Children’s

New titles this season

Picture Books

The Vole and The Moon

Mila Teräs, illustrated by Nora Surojegin

Children’s Non-Fiction

We Are Powerful!

Laura Ertimo, illustrated by Mari Ahokoivu

Middle Grade

Stop Secret Mysteries: Stinker the Horrific Sock Monster

Ilona Ahti, illustrated by Miila Westin

Chapter Books

The Little Shop of Nightmares 4: The Crystal Skull

Magdalena Hai, illustrated by Teemu Juhani

Young Adult

Naraka

Elina Pitkäkangas

New in Picture books

SNÄLLA STELLA, SLUTA SKÄLLA!
Förlaget, March 2023, 44 pp.

Age group: 3+ years

Reading material:
English PDF

Stella

Ted Forsström, illustrated by Åsa Lucander

An interactive and playful bedtime story for toddlers featuring a very loud dog with a big imagination!

✓ Nominated for the Finlandia Prize 2023!

✓ Dog Stella’s thoughts mimic the lively imagination of toddlers

✓ Features comforting routine and interactive fun: Toddlers will love to join in the repeating tongue twister telling dog Stella to behave and will be equally delighted by Stella’s crazy reasons for barking!

✓ A new, exciting collaboration between comedian and Finlandia Junior nominated author Ted Forsström and Aardman director and illustrator Åsa Lucander

✓ Rights sold into 7 languages!

“VOFF! VOFF! GRR-VOFF!
“Please Stella, stop barking!” her father says in a stern way.
Everyone gets up from the bed and looks. No strange dogs. No balls. Not even a small berry or a strand of beard.
But through the window, Stella sees the neighbour’s car going away.
“Do you hear car, get out of the yard!” Dad says, leading everyone back to bed.”

A father tries to put his child to bed, but keeps getting interrupted by Stella the dog, who starts barking hysterically. Something unexpected always happens, and the reader is treated to Stella’s lively imaginations: it may be a door opening or a car driving by, but Stella is strongly convinced it’s Grandma coming to give her food, or that squirrels have built a nest in the toaster.

Anyone who has ever tried to bring a child to bed knows how cozy yet fragile the situation is. It requires the right amount of patience and determination. The right bedtime story can be the key to a successful, quiet night.

There is a warm feeling, playful rhymes and an unusual mix of familiar ordinariness and fantastic antics. Clear recognition for anyone trying to combine cozy moments with a pet!

Stella is a book you can read again and again, night after night.

“Children’s books about bedtime are a classic theme, but Ted Forsström and Åsa Lucander create something new by presenting STELLA from the dog’s perspective. (…) The spreads where (in Stella’s imagination) the kitchen is teeming with squirrels and the living room with dogs are true treats for your eyes.
– Maria Lassén-Seger, Hufvudstadsbladet newspaper (5 star review)

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Förlaget (orig. Finland-Swedish), Etana Editions (Finnish)
DENMARK: Gads Förlag
ESTONIA: Tammerraamat
GERMANY: Mixtvision
HUNGARY: Cerkabella
NORTH MACEDONIA: Ars Lamina
SWEDEN: Förlaget

SNÄLLA STELLA, SLUTA SKÄLLA!
Förlaget, March 2023, 44 pp.

Age group: 3+ years

Reading material:
English PDF

Stella

Ted Forsström, illustrated by Åsa Lucander

An interactive and playful bedtime story for toddlers featuring a very loud dog with a big imagination!

✓ Nominated for the Finlandia Prize 2023!

✓ Dog Stella’s thoughts mimic the lively imagination of toddlers

✓ Features comforting routine and interactive fun: Toddlers will love to join in the repeating tongue twister telling dog Stella to behave and will be equally delighted by Stella’s crazy reasons for barking!

✓ A new, exciting collaboration between comedian and Finlandia Junior nominated author Ted Forsström and Aardman director and illustrator Åsa Lucander

✓ Rights sold into 7 languages!

“VOFF! VOFF! GRR-VOFF!
“Please Stella, stop barking!” her father says in a stern way.
Everyone gets up from the bed and looks. No strange dogs. No balls. Not even a small berry or a strand of beard.
But through the window, Stella sees the neighbour’s car going away.
“Do you hear car, get out of the yard!” Dad says, leading everyone back to bed.”

A father tries to put his child to bed, but keeps getting interrupted by Stella the dog, who starts barking hysterically. Something unexpected always happens, and the reader is treated to Stella’s lively imaginations: it may be a door opening or a car driving by, but Stella is strongly convinced it’s Grandma coming to give her food, or that squirrels have built a nest in the toaster.

Anyone who has ever tried to bring a child to bed knows how cozy yet fragile the situation is. It requires the right amount of patience and determination. The right bedtime story can be the key to a successful, quiet night.

There is a warm feeling, playful rhymes and an unusual mix of familiar ordinariness and fantastic antics. Clear recognition for anyone trying to combine cozy moments with a pet!

Stella is a book you can read again and again, night after night.

“Children’s books about bedtime are a classic theme, but Ted Forsström and Åsa Lucander create something new by presenting STELLA from the dog’s perspective. (…) The spreads where (in Stella’s imagination) the kitchen is teeming with squirrels and the living room with dogs are true treats for your eyes.
– Maria Lassén-Seger, Hufvudstadsbladet newspaper (5 star review)

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Förlaget (orig. Finland-Swedish), Etana Editions (Finnish)
DENMARK: Gads Förlag
ESTONIA: Tammerraamat
GERMANY: Mixtvision
HUNGARY: Cerkabella
NORTH MACEDONIA: Ars Lamina
SWEDEN: Förlaget

SNÄLLA STELLA, SLUTA SKÄLLA!
Förlaget, March 2023, 44 pp.

Age group: 3+ years

Reading material:
English PDF

Stella

Ted Forsström, illustrated by Åsa Lucander

An interactive and playful bedtime story for toddlers featuring a very loud dog with a big imagination!

✓ Nominated for the Finlandia Prize 2023!

