Month: December 2024

Pirkko Saisio’s The Red Book of Farewells has been crowned by the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper as the most important Finnish book of the millennium.

The Red Book of Farewells by Pirkko Saisio, the third and last volume of the wildly successful Helsinki Trilogy, has been crowned by the Helsingin Sanomat national newspaper as the most important Finnish book of the millennium.

Helsingin Sanomat, the largest national newspaper in Finland, has compiled a list of the best 100 Finnish books of the millennium selected by literary critics and book industry professionals, and The Red Book of Farewells is topping the list. The choice is motivated as follows:

Eleonoora Riihinen, literary critic: “[The Red Book of Farewells] is a work that was ahead of its time in many ways, and it has become a modern classic. It documents a moment of the political movement in Helsinki in the 70s in the student community and the lesbian culture of the time. The emotions of falling in love and breaking up are loaded into a fragmentary and apparently light-hearted text in a touching way, but amazingly also in a way that is at the same time casual but elevated. “

Finnish Book Foundation Board Chair Mari Koli: “Pirkko Saisio’s Helsinki trilogy third and last part is a dazzling novel that transcends the autobiographical boundaries whose wistful snapshot of Helsinki in the 1970s and 1980s you’ll be happy to carry with you for a long time. And what about Saisio’s staggering theatrical sense! She builds immaculate dialogues into the middle of memory fragments, smaller plays infiltrated into the story that will stun even the most experienced reader. I can’t help but be moved and say thank you, Saisio, for existing and for writing”.

Pirkko Saisio’s production is in a league of its own in the Finnish literary scene: the Helsinki Trilogy received three Finlandia Prize nomination and one win, and it has been a wild success internationally. In the German-speaking world The Lowest Common Multiple, in German translation by Elina Kritzokat and edition by Klett Cotta, has been ranked in the Best 100 Books of the 21st century on NZZ am Sonntag newspaper, and it has received splendid reviews in the French- and Dutch-speaking world where it’s out with Robert Laffont, and in Czech Republic, where it’s out with Host. The Helsinki trilogy also made Saisio the first contemporary Finnish author to be included in the Penguin Modern Classics.

Pirkko Saisio has released a new novel this autumn, Suliko, which is a deep, lyrical dive in the mind of a dictator approaching death. In Finland, it is published by Siltala and is currently nominated for the Runeberg Prize.

Warm thanks to Helsingin Sanomat, and warmest congratulations to the author!

The Cotton Mill Trilogy by Ann-Christin Antell continues to steal hearts: this wildly popular series has now sold 200.000 copies in Finland.

The Cotton Mill Trilogy is the perfect mix of history, entertainment, social justice, and romance. The trilogy starts in the late 1800s in Turku with The Shadow of the Cotton Mill, following young widow Jenny Malmström. Jenny is kind, strong-headed, and determined to do whatever she can to improve the workers’ conditions at the local cotton mill. Until one day she meets Fredrik, the cotton mill owner’s son, and things become infinitely more complicated as the two are drawn to each other: should Jenny follow her head, or her heart?

In Heir to the Cotton Mill, Martta, Jenny’s foster daughter, returns to Turku after studying in Stockholm for years. She finds the city profoundly changed, and so is she: born to a working class family who lived in poverty, Martta has now become part of a wealthy and powerful family, and she struggles to find her place in the world and her social identity. To make matters even more complicated, she meets her childhood friend Juho after many years, and is drawn to him. At the same time she is also introduced to the dandy Robert, who welcomes her into the Turku social circles, and is attracted to him, too. Troubles lie ahead but thankfully a happy ending is in the cards.

The trilogy peaks in Rival to the Cotton Mill, in which readers follow Paula, Martta’s daughter. It is the Roaring Twenties, and Paula is a modern woman: she drives a car, attends parties, and has an important role in the family business. One day news come that a rival business owner is planning on buying the cotton mill, effectively acquiring everything Paula’s family has built in generations. Paula is furious, but when she meets the young Rikhard Falke she finds herself irresistibly drawn to him, and it seems history is repeating itself.

The rights to the The Cotton Mill Trilogy, published in Finland by Gummerus, have already been sold for Danish, Dutch, French, Icelandic, and Swedish.

Ann-Christin Antell (b. 1973) studied history and archaeology and worked as a librarian before embarking on her career as an author. Her debut novel The Shadow of the Cotton Mill (2021) climbed to the top of the Finnish bestseller lists, as did its sequel, Heir to the Cotton Mill (2022). The final installment in the Cotton Mill series, A Rival for the Cotton Mill, is scheduled for 2023.

Congratulations to the author and the publisher!

The Silver Locket by Eppu Nuotio, the second instalment in the Raakel Oksa Sets It Right series, is travelling to Latvia, where it will be published by Zvaigzne.

