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A Giraffe’s Heart Is Unbelievably Large by Sofia & Amanda Chanfreau is travelling to Hungary, where it will be published by Cerkabella. This is the 17th language territory for this title.

A Giraffe’s Heart Is Unbelievably Large by Sofia & Amanda Chanfreau is continuing its journey out into the world and is now travelling to Hungary, where it will be published by Cerkabella.

This is the 17th foreign sale for the title: this stunning story by Amanda & Sofia Chanfreau, where magical realism meets the quest after one’s own origins has been enchanting publishers all over the world since its release and, on top of having sold over 10.000 copies in Finland, it has also won the most important literary award in the country, the Finlandia Junior Prize, in 2022.

This illustrated novel for middle grade readers is a tale of longing to be part of a family, to find one’s place in the world, and to be loved as one is. 

Whenever ten-year-old Vega, who has always lived with her father, tries to ask about her mother, the only answer she gets is mysteries. Once a not-so-nice girlfriend starts dating her father, and Vega gets an unexpected pen pal, she decides to set out on an adventure to find out more about her mother. The book is a superb read for a child alone or for parents and children together.

Cerkabella is a Hungarian publishing house specialising in illustrated books and youth literature. Their publications strive for the highest quality, and since 2007 Cerkabella has launched a line of publication dedicated to the Nordics, with the goal of bringing literature from Northern Europe to the Hungarian audience. They are the Hungarian home of, among others, Radio Popov by Anja Portin.

In Finland, the Chanfreau sisters are published by Schildts & Söderströms.

Warm congratulations to the authors, and don’t miss out on this wonderful title!

Ulla Donner’s The Natural Comedy is travelling to Poland, where it will be published by Kultura Gniewu.

The Natural Comedy by Ulla Donner has started its journey into the international literary scene as its Polish rights have been acquired by Kultura Gniewu. The deal has been brought to us by our Polish co-agents at Book/lab.

The Natural Comedy has been welcomed with warm reviews in both Finland and Sweden and the title is this year’s winner of the Urhunden Prize, Sweden’s most prestigious prize for comics.

In The Natural Comedy it’s autumn, and the leaves have started to fall. One of them, a leaf called Birch, makes a crash landing on a mushroom, Candy, while en route to the Great Autumn Feast. The unlikely duo start a perilous journey through the forest, or rather what is left of it, trying to make it to the party in time. The Natural Comedy is a playful twist on Dante’s Divine Comedy from the perspective of the creatures of a forest that has been destroyed by humans’ exploitation.

As Birch and Candy make their way through the destroyed forest in Dantean fashion, they roam through artificially modified natural reserves, coming across the ancient, grimy Mother Nature, a wellness cult headed by a Kombucha mushroom, as well as other woodland dwellers forced to adapt to their new habitats. 

The characters of the graphic adventure are like urban people: harmony-loving Birch swears by positivity and self-acceptance, woke Candy is committed to improving the world, but only on the terms of its own comfort, and patriotic Slime Mold has its mind set on doggedly pushing through the rock, despite going round it would save years of travelling. 

The Natural Comedy is the third work of Ulla Donner, winner of the Finlandia Comics Prize for Best Graphic Novel in 2020. The sylvan fairytale grows into a hilarious satire about the Finns’ “special” relationship with nature. It is a tale about a society in which nature is subordinate to the human pursuit of profit and in which heaven and hell are only separated by how well each species manages to fit around people’s needs. The author also touches on xenophobia, comical features of young people’s dating rituals, and the societal terror of old age and hagsploitation in her characteristically wry manner. 

Kultura Gniewu is a Polish publishing house specialised in comics for children and adults. They are the Polish home of, among others, Daniel Clowes, Guy Delisle, Robert Crumb, Ivan Brun, and Shaun Tan.

In Finland, The Natural Comedy is published by Schildts & Söderströms.

Warm congratulations to the author and the publishers!

The Smuggler’s Treasure by Axel Åhman & Ola Skogäng (ill.) and The Sisters of the Desert by Malin Klingenberg are nominated for this year’s Runeberg Junior Prize.

The accolades are rolling in for The Smuggler’s Treasure by Axel Åhman & Ola Skogäng and for The Sisters of the Desert, the first instalment in the new fantasy trilogy by Malin Klingenberg: both titles are nominated for this year’s Runeberg Junior Prize.

The jury have motivated their choice as follows:

[The Smuggler’s Treasure is] a classical adventure story [that] livens up the quiet archipelago life. The Christmassy red thread carries steadily through the entire story, but despite the fact that it takes place in December the book can be read year-round. The division in chapter is well planned and invites to read one more chapter, and one more, and one more. The atmospheric illustrations complete the story. In a nutshell: a stylish ensemble.