✓ Dog Stella’s thoughts mimic the lively imagination of toddlers

✓ Features comforting routine and interactive fun: Toddlers will love to join in the repeating tongue twister telling dog Stella to behave and will be equally delighted by Stella’s crazy reasons for barking!

✓ A new, exciting collaboration between comedian and Finlandia Junior nominated author Ted Forsström and Aardman director and illustrator Åsa Lucander

✓ Rights sold into 7 languages!

“VOFF! VOFF! GRR-VOFF!
“Please Stella, stop barking!” her father says in a stern way.
Everyone gets up from the bed and looks. No strange dogs. No balls. Not even a small berry or a strand of beard.
But through the window, Stella sees the neighbour’s car going away.
“Do you hear car, get out of the yard!” Dad says, leading everyone back to bed.”

A father tries to put his child to bed, but keeps getting interrupted by Stella the dog, who starts barking hysterically. Something unexpected always happens, and the reader is treated to Stella’s lively imaginations: it may be a door opening or a car driving by, but Stella is strongly convinced it’s Grandma coming to give her food, or that squirrels have built a nest in the toaster.

Anyone who has ever tried to bring a child to bed knows how cozy yet fragile the situation is. It requires the right amount of patience and determination. The right bedtime story can be the key to a successful, quiet night.

There is a warm feeling, playful rhymes and an unusual mix of familiar ordinariness and fantastic antics. Clear recognition for anyone trying to combine cozy moments with a pet!

Stella is a book you can read again and again, night after night.

“Children’s books about bedtime are a classic theme, but Ted Forsström and Åsa Lucander create something new by presenting STELLA from the dog’s perspective. (…) The spreads where (in Stella’s imagination) the kitchen is teeming with squirrels and the living room with dogs are true treats for your eyes.
– Maria Lassén-Seger, Hufvudstadsbladet newspaper (5 star review)

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Förlaget (orig. Finland-Swedish), Etana Editions (Finnish)
DENMARK: Gads Förlag
ESTONIA: Tammerraamat
GERMANY: Mixtvision
HUNGARY: Cerkabella
NORTH MACEDONIA: Ars Lamina
SWEDEN: Förlaget

MYYRÄ JOKA KATSOI KUUTA
Karisto, June 2023, 32 pp.

Age group: 3+ years

Reading material:
Full English text

The Vole and The Moon

Mila Teräs, illustrated by Nora Surojegin

A charmingly sweet picture book about the beauty of living in the moment. Mila Teräs’ enchanting prose is accompanied by Nora Surojegin’s gentle illustrations.

✓ Mila Teräs was awarded the prestigious Kaarina Helakisa Prize in 2023!

✓For fans of Leo Lionni’s Frederick

✓ Books illustrated by Nora Surojegin have been translated into 10 languages

Millie the vole has a strange feeling. She is preparing for the upcoming winter well in advance. However, she feels like she has forgotten something. She is so busy planning and doing things that there is no time to go to watch the Moon and celebrate with other animals. When Millie decides to look up to the sky, she has to stop and stare.

The book tells of how important it is to stop: instead of the constant hurry and overachieving, it is important to pause and just exist without feeling guilty. At the same time, the book highlights what a wonder and secret life really is.

Surojegin’s beautifully soft illustrations of the night-time forest paint a beautiful and enchanting atmosphere. The trees with their shadows and the grass stems invite one to take part in the adventure in the woods. The animals are friendly and soft fairytale creatures. The book helps the reader to realise the importance of pausing!
– Lukuriemua on instagram

NEW!

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Karisto (orig.)
ESTONIA: Hea Lugu

SORSA AALTONEN JA RIEHUVA ROTKA
Otava, August 2023, 32 pp.

Age group: 5+ years

Reading material:
Full English text

The Duck Who Was Afraid of Eagles

Veera Salmi, illustrated by Matti Pikkkujämsä

Riegel the Jumping Eagle just wants to bully others. What should the other birds do? A picture book about real courage.

✓ An important book about standing up to bullies

✓ The newest title from the author-illustrator duo whose joint work has been nominated for the Runeberg Junior Prize 2020, the Arvid Lydecken Prize 2020 and the Nordic Council Children’s and Youth Literature Prize 2020

✓ Illustrator Matti Pikkujämsä received the Kaarina Helakisa prize 2021, and was named Illustrator of the Year 2019 by The Finnish Illustration Association. He also won the Finnish State Prize for Illustrations in 2015 and the Rudolf Koivu Prize in 2013.

✓ Author Veera Salmi won the Kaarina Helakisa Prize in 2014 and was nominated for the Finlandia Junior in 2015

The life of the Duck and other birds in the Happy House is as soft and sweet as dessert dough. Until, one Wednesday, some eagles start building a ski jumping tower next to them.

What should the Duck do if he is too scared to stay, but also too scared to leave?

Independent sequel to the Nordic Council Award nominated picture book The Duck Who Was Afraid to Fly.

Pikkujämsä’s illustration makes the characters easily approachable and their feelings and needs recognizable and understandable. Even with difficult topics and uncomfortable emotions, Pikkujämsä draws the reader and viewer into the story by his insights. This is probably why his images appeal to so many people both children and adults. Pikkujämsä is an artisan of illustration in the finest sense of the word.
– Kaarina Helakisa Prize jury 2021

NEW!

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)

PRINSESSA PIKKIRIIKKI JA (KAAMEA) TOTUUS VAUVOISTA
Otava, April 2022, 32 pp.

Age group: 3+ years

Reading material:
English PDF

Itty Bitty Princess and the Truth About Babies

Hannele Lampela, illustrated by Ninka Reittu

A funny and warm take on “Where do babies come from?”, narrated from the child’s perspective

✓ Two Itty Bitty Princess films in development (Aurora Studios & Helsinki-filmi)

✓ Rights for the bestselling standalone picture books featuring Itty Bitty Princess have been sold to 6 territories

✓ Hannele Lampela has been awarded the prestigious Kaarina Helakisa Prize for her work and she has been nominated for the Runeberg Junior award 2019, the Storytel Finland Award 2020, and Arvid Lydecken Award 2020

Where do annoying little siblings come from? Itty Bitty Princess figures out the truth about babies in her own bold manner.

