Sofi Oksanen is a novelist and playwright of Finnish-Estonian descent.
She is the author of the novels Stalin’s Cows (2003), Baby Jane (2005), and most recently, Purge (2008), set in wartime 1940s Estonia during the Soviet occupation. Purge, “the first book to win both of Finland’s top literary awards, the Finlandia and the Runeberg, and a #1 bestseller” marks her English language debut. The novel is based on her acclaimed and controversial play of the same name, originally staged at the National Theater in Helsinki in 2007.
In 2009, Oksanen was named Estonia’s “Person of the Year.”
She lives in Helsinki.