[The Sisters of the Desert by Malin] Klingenberg may be to blame if children are groggy in the morning, because it is difficult to put the book away once one has come into the adventures of sisters Saba and Sarina. The Sisters of the Desert contains all the ingredients of an epic fantasy: friendship, family, supernatural powers, and the fight between good and evil.

The Runeberg Junior Prize is given yearly in two categories – adult fiction and children’s literature – and is often considered to be the most important literary award after Finlandia. The winners are traditionally announced on February 5th, the National Runeberg’s Day.

The Smuggler’s Treasure is an adventure chapter book with a Christmas twist and it follows twelve-year-old Oliver, who gets thrown into a century-old mystery as he spends two weeks at his Grandma’s place on an island in the middle of nowhere. A mysterious compass in Grandma’s forbidden attic leads Oliver on a treasure hunt in the archipelago following the tracks of the area’s most notorious smuggler, who also happens to be Oliver’s ancestor. Luckily, a happy ending is in the cards, and there’s plenty of Christmas cosiness for everyone.

Axel Åhman is an author, journalist and comedian based in Vaasa, and Ola Skogäng is an established Swedish illustrator, comics and visual artist. This is their first collaboration.

The Sisters of the Desert is the first instalment in Malin Klingenberg‘s new fantasy trilogy, The Chronicles of Gibat. The Sisters of the Desert follows Sarina and Saba, two sisters whose father is the leader of a wandering desert clan who starts selling the children of the tribe into slavery. Afraid they’ll be next, the two girls try to sneak away and meet another tribe, whose leader claims to have known their mother. Why do the members of the other tribe believe in magic? And could it really be true that their mother, too, had magical powers?

The Sisters of the Desert is a beautiful story of adventure, magic, friendship, and sisterly love in a world where some adults are ruthless and children are left to fend for themselves.

Malin Klingenberg is one of Finland’s most prominent Swedish-speaking authors. Her extensive production, ranging from picture books all the way to YA, has been loved, read, and translated into many languages all over the world. She has recently been awarded the Vanessa Prize for her impressingly polyhedric authorship.

Both works are published by Schildts & Söderströms.

Warm congratulations to the authors, and fingers crossed!

Liv!, the latest novel by Helmi Kekkonen, is nominated for this year’s Finlandia Prize.

Amazing news for our author Helmi Kekkonen: Liv! has been nominated for the Finlandia Prize.

Liv! is the latest novel by Kekkonen, one of Finland’s strongest contemporary voices. In Liv! readers follow Liv, a 22-year-old woman on holiday with her family in the archipelago as she agrees to meet up with a stranger who approached her on the beach. What awaits seems inevitable, even though it shouldn’t. The women on the island all want the best for Liv, but each seems to have a different opinion of what that is, and they enter a collision course. The result is a touching, incisive narration and reflection on the definition of sexual violence, and the victim’s responsibility, that poses a poignant question: what would you do in this situation?

The jury have motivated their choice as follows:

“The work is a carefully composed, defined, and skillfully constructed account built from contrast about an important subject: sexual violence and its impact on everyone affected. It encourages the reader to look into the ingrained gendered boundaries of our culture as well as one’s own position in relation to them. The work also portrays in detail the subtle dynamics of family relationships, where what is left unsaid is more important than what is actually said.”

Helmi Kekkonen‘s previous works include This Woman’s Life, The Guests, and Topsy-Turvy Anna. In Finland, Liv! is published by Siltala.

The winner will be announced on November 27th.

Warmest congratulations to the author, and fingers crossed!

Eva Frantz is travelling to Norway, where she will be attending the Silkfestivalen in Skudeneshavn.

SILK (Skudeneshavn Internasjonale Litteratur- og Kulturfestival, the International Literature and Culture Festival in Skudeneshavn) is a literature and cultural festival with the goal of fostering reading and spreading cultural experiences. Every year a selected group of authors, screenwriters, musicians and artists is invited to the festival to discuss their work.

Eva Frantz is one of Finland’s most prominent Swedish-speaking authors and her production spans from crime fiction to children’s literature. Her Anna Glad detective series, which follows 30-something detective Anna Glad, has been a success with over 100.000 copies sold and has peaked this summer with Then Die Contentedly. The series has already travelled to Estonia, Denmark, Germany and Norway (books #1-3)

Her children’s novels for middle-grade readers, The Mystery of Raspberry Hill, The Secret of Helmersbruk Manor, and The Queen of the Night, have been great domestic and international successes. The Mystery of Raspberry Hill has been adapted into a miniseries, Hallonbacken, and The Secret of Helmersbruk Manor has already travelled to five territories.

If you’re based in Norway don’t miss out on this event, and stay tuned for updates!