Of course, Itty Bitty Princess knows that babies grow in mothers’ tummies. But how did they end up there? And how do they get out? And most importantly: why on earth would parents want a baby that poops a lot and wakes them up in the middle of the night?

This charming picture book by Hannele Lampela, illustrated by Ninka Reittu, provides answers to children’s puzzling questions about babies, but also touches on the emotions that big sisters and brothers go through when they hear a baby is on the way.

Itty Bitty Princess and the (Awful) Truth About Babies is a warm, funny and sweet story that will solve many questions and will save some grownups from having that “uncomfortable” talk. Most important of all, Itty Bitty brings to the conversation the diversity and richness among all families, parents, siblings and guardians.
– María José González Camarena, Children’s and YA Managing Editor, Planeta Mexico

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)

DENMARK: Turbine
ESTONIA: Kirjastus Elust Enesest
ITALY: Fabbri Editori
SPAIN: Planeta Mexico
LATIN AMERICA: Planeta Mexico

PRINSESSA PIKKIRIIKIN HIUKKASEN HURJAT SADUT
Otava,  October 2022, 80 pp.

Age group: 3+ years

Reading material:
English PDF

Itty Bitty Princess’s Teeny Bit Terrific Fairy Tales

Hannele Lampela, illustrated by Ninka Reittu

The hero of all mischief-makers, Itty Bitty Princess, tells us seven familiar stories from the perspective of the teeny bit naughty! 

✓ Two Itty Bitty Princess films in development (Aurora Studios & Helsinki-filmi)

✓ Rights for the bestselling standalone picture books featuring Itty Bitty Princess have been sold to 6 territories

✓ Hannele Lampela has been awarded the prestigious Kaarina Helakisa Prize for her work and she has been nominated for the Runeberg Junior award 2019, the Storytel Finland Award 2020, and Arvid Lydecken Award 2020

Have you ever thought of how a witch feels when her magnificent gingerbread house is eaten? Or the fairy who doesn’t get invited to a birthday party? Indeed, probably not so good. 

Itty Bitty Princess has noticed that the ones who are already kind are the ones who always win the battles. Like her little brother. That’s why she has decided to tell a few stories from the side of the scoundrels, like the dragon that gets constantly poked by swords. After all, Itty Bitty Princess knows what it’s like to be kind and naughty at the same time.

Lovely that the stories were completely remade, even if some of the characters were familiar. [–] With this, one can talk about emotions and friendships to the children. The illustrations give the story more depth and the characters are filled with expressions. A warm recommendation!
– inspiraationjaljilla on instagram

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)

KETTU JA HILJAISUUS
Otava,  September 2022, 32 pp.

Age group: 3+ years

Reading material:
English PDF

The Fox and Silence

Reetta Niemelä , illustrated by Eri Shimatsuka

A charming picture book about a sensitive fox and the need for silence.

✓ A new collaboration between the winner of the Arvid Lydecken Award 2022 Reetta Niemelä and textile artist and illustrator Eri Shimatsuka

✓ An important topic with appeal to all ages

✓ Teaches children about mental health and standing up for their individual needs

Once upon a time there was a fox the colour of a copper pot. It had very long and sensitive ears. Loud noises keep hurting the fox’s ears. It had to dig deeper and deeper into its den to rest its ears. Where does the fox find silence? How would the other creatures in the forest understand that the silence is like a hammock, where one can safely fall asleep?

This beautiful story discusses sensibility and the need for silence. The touching text by award-winning poet and children’s author Reetta Niemela is paired with charming illustrations by textile artist Eri Shimatsuka.

Reetta Niemelä’s The Fox And Silence is a sweet, beautifully written picture book about hypersensitivity and how burdensome our everyday environment can sometimes be. The gentle illustrations by textile designer Eri Shimatsuka support the story. The book is suitable for all ages.
– – Henriikka Tulivirta on Kirjasampo website

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)

PIKKU HIIRI -sarja
Tammi, 2015-, 48 pp.

Age group: 2+ years

Reading material:
English PDFs

Little Mouse Series

Riikka Jäntti

Adorable bestselling picture book series about a little mouse and its everyday adventures. 

✓  Rights for the series sold in 21 territories!

✓  Features lovely retro-style illustrations and relatable everyday scenarios from family life with a toddler!

✓ There is a book for every occasion!

Newest title:
Book 9: Little Mouse Welcomes Spring

Spring is here and Little Mouse has a lot to wonder about!
It’s so light in the evenings that Little Mouse cannot sleep. It’s spring. In the park and walking in the forest Little Mouse observes all kinds of things: the first butterfly of spring and a lizard. 
There are some little worries with spring too as Grandpa Mouse has to go to the hospital. Little Mouse and Mummy Mouse visit him and Little Mouse thinks it’s a bit scary. Will Grandpa be okay?

Also available:

Book 1: Little Mouse
A day in the life of a toddler is a busy one, and Little Mouse’s is no exception. Between getting dressed, going to daycare, eating dinner, and splashing in puddles, Little Mouse has a lot to do … and a lot to say ‘no’ to!

Book 2: Little Mouse Helps Out
Little Mouse’s friend Pip is coming over to visit. But first, there are chores to do around the house, like cleaning, laundry and cooking lunch. Little Mouse is determined to help Mommy Mouse with all of them.

Book 3: Little Mouse’s Christmas
Christmas is coming, and Little Mouse can’t wait for Christmas Eve. Luckily, there are all kinds of wonderful preparations to be made, from cooking to choosing the Christmas tree.

Book 4: Little Mouse’s Holiday
Little Mouse and Mommy Mouse take the train together to the countryside to stay at their cottage on an island, pick berries, heat the sauna, and cook sausages over a campfire under the starry skies. It’s a real treat for a little city mouse!

Book 5: Little Mouse’s Winter
Winter is here and Little Mouse enjoys playing outside. But the fun is interrupted by piano lessons. And why do all the other kids have phones and lots of collectible toy figures? Luckily, Mom has lots of fun activities that will make Little Mouse happy again.

