Author: Chiara Stanziani

Beasts of the Sea has been nominated for the Premio Strega Europeo in Italy, the most prestigious literary award in the country.

Beasts of the Sea by Iida Turpeinen continues to enchant the international literary scene: the Italian edition, in translation by Nicola Rainò and out with Neri Pozza, is now nominated for the Premio Strega Europeo in Italy.

The Strega Prize, established in 1947, is the most prominent literary award in Italy, and is awarded on a yearly basis by the Maria and Goffredo Bellonci Foundation. The Premio Strega Europeo (lit. “European Strega Prize”) established in 2014, is the international equivalent of the Strega Prize and is awarded on a yearly basis to a foreign work translated into Italian.

The winner is picked from a selection of five nominees, and will be announced at the Salone del Libro Book Fair in Turin this May. This year’s other nominees are: The Discovery of Holland by Jan Brokken, Muna, or Half a Life by Terézia Mora, The Bee Sting by Paul Murray, and Theodoros by Mircea Cărtărescu.

Previous nominees and winners include Nobel laureate Annie Ernaux, International Booker Prize laureates David Diop and Georgi Gospodinov, and more. Iida Turpeinen is the first Finnish author to receive a nomination since Rosa Liksom with her Compartment Number 6.

Beasts of the Sea is a literary achievement and a breathtaking adventure through three centuries. Approaching natural diversity through individual destinies, it’s a story of grand human ambitions and the urge to resurrect what humankind in its ignorance has destroyed. Steller’s sea cow, a sirenian lost to extinction centuries ago, is revived on the pages and is the red thread that ties together the individual fates of a group of people throughout the centuries. The novel is the winner of the Book Beat Newcomer Award, The Thank You for the Book Award, Finland’s booksellers’ prize, the best debut award, the Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize, the Storytel award. Beasts of the Sea was also a nominee for Finland’s biggest literary award, the Finlandia Prize, as well as for the Torch-bearer Prize. Its international breakthrough has been acknowledged by the Bookseller.

In Finland, Beasts of the Sea is published by Kustantamo S&S, part of Schildts & Söderströms and it has already sold over 50.000 copies in Finland alone. Loved by readers and critics alike, Beasts of the Sea has also been crowned the Best Book of the Century in a Readers’ Selection list published by the largest Finnish newspaper, Helsingin Sanomat. The foreign rights have been sold for 28 language areas so far.

Iida Turpeinen (b. 1987) is a Helsinki-based literary scholar currently writing a dissertation on the intersection of the natural sciences and literature. As an author, she is intrigued by the literary potentials of scientific research and by the offbeat anecdotes and meanderings from the history of science.

Warmest congratulations to the author and the publishers, and fingers crossed!

White Lily (Adel Sisters #1) by Ann-Christin Antell is the #1 most sold title of the month in both printed and audio formats, establishing itself as an instant bestseller.

Ann-Christin Antell returns to the top of the bestselling lists in Finland, this time with White Lily, the first instalment in the Adel Sisters series, with which she has returned to the literary scene after the wonderful success of the Cotton Mill trilogy. Both series are published in Finland by Gummerus.

White Lily is currently the best selling domestic title in both printed and audio format, and is setting the bar high for the rest of the series.

The Adel Sisters trilogy follows three talented and charming sisters in the early 1900s Finland and on their travels in Europe as they try to find their way in the male dominated fields of art and science. 

The oldest daughter, Thyra, is an introverted soul focused on mathematics and astronomy. Middle child Lily loves art and aspires to become a painter like her beloved father. The youngest, Kitty, spends her days roaming about forests and lakes and dreams of becoming an archaeologist. 

In White Lily (2025) Lily gets to accompany their eccentric grandmother to spend the summer in Florence to further her studies and see the art treasures of the city.  It’s the 1910s and modern art is just starting to get a foothold in the art communities in Europe. Before the trip, Lily gets a tempting marriage proposal from a longtime friend, and promises to give an answer upon her return. In Florence, she meets a fetching Italian art patron and an enigmatic Swedish painter who inspire her to discover art, aesthetics, spirituality – and herself. There is no going back to her old ways.  

The Adel Sisters is an anticipated, new historical romance series by Ann-Christin Antell (b. 1973). One of the leading romance Finnish authors, Antell studied history and archaeology and worked as a librarian before embarking on her career as an author. Her popular Cotton Mill series spent a long time at the top of the Finnish bestseller lists and has been sold to five countries.

Warm congratulations to the author and the publisher, and don’t miss out on this title!

YA enthusiasts rejoice: We’ll Just Ride Past by Ellen Strömberg has been shortlisted for the Andersen Prize in Italy, the most prestigious literary prize in the country.

We’ll Just Ride Past by Ellen Strömberg continues to stun the international literary scene: the Italian edition by Terre di Mezzo, in translation by Samanta Milton Knowles has been shortlisted for the Andersen Prize, the most prestigious literary prize for children’s literature in the country.