The Silver Locket (Raakel Oksa Sets It Right #2) by Eppu Nuotio is travelling to Latvia, where it will be published by Zvaigzne.

In The Silver Locket, Raakel Oksa, a self-employed carpenter with a sharp eye for people’s life stories, is hired to renovate the apartment of a lonely lady recently deceased, Kaarina, who had been hoarding all sorts of stuff in her apartment. Little by little it is revealed that Karina’s life had taken a dramatic turn in the summer of 1975, when she was involved in a complex relationship triangle with a tragic outcome.

The Raakel Oksa Sets It Right series is a balanced mix of cozy crime and feel-good: Raakel’s work takes her on the trail of mysteries that are never too violent or bloody, while still leaving the reader eagerly waiting for the final resolution. Raakel’s own private and love life are often mirrored in the cases she investigates, and acts as backdrop. The series began with The Buttercup Dress, followed by The Silver Locket, and by Longplay.

Eppu Nuotio is a well-known Finnish author, actor, teacher, translator, director, and playwright. Nuotio’s extensive body of work includes novels, children’s books, radio plays, plays, and television scripts.

Zvaigzne is a Latvian publishing house with a broad list consisting of children’s books, fiction, and non-fiction. They are the Latvian publisher of, among others, Camilla Läckberg, Stephen King, and Nino Haratischwili.

Congratulations to the author and the publisher!

Anni Kytömäki’s Finlandia Prize-winning title Margarita is travelling to France, where it will be published by Rue de l’echiquier.

Anni Kytömäki‘s works continue their journey out into the world: Rue de l’echiquier in France has acquired Margarita.

Margarita won the Finlandia Prize in 2020, and is an acclaimed readers’ favourite, having sold over 90.000 copies in Finland. Anni Kytömäki‘s production is in the spotlight as her new novel, Mirabilis, has established itself as a literary sensation in Finland and on the foreign literary scene: the book sold 5.000 copies in just two weeks, and was pre-empted by Norstedts in Sweden and People’s in Denmark.

Margarita follows Senni, a young woman working as a physiotherapist in a spa facility in post-war Finland. Her father died during the war, and she dreams of fjords and adventures, but a rainy night changes everything.

Margarita also follows Mikko, a soldier returning to the front after a time in hospital. He will never return from the war, but his fate is more complicated than one might think. Antti is in turn examining woods in Karelia, deciding which will be razed and which will be saved. The fates of the three characters intertwine in unexpected ways, and the novel reflects on the relationship between humans and nature.

Anni Kytömäki is one of Finland’s best-loved authors. Her works are characterised by a strong natural element, unconventional female characters, and an enchanting prose. Her latest novel Mirabilis is a wonderful success, and her previous works Goldheart and Stone Weaver have been received with warm praise. Her works are published in Finland by Gummerus.

Rue de l’echiquier is an independent publisher based in Paris. Their list has a special focus on nature and the environment, and they have previously published Kytömäki’s Goldheart with a very warm reception, and are invested in continuing with the author’s production.

Congratulations to the author and the publisher!

12.12. 10:00 EET | Siltala Publishing

Publishing company Siltala has launched a new imprint called Orava Books, which will focus on high-quality children’s titles. Minna Castrén, a publishing professional with many years of experience in the industry, has been appointed as Publisher.

The newcomer to the Finnish literature scene will publish books for readers aged 0–12, including fiction and non-fiction, illustrated children’s novels, picture books and children’s poems. The list will consist of approximately 10–12 domestic and translated new titles per year. First titles are due to be released in Autumn 2025. 

“Orava Books publishes works that bring joy, the richness of language, and imagination to children’s lives. Children’s books are the future of literature and reading. We will invest in building it in cooperation with writers, illustrators and other partners. I can’t imagine a more meaningful and important mission”, says publisher Minna Castrén.

Castrén has previously worked as the Publishing Director of General Publishing and the Editorial Director of Children’s Literature among other roles at the Otava Publishing Company. She also has numerous board positions in the field of literature and culture, including FILI – Finnish Literary Exchange and Finnish PEN.

The logo and visual look of Orava (Squirrel) Books is created by award-winning graphic designer, illustrator and cartoonist Ville Tietäväinen.

Siltala Publishing, founded in 2008, is an independent Finnish publisher of literary fiction and non-fiction. In the spring 2024, it acquired Teos Publishers, one of the leading Finnish publishers specializing in quality literary fiction and non-fiction. The addition of Orava Books imprint will naturally expand the partnership, helping Siltala Publishing to become an even more important player in the Finnish literary landscape.

For more info and contact:

Minna Castrén, Publisher, Orava Books, +358 50 5286718 minna.castren@oravakirjat.fi

Siltala Publishing, Teos and now Orava Books are partners at the Helsinki Literary Agency. The agency represents a wide range of prominent, award-winning authors writing both in Finnish and Swedish.