Book 6: Little Mouse’s Summer
Summer holidays are full of fun: going to the amusement park, playing by the beach and visiting the art museum. Buying strawberries and ice cream, and going to the cinema when the weather is too hot. Little Mouse knows you have to enjoy the summer, because it doesn’t last forever.

Book 7: Little Mouse’s Goes Camping
One beautiful summer’s day, Little Mouse goes camping with his mom. Little Mouse helps Mommy Mouse set up the tent, light the grill and prepare sausages and vegetables wrapped in foil. When it gets dark, Little Mouse listens to the sounds of the night in the tent. In the morning, they are both very hungry but luckily the island’s restaurant is open!

Book 8: Little Mouse and the Birthday Present
At last, DING DONG! Little Mouse opens the front door for the birthday guests. Little Mouse receives delightful presents from friends, and then it is time to feast: the birthday cake and other desserts are to everyone’s taste. Games and quizzes are also part of Little Mouse’s birthday. The next morning, Little Mouse gets a present from Mommy Mouse, but it ends up causing a surprising amount of trouble, especially to Mom!

We’re thrilled to continue publishing the adventures of Little Mouse! Riikka Jäntti is a master in blending together tradition and modernity, and knows how to tackle tenderly day to day’s questions as well as more difficult situations.”

– Cambourakis, France

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)
AZERBAIJAN: Alatoran
AUSTRALIA: Scribble/Scribe
BULGARIA: Uniscorp
CHINA: Beijing Yuntu Tech
DENMARK: ABC Forlag
ESTONIA: Rahva Raamat
FRANCE: Cambourakis
GERMANY: Cross Cult
ITALY: Sinnos
NEPAL: Kathalaya
NEW ZEALAND: Scribble/Scribe
POLAND: Filia
PORTUGAL: Harper Collins Iberica
ROMANIA: Editura Paralela 45
RUSSIA: Strecoza
SLOVAKIA: Fortuna
SPAIN (Spanish): Harper Collins Iberica
SPAIN (Catalan): Harper Collins Iberica
SWEDEN: Epix Bokförlag AB
UK: Scribble/Scribe

PIKKU HIIREN SATULIPAS
Tammi, October 2022, 80 pp.

Age group: 3+ years

Reading material:
English sample in September

Little Mouse’s Fables

Riikka Jäntti

Little Mouse’s Fables is a charming and cheerful book for small readers and all Little Mouse’s friends!

✓  Little Mouse and Mommy Mouse dive together into the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm and discuss them!

✓  The newest standalone title in the bestselling Little Mouse series!

Little Mouse loves storytime. Together with Mommy Mouse, they read the Grimm classics: Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, The Three Wishes, Sweet Porridge, Jack and the Beanstalk, and more! Riikka Jäntti’s lovely illustrations depict the mouseified adventures in these classic tales.

In this new album of her fantastic series Little Mouse, Riikka Jäntti takes a small sidestep to invite us to delve into the Brothers Grimm’s enchanted universe. While taking us back to the classics of children’s literature, she also softly highlights the joys of the timeless moment of the bedtime story.

– Cambourakis, France

Charming… Scandi sublime.

– The Times, Book of the Week, about Little Mouse

English readers will see something of Beatrix Potter’s poetry and precision in the Helsinki-based illustrator and author’s retro ink and watercolor illustrations. Pitched at children aged up to four, Little Mouse will also delight parents, taking them back to when every day was an adventure.

– William Yeoman, The Weekend West

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)
ESTONIA: Rahva Raamat
FRANCE: Cambourakis

#1 PRINSESSA RÄMÄPÄÄN TALVITAIKA
Tammi 2017, 42 pp.

#2 PRINSESSA RÄMÄPÄÄ JA VESSASANAT
Tammi 2019, 42 pp.

#3 PRINSESSA RÄMÄPÄÄ JA RIITATAIKA
Tammi, 2021, 42 pp.

Age group: 2-6 years

Reading material:
English PDFs

Princess Rascal series

Elina Hirvonen, illustrated by Mervi Lindman

Princess Rascal is a spirited and resourceful little girl, like a little sister of Pippi Longstocking! The topics of the clever and fun books in the Princess Rascal series arise from the day-to-day challenges of families with children.

✓  Picture book series praised for its realism depicting life with children!

✓ Rights sold in 5 territories and counting!

 Busy days can be filled with snappy talk and misunderstandings. But, on the other hand, there are always lots of new ideas, warmth and practical magic around!

#1 Princess Rascal
You would think that Rascal is just a little girl, but she’s also a princess with many crowns for different purposes: one for Important Thoughts, one for Great Adventures, and one for Peaceful Dreams. When Mom gets mad at her, she must find the right crown to calm Mom down.
Princess Rascal is a picture book about a little girl who speaks her mind and has a heart of gold, though sometimes it’s difficult to know the right thing to do. The book has been praised for its accurate and hilarious depictions of the everyday life of a toddler family – sometimes parents get tired, too.

#2 Princess Rascal and the Potty Words
Princess Rascal starts preschool. She’s nervous about her new mates and the new teacher. She is especially nervous about going to the toilet. When she uses potty words in the completely wrong situation, she’s sure that she is the most embarrassed girl in the world. But a solution for the problem can be found in her secret treasure chest.

#3 Princess Rascal and the Quarrel Spell
Which spell is the best when it seems that parents do not have enough time for themselves? Resourceful Princess Rascal has a solution to every problem!
When Mom looks like a red-eyed panda and Dad looks like an angry troll, and they snap at each other without any reason, it’s time for some Rascal spells and Onni’s insights. The solution is the world’s finest KISSING BOOTH. “You have to go in there to kiss. Then you will love again. And never quarrel again…”

Everybody quarrels once in a while, no need to be scared of it. The difficult topic of the book never becomes too gloomy, because the solution-oriented Princess Rascal takes action. Mervi Lindman’s delicate and colorful illustrations also maintain positivity.
– Turun Sanomat newspaper, Finland on Princess Rascal and the Quarrel Spell

 MORE INFO

 360° VIEW

 DOWNLOAD ENGLISH MATERIALS

 

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)
CZECH REPUBLIC: Albatros
DENMARK: Gads Forlag (books 1&2)
ESTONIA: Elust Enesest (Books 1-3)
LITHUANIA: Nieko Rimto (book 1)

Chapter books

PRINSESSA PIKKIRIIKKI JA HURMAAVA HUVIPUISTO
Otava, September 2023, 40 pp.

