Knut Hamsun was a Norwegian writer who was awarded the 1920 Nobel Prize in Literature for his novel Growth of the Soil. Hamsun's work spans more than 70 years and shows variation with regard to consciousness, subject, perspective and environment. He published more than 23 novels, a collection of poetry, some short stories and plays, a travelogue, works of non-fiction and some essays. The Nobel Prize in Literature 1920, announced November 11, 1920. Knut Hamsun, “for his monumental work, <I>Growth of the Soil</I>”. Knut Hamsun: born 1859, Lom, Norway. Wiki link Data: the Nobel Foundation (CC0).