The Andersen Prize is Italy’s most prestigious literary prize for children’s literature, and it stands out as books are picked by the monthly literary magazine Andersen, along with a network of literary professionals. The prize is awarded in several categories (books for children aged 0-6, 9-12, 12+, and 15+, picture books, textless books, non-fiction, and comics) and all awarded books also compete for the Book of the Year Award (also known as Super Andersen Prize), dedicated to the memory of Gualtiero Schiaffino, the founder of both the Andersen magazine and prize.

We’ll Just Ride Past follows Manda and Malin, a duo of best friends in ninth grade. They are nicknamed The Bicycles as they cycle everywhere looking for fun and something to do in a small town where nothing ever happens. One day Malin develops a crush on a guy working at the local pizzeria, and a series on events – both fun and not so fun – begins to unfold. We’ll Just Ride Past is an accurate portrayal of a moment in life where it’s perfectly normal to change style and music taste every week and the world awaits. In Finland, the title it is published by S&S.

We’ll Just Ride Past won the August Prize, the most prestigious literary prize in Sweden, in 2022 and its rights has already been sold for Italian, Korean, Slovenian, Polish, and Catalan.

Ellen Strömberg is a Swedish-speaking Finnish author whose production ranges from picture books to novels. We’ll Just Ride Past was a domestic and international success and her latest YA novel No Beginning No End has been received with warm praise. It is the story of Benjamin, a shy teenage boy dealing with his mother’s death, as he grows close with Tristan, a mysterious boy.

Congratulations to the author and the publisher, and fingers crossed!

Penelope and the Curious Clothing Commotion by Saara Kekäläinen & Reetta Niemensivu has been awarded the Limmi Literature Prize.

Little Penelope and her adventures continue to charm readers and critics: Penelope and the Curious Clothing Commotion (Penelope #3) has been awarded the Limmi Literature Prize.

The Limmi Literature Prize is being awarded for the first time in 2025: founded in connection with the Limmi Literature Festival in Liminka, the prize is awarded on a yearly basis to a Finnish illustrated children’s books. A jury of adults picks a selection of books from which a winner is picked by children themselves.

In Penelope and the Curious Clothing Commotion Penelope is learning to get dressed by herself, but she has a sneaking suspicion that the clothes have it in for her. What if Penelope gets lost inside her clothes and pops out of a sleeve and into the wrong story? Or accidentally puts on Dad’s shirt and has to shave and go to work every morning?

Penelope is a little girl with a penchant for finding adventure in ordinary tasks. Before learning to get dressed, she had to make her peace with a dangerous-looking morning porridge in Penelope and the Perilous Porridge, and learnt what happens to children’s teeth when they start shaking in Penelope and the Big Baby Tooth Ballyhoo.

Saara Kekäläinen is an author known of her witty and anarchistic themes handled with abundant humor.
Reetta Niemensivu is an illustrator known as the pencil and colour behind many well-loved and successful Finnish books for children.

Congratulations to the authors!

The Czech edition of Passion by Pirkko Saisio, in translation by Michal Švec and published by Host, is running for the Magnesia Litera Award, the most important prize on the Czech literary scene.

More fantastic news for Pirkko Saisio: her novel Passion, in translation by Michal Švec and published by Host, is running for the Magnesia Litera Award, the most important prize on the Czech literary scene.

The jury have stated: “A novel about life, passion, suffering, search and redemption, covering almost five hundred years of European history from the Renaissance to the 1950s. It presents a colourful kaleidoscope of cultures, religions and human stories that are often filled with violence and despair, but the overall tone of the work is not bleak. Even in the darkest of circumstances, there is often a glimmer of hope. The story’s vehicle is a fateful gold jewel with precious stones, which constantly changes form and owner on its journey through Europe. But nothing lasts, not faith, not success, not gold, not power.
The translator handles the multi-layered, opulent language of the original and the wide range of characters of different nationalities, creeds and occupations with an ease and simplicity that engages the reader. Historical eras and locations alternate, but the translation is just as surely set in a mirror workshop on the Italian island of Murano, a Polish Catholic monastery near Krakow, or a Soviet gulag, and skillfully reflects the language of that particular religious and professional group.“

Passion opens on the dawn of the 16th century. Dominican friar Girolamo Savonarola has been hanged and burned at the stake at the Piazza della Signoria. The fanatical ascetic nightmare has ended, Florence has been resurrected, and Princess Vasari can once again dress according to her rank and adorn herself in the extravagant necklace her husband has given her. There is more to the jewel than whats meets the eye, and it is the red thread that ties together the fates of different people across Europe, and across 500 years. The result is a color-saturated, Tarkovskian chronicle of Europe centered on life’s purpose and the search for meaning, circling around the necklace. The novel was nominated for Finland’s biggest literary award, the Finlandia Prize, upon its release and it sold almost 30.000 copies in less than six months. Passion was also recently included in the Readers’ and Critics’ Selections of the 100 Best Books from Finland.

Pirkko Saisio is the author of  the globally successful Helsinki Trilogy, and the great dame of Finnish literature, with a production ranging from novels, to librettos, plays, and autofiction.

Congratulations to the author, the translator, and the publisher – and fingers crossed!