Age group: 5+ years

Reading material:
English sample

Itty Bitty Princess and the Amazing Amusement Park

Hannele Lampela, illustrated by Ninka Reittu

Get ready for a sleepover adventure like no other with Itty Bitty Princess!

✓ Two Itty Bitty Princess films in development (Aurora Studios & Helsinki-filmi)

✓ Rights for the bestselling standalone picture books featuring Itty Bitty Princess have been sold to 6 territories

✓ Hannele Lampela has been awarded the prestigious Kaarina Helakisa Prize for her work and she has been nominated for the Runeberg Junior award 2019, the Storytel Finland Award 2020, and Arvid Lydecken Award 2020

Itty Bitty Princess has a sleepover at her friend’s place. How exciting! What should she pack? And what should the princesses play?

The sleepover itself feels exciting, but it gets even more fun when imagination takes flight and they end up visiting an amusement park at nighttime! Are there ghosts lurking about? And if there are, could they be kind?

Itty Bitty Princess is simply a charming personallity who knows how to cheer up the smaller and biger readers. Ninka Reittu’s illustrations are somehow just perfect!
– Iida Åfeldt, Iidan matkassa -blog
Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)
ESTONIA: Elust Enesest

PAINAJAISPUOTI: KRISTALLIKALLON TAPAUS
WSOY, November 2023, 60 pp.

Age group:5+

Reading material:
English text

The Little Shop of Nightmares 4: The Crystal Skull

Magdalena Hai, illustrated by Teemu Juhani

Fourth book in the super successful children’s series for the younger readers 5+!

✓ Mystery and horror paired with laugh-out-loud humour for younger readers!

✓ Magdalena Hai is the winner of the The Kaarina Helakisa Prize 2020

✓ Bestselling series sold to 29 territories!

The Little Shop of Nightmares crew finds out that a pirate sailing competition is coming to town! Competing to be the fastest pirate ship are the Ghosts, the Zombies, the Sirens and the Better Pirates – all of whom want the Crystal Skull that has been given to Mr. Kook for safekeeping at the Little Shop of Nightmares.
When the Crystal Skull suddenly goes missing from the shop, little Nina and her friends start their investigation – and the suspects are a-plenty!

The Little Shop of Nightmares takes the reader straight into a fantastic world where everything can happen. And it does! It’s scary, funny and entertaining. Lots of wonderful details and interesting characters. That’s where every child wants to be!
– Lindy Andersen, Publisher, Fontini, Norway

NEW!

 MORE INFO

 DOWNLOAD ENGLISH MATERIALS

 

Rights sold:
FINLAND: WSOY (orig.)
SWEDEN: Hegas Förlag

TAIWAN: Morning Star

#1 KAMALA KUTITUSPULVERI
WSOY 2019, 60 pp.

#2 HAMPAAT HUKASSA
WSOY 2019, 60 pp.

#3 HIRVEÄ JUMIMIES
WSOY, 2021, 60 pp.

Age group: 7+

Reading material:
Full English PDFs 

The Little Shop of Nightmares Series

Magdalena Hai, illustrated by Teemu Juhani

Hilarious horror for younger middle-grade! Nine-year-old Nina does not get scared easily, but when she starts her job at the Little Shop of Nightmares she meets a bunch of weird characters – and befriends them!

✓ Super success: rights sold in 30 territories!

✓ A chapter book series full of quirky characters and inventive plotlines – workdays are never dull in the Little Shop of Nightmares

✓Mystery and horror paired with laugh-out-loud humour for younger middle grade

✓ Magdalena Hai is the winner of the The Kaarina Helakisa Prize 2020

Nina is a clever, 9-year-old girl who goes to work in the Little Shop of Nightmares. During the course of the series, she has to solve a mystery with tickling powder, find the lost teeth of a vampire, and discover the reason why suddenly it just won’t stop snowing. The Little Shop of Nightmares is a mystery full of fascinating and fun characters that make young readers both wonder and laugh!

#1 The Terrible Tickling Powder
When Nina, a 9-year-old, enters The Little Shop of Nightmares in hopes of getting a job, she is greeted by an odd sight: shopkeeper Mr. Kook is rolling on the floor, unable to stop laughing. With a little help from a ghost called Paddy, they start looking for the untickling powder to help him, but things are certainly not made any easier by Mr. Kook’s world-domination-planning pet octopus Squishy McGoo, who is a bit too quick about getting into trouble with rollerblades on its tentacles.

#2 The Mystery of the Missing Teeth
Nina goes to buy ice cream after her first work day at The Little Shop of Nightmares. But at the ice cream shop she discovers a vampire – without teeth! Nina decides to help the vampire, Lucas, find his teeth from Mr. Kook’s shop. But, for some reason, all the vampire teeth seem to have disappeared. It seems like somebody has hidden them on purpose…

#3 Sticky the Terrible Snowman
The Little Shop of Nightmares is getting buried in snow! Nina and Paddy are trying to find the cause of the snowstorm, but that’s easier said than done. A well-meaning but horribly clumsy snowman keeps getting in their way and thwarting their every effort to stop it from snowing inside.

