Mika Waltari

Mika Toimi Waltari was born on 19 September 1908 and spent five decades writing in nearly every format the 20th century offered: novels, poetry, short stories, crime fiction, plays, essays, travel writing, film scripts, even rhymed text for comic strips drawn by Asmo Alho. The Egyptian, published in Finnish as Sinuhe egyptiläinen, became his best-selling novel and the work that carried his name beyond Finland. He was extremely productive until his death on 26 August 1979, leaving behind a body of work that spanned genres most writers never touch.