Agnar Mykle (8 August 1915 – 15 January 1994) was a Norwegian author. He became one of the most controversial figures in Norwegian literature in the 20th century. Early life Born in Norway's third largest city, Trondheim, Mykle was often sick as a child. His sickness forced him to stay indoors for most of his childhood. Mykle received a business education from the Norwegian School of Economics (NHH) in Bergen where he excelled in his studies. He had attended mercantile high school in Trondheim (Handelsgymnasiet) from which he graduated in 1935. Soon after, he was offered a job as an assistant at his old school. After working diligently, he was offered a job as a principal at a similar school in Kirkenes. Literary career In the 1940s Mykle was active as journalist and writer in the Norwegian labour movement. He wrote scripts for their election campaign films and plays for amateur theatre groups associated with the labour movement. Mykle debuted as an author in 1948 with Taustigen, a collection of short stories. Other short story collections included Jeg er like glad, sa gutten (1952), Kors på halsen (1958) and Largo (1967). His novel Tyven, tyven skal du hete (published in English as The Hotel Room) was written in (1951). His two subsequent novels, Lasso rundt fru Luna (published in English as Lasso Around The Moon) (1954) and Sangen om den røde rubin (The Song of the Red Ruby) (1956) have strong autobiographical tendencies. His last published novel was Rubicon (1965), originally thought of as a sequel to the previous two, finishing the tale about Ash Burlefoot. Three collections of his non-fiction writing were published post-humously in 1997 and 1998, Mannen fra Atlantis, En flodhest på parnasset and Alter og disk. Red Ruby controversy The publication of The Song of the Red Ruby in 1957 ignited what became one of the most famous court cases in Norwegian history. Mykle and his publisher Harald Grieg were accused of writing and publishing immoral and obscene material. Mykle's defense attorney was Johan Bernhard Hjort. Mykle and Grieg were both acquitted, but the remaining copies of the book were ordered withdrawn from the market. The Norwegian Supreme Court overturned the ruling on the confiscation in 1958. The court case and the pressure caused by the media attention changed Mykle for the rest of his life, and he became a recluse. No photographs were published of