A super funny book about an assistant in a weird shop and a toothless vampire who are looking for new teeth. [–] The writing style is just great, and the book was told with a lot of humor, but also illustrated in a way which shows that the artist has definitely put a lot of effort into the little book.”
–Sarahreadingxo, Germany, about the Mystery of the Missing Teeth

“This is an easy-to-read and cozy book for early readers with both little creepiness and humour. Colourful, detailed, and playful illustrations enhance the experience.”
–Barnboksbloggen, Sweden, about the Tickling Powder

 

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: WSOY (orig.)
ALBANIA: Muza
AZERBAIJAN: Alatoran
BULGARIA: Emas
CATALAN: La Galera
CZECH REPUBLIC: Euromedia
DENMARK: Vild Maskine
ESTONIA: Postimees Publishing
FRANCE: Éditions Milan
GERMANY: Egmont Schneiderbuch
GREECE: Dioptra
HUNGARY: Cerkabella
ITALY: Terre di Mezzo
JAPAN: Holp Publishing
KOREA: Gilbutschool
LATVIA: Latvijas Mediji
FRANCE: Editions Milan
NETHERLANDS: De Vier Windstreken
NORWAY: Fontini
POLAND: Znak
PORTUGAL: Penguin Random House Portugal
ROMANIA: Editura Univers
RUSSIA: Kompas Guide
SERBIA: Odiseja
SLOVAKIA: Ikar
SWEDEN: Hegas
TAIWAN: Morning Star
TURKEY: Epsilon
UKRAINE: The Old Lion Publishing House
WORLD SPANISH: La Galera

#1 VOIHAN NENÄ!
Minerva, September 2021, 56 pp.

#2 YLLÄRIPYLLÄRI!
Minerva, March 2022, 56 pp.

#3 SOME SOIKOON!
Minerva, May 2023, 56 pp.

Age group: 5+

Reading material:
Full English PDFs of Books 1-2, English sample for Book 3

Thelma the Tenacious Witch Series

Satu Varjonen, illustrated by Mari Luoma

A humorous and magical series about the adventures of a young witch girl!

✓ Realistic struggles in the company of witches!

✓ Well-received and funny series with more titles in the pipeline!

Newest:
Book #3: What’s The Buzz?

Witchy tricks on social media!

The energetic and well-intentioned witch girl, Thelma, takes a deep dive into social media. As usual, mishaps are guaranteed.

Thelma’s friend Ornelia introduces her to the world of mobile phones and social media. And like any other child, Thelma is quickly swept in by the crystal display. It turns out that witchcraft is pretty good at going viral. But is fame great for the little witch girl that has grown up in the middle of the forest? Might it even be dangerous? The human-averse Grandma Myrtle is herself aghast at technology. Be ready for delightful magic and goofs in the usual Thelma-like way!

Book #1: Who Nose?

A heart-warming story about accepting differences and loving oneself!

Thelma, the little witch girl, starts school and ends up literally nose to nose with the popular girl, Ornelia. However, the extraordinary witch girl doesn’t get startled easily and decides to give it her all to fit in. After a bunch of mishaps, Thelma realizes that instead of trying to please everybody, it is best to be yourself! 

Book #2: An Egg-cellent Surprise!

The sweet witch, Thelma, tries her hardest to make things good. But magic is one of those things that sometimes leads to quite unexpected things. 

Thelma’s house is as busy as ever. The spring cleaning must be done, guests are coming and The Great Egg Hunt with its tantalizing prizes is about to start on the mountain. The easter traditions of witches and humans cause Thelma a headache, especially when her ghastly great-aunt, Grandma Myrtle and Thelma’s new friend Ornelia get entangled in them too. And magic doesn’t always go according to plan.

The language of the book is humoristic and diverse. It was fun to read together [–] The illustrations are fun and colourful and the characters very expressive!
– Lastenkirjasuomi instagram

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Minerva (orig.)
ESTONIA: Kirjastus Elust Enesest

#1 LEMMIKKIFRENDIT – BITTI JA MOODI
Tammi, May 2022, 84pp.

#2 LEMMIKKIFRENDIT – MOPPI
Tammi, October 2022, 120 pp.

#3 LEMMIKKIFRENDIT – PAPU
Tammi, May 2023

#4 LEMMIKKIFRENDIT – MIR
Tammi, Fall 2023

Age group: 5+

Reading material:
Full English sample (Book 1), English synopses, English series presentation, Finnish texts

Pet Friends Series

Riina Kaarla, Sami Kaarla & Anders Vacklin

A story of a young girl experiencing an unforgettable summer filled with pets and new friendships!

✓ Funny and adventure-filled 4-book series for animal lovers and robots fans alike!

✓ Fresh quirky 4-colour artwork

✓ Teaches children about animals and pet care

Pet Friends is a freestanding prequel and companion series to Pet Agents for younger readers. The series tells the story of how the agent duo of Kati-e and Ti-bot got their start and solved their first missions.

Newest:
Book #4: Mir: (Fall 2023)

To solve the mystery of the beekeeper’s lost bees, passionate and unyielding animal helper Kati-e has to break into a space tech lab to build a new shapeshifter robot that can perform a bee dance, all at the same time her astronaut father is leaving Earth.

Fluffy, funny, and adventure-filled, the series takes the reader into a totally different animal world, with a fresh twist on pet care. Packed with excellent storytelling, stunning artwork, interesting characters, and wonderfully clever storylines.
Get your paw prints on these books now!

Book #1: Bit and Mode: (May 2022)
In order to have a pet of her own, the lonely six-year-old coding wizard and handy robot builder Kati-e rescues adorable rat twins from the trash can. She sneaks them home, despite her mother’s allergy to rats, only to discover a mysterious stuffed animal hidden inside the walls of her room, which used to belong to the coolest girl in the neighborhood.

Book #2: Mop: (October 2022)
A sunny, resourceful, self-reliant 6-year-old rat owner Kati-e is having the time of her life working as a little helper in a pet store; when it goes out of business, devastated Kati-e sets up her own pet service so she can be around animals in the future, and ends up owning four puppies as a result.

NEW Book #3: Bean: (May 2023)
Brilliant and resourceful, Kati-e struggles to build a robot that can speak with animals, to find good homes for her four puppies, and is forced to renovate an old roof-top water tank into her new home as one of the puppies wants to stay with her.

Children’s books about animals often train their readers to treat animals with respect. In the Pet Agents series, children interested in pets and other domestic animals also learn about their care and behaviour. The strength of the Pet Agents series lies in (…) its event-rich storytelling and abundant, colourful illustrations. (…) The children in the series are active, energetic and have a wide network of friends.
– Lastenkirjahylly blog, Finland on Pet Agents series

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)

#1 PET AGENTS: TÄÄLTÄ TULLAAN, LEMMIKIT!
Tammi, March 2019, 112 pp.

#2 PET AGENTS: VARKAAN JÄLJILLÄ
Tammi, November 2019, 160 pp.

#3 PET AGENTS: KADONNUT KENTTÄ
Tammi, August 2020, 208 pp.

#4 PET AGENTS: PELIIN KÄTKETYT
Tammi, December 2020, 176 pp.

#5 PET AGENTS: PINNAN ALLA
Tammi, October 2021, 190 pp.

#6 PET AGENTS: LUMEN SAARTAMAT
Tammi, December 2021, 176 pp.

#7 PET AGENTS: ELÄINTEN KAUPUNKI
Tammi, September 2022, 156 pp.

#8 PET AGENTS: MISSION ON THE MOON

Tammi, February 2023, 176 pp.

Age group: 7+

Reading material:
Full English translation (Book 1), English synopses & series presentation, Finnish PDFs

Pet Agents Series

Riina Kaarla, Sami Kaarla & Anders Vacklin

KATI-E is an independent girl who loves animals just as much as electronics and coding. TI-BOT is the flying robot Kati-e built. Together they are the PET AGENTS, and their mission is to solve pet problems!

✓ A delightfully illustrated series for robot fans and animals lovers alike!

✓ Teaches children about animals and pet care

✓ Series already sold in 8 territories!

✓ 10 titles are planned in the series

Newest:
Book #9: Masters of the Jungle

In the 9th installment of the Pet-Agents series, the agents find themselves in the middle of an illegal wildlife smuggling operation which must be stopped! Kati-e saves Mrs. Frang’s dog, Dina, from an animal thief, and discovers an endangered cheetah. The cheetah must be released to the wild. This friendly act leads Kati-e and her friends to other adventures in the desert, jungle and savannah.

Also available:
Book #1: New Pets & New Friends!

The first book in the bestselling series for the animal-loving and tech-savvy children of today.
Kati-e’s and Ti-bot’s schedule is full again. Sofia needs help choosing a dog breed, Mrs. Frang has to find a dog-walker, and a little kitten named Hugo has an upset tummy. But do you know what a diabetic alert dog is? And what do you do if you find a baby squirrel on the side of the road? When you join Kati-e and her robot sidekick for a day, you’ll find out!

Book #2: Tracking a Thief
Keen to solve new cases, Kati-e and Ti-bot hardly get any sleep!
Kati-e has been busy coding and Ti-bot has new skills! He hurries over to the zoo to test his brand-new language abilities – he can talk with monkeys and other animals! The Pet Agents are in for a busy day from clipping the nails of a pet rabbit to helping a depressed budgie. But soon, a mystery thief in the neighbourhood lures the Pet Agents away from their usual tasks!

Book #3: Charging Ahead
Kati-e, Tim and Ti-bot spend time in the countryside and make new friends
When the Pet Agents must find a new home for a miniature pig, they head out to the countryside. The organic farm is full of cute animals, and they help with the farmwork and have fun with the electric four-wheel-drive. But suddenly, there is also a mystery they have to solve! But what to do when Ti-bot disappears and there is no wi-fi coverage?!

Book #4: Lost in the Game
Kati-e and Ti-bot venture out into the virtual world!
A boy contacts Kati-e and tells her that he has lost his pet… dinosaur! Excuse me? Kati-e soon realizes he’s talking about the virtual world and the dinosaur he’s lost is from an online dinosaur park. But it does not make the boy’s anguish any less, and Kati-e gladly accepts the challenge. It’s time for the Pet Agents to go off into the virtual world to find out who is playing dirty.

Book #5: In Deep Water
Pet Agents explore the underwater world!
After helping out a marine biologist with her out-of-the-ordinary pets, Kati-e and Ti-bot get the opportunity to join a marine research vessel as it sails out to sea! Soon the friends are deep under the surface as they try to get to the bottom of a new animal dilemma. The newly updated and waterproofed Ti-bot proves to be invaluable!

Book #6: Snowed In
Pet Agents in a Winter Wonderland!
After rescuing a swan stuck in a frozen pond, Kati-e finds out that the city’s only Pet Rescue animal shelter will be demolished just before Christmas. The Pet Agents are forced to engage in a pursuit across the Arctic Circle to track down Mrs. Frang, the animal shelter founder. She is the only person who can stop the demolition and save all the pets from the freezing cold.

Book #7: Wild City
Pet Agents on a mission to help urban wildlife!
After Luca’s beloved dachshund Wilhelm dies from old age, a resourceful Kati-e will do anything she can to help him. She will even restore an overgrown and neglected old medieval pet cemetery to its former glory so that Wilhelm could have the final resting place that Luca desires.
For the city authorities to agree to reopen the old pet cemetery, the Pet Agents must first participate in the city’s ambitious urban wildlife conservation project. Luca will never forget his beloved dog, but with Kati-e’s help and compassion, he finds ways to ease the sting of grief and memorialize his lost pet.

Book #8: Mission on the Moon
In the eighth book of the Pet Agents series, pet agents are invited to the Moon to solve a twisted space mystery.
When the animals on the Moon Station start acting very strange, the Pet Agents are given a thrilling mission. But will the mystery ever be solved when Kati-e, solves only Earth’s problems from the Moon on her hugely popular YouTube channel? And could Ti-bot be right… Is an alien behind the mystery after all?

The framework is so well-refined that the concept remains cohesive and interesting. The series has such an international feel that I had to check a couple of times to see whether Pet Agents really was the work of authors from Finland!
– Lähiömutsi literary blog

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)
CZECHIA: Grada
DENMARK: Bogoo
ESTONIA: Rahva Raamat
POLAND: Media Rodzina
RUSSIA: Eksmo
SLOVAKIA: IKAR
UKRAINE: RIDNA MOVA

PELASTUSPARTIO JULIA JA KALLE

Tammi, 2023 144 pp.

