed your journey behind the "dragon tattoo," take another look at the books.  You will find all kinds of tidbits you previously overlooked.