Since reading this in translation as a child I happened to learn Swedish and this book is just as charming in its original language as I remember it to be. Astrid Lindgren is able to evoke simultaniously the feeling of being a child on summer vacation and being one of the adults looking after them, wanting them to be carefree as long as possible. The children's dialogue is so lifelike and funny! The only downside for me was the long, flowery descriptions of nature's delights – there weren't bad, just not to my taste.