Age group: 5+

Reading material:
English sample and synopsis, German sample (Book 1)
English synopsis, German sample (Book 2) 
Englsih synopsis(Book 3)

The Rescuers Julia and Charlie

Elina Hirvonen, illustrated by Nadja Sarell

Toy Story meets The Avengers in this exciting 3-book series where plush animals have super powers.

✓Realistic worries for young children are combined with sci-fi elements and a superhero adventure story!

Twelve-year-old Julia is spending more and more time with her friends, and Nis, the plush animal agent, is feeling lonely. Nis is haunted by memories of his childhood spent as an abandoned and misfit toy on a store shelf, until he became Julia’s friend. Many of the other top fluffy agents of the World Council of Stuffed Animals also feel unneeded. The World Council gets a bunch of therapy alpacas to help the depressed agents, but will help arrive before it’s too late?

A toy manufacturer invites Nis to join him and leave the World Council once and for all. When Julia realises her stuffed animal is gone, she decides to stop time. She doesn’t want to grow up, if growing up means parting ways with her childhood best friend, plush animal agent Nis.

Julia and Charlie are determined to uncover the true identity of the Toy manufacturer. As the children grow old, is it possible for them to keep the most important things from their childhood?

Also available:
Book 1: Julia and P.A.L.

Julia, 10 years, wishes she’d find someone who likes her. What she doesn’t know is her stuffed bunny Buck is her best friend – and a secret agent of the World Council of Stuffed Animals! The two embark on an exciting adventure to help the Council – and to show Julia she’s lovable just the way she is.

Book 2: Charlie and the Wombat Warriors
At 11, Charlie really doesn’t care for school, and things get even worse as his parents divorce. His plush monkey Mung Kee wants to help, but Charlie rejects him and instead approached by the Guerilla Gang, who seek to overthrow the Council of Stuffed Animals. Julia and her plush toy agent Buck come to help and join Mung Kee in his mission to show Charlie the fatal consequences of letting his pain turn into anger.

Multilayered, imaginative, and exciting!
– Savon Sanomat newspaper

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)

Middle grade

STOP SECRET. HIKISUKKA HIRMUNEN
Tammi, September 2023, 144 pp.

Age group: 7+

Reading material:
English sample and synopsis

Stop Secret Mysteries: Stinker the Horrific Sock Monster

Ilona Ahti, illustrated by Miila Westin

A funny middle-grade mystery series for fans of Roald Dahl.

✓  Miila Westin is a Finlandia Junior Prize winning illustrator (2020) and her books have been sold into 14 languages!

✓  Ilona Ahti is an award-winning TV and film script writer and co-writer of the Oscar nominated film Girl Picture

✓  Independent sequel planned for 2024

The sock-trap has been set! A horrific sockmonster, Stinker, is on the loose!

In the opening of this charmingly funny middle-grade series, top-secret cases are being solved. Why are there only odd socks in the cabinet, and where have the hairclips and remote controls vanished?

The peculiar events begin when a strange creature snatches the last pair of socks from ten-year-old Hilla. She catches a glimpse of a fluffy, golden tail and finds a color-changing hair as evidence. A top-secret mystery must be solved, in which Hilla is helped by her neighbors Maisa and Roni-Toni. Hilla’s grandmother Mitsi clearly knows more than she’s telling, and in the end there’s an explanation for everything that no one would have expected…

NEW!

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)

Photo credit: Veikko Somerpuro

MANTIKORAN
Förlaget, September 2024, tba pp.

Age group: 10+

Reading material:
Full English text

The Manticore

Maria Turtschaninoff, illustrated by Peter Bergting

A graphic novel and supernatural thriller that turns a young girl’s emotions into a magic-realistic fantasy adventure – can her new stepmother be trusted or is she a dangerous ancient monster?

✓  Maria Turtschaninoff is a two-time winner of the Society of Swedish Literature Prize, a nominee for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, and winner of the 2014 Finlandia Prize! Her children’s and YA titles have sold to 30 languages.

✓  INHERITED LAND, Maria Turtschaninoff’s first adult fiction novel, has been awarded the prestigious Swedish YLE Literature Prize 2022 and sold to 21 languages

✓  Peter Bergting is one of Sweden’s most renowned comic book artists and fantasy and children book illustrators.

✓  The Swedish edition (Raben & Sjögren), will be publishing simultaneously as the Finnish and Finnish-Swedish editions (Tammi and Förlaget)

The Manticore is a middle-grade graphic novel. This supernatural thriller is told from the perspective of an unnamed protagonist who starts suspecting that her stepmother is in fact a Manticore, an ancient monster intending on devouring the protagonist and her baby brother. She realizes that no one can help her because no one would believe her. So as the Manticore starts fattening up the children, the protagonist hunts for a way to defeat her. She soon realizes that the only way to kill a Manticore is with a mythical object: the horn of a unicorn. But where can she possibly find one?

NEW!

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Förlaget (orig. Finnish-Swedish)
FINLAND: Tammi
SWEDEN: Raben & Sjögren

AINA PONOI
Otava, October 2023, 271 pp.

Age group: 9+

Reading material:
English sample and synopsis coming soon!

Aina Ponoi

Veera Salmi

A charming fantasy novel about Oboi who whilst searching for his lost sister ends up in an astonishing world of Aina Ponoi.

✓  Veera Salmi is the bestselling author of over 20 titles, winner of the Kaarina Helakisa Prize 2014 and nominated for the Finlandia Junior Prize 2015!

Could reading be super dangerous? Can a book be a freeway ticket to another world? Young Oboi doesn’t believe in stories, but ends up swept in one when he finds an entrance ticket in the middle of a mysterious book. The book takes Oboi to a strange fantasy world, Aina Ponoi, where he must find his sister.

Aina Ponoi is a place where everything is possible and Oboi is able to escape his worries – health troubles and his mother’s new relationship – for even a little while.

A standalone sequel to The Book of Oboi.

NEW!

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)

OBOIN KIRJA
Otava, January 2022, 304 pp.

Age group: 12+

Reading material:
English sample and synopsis

The Book of Oboi

Veera Salmi

In the city where nobody reads – can a book save the World? What about an orphaned boy who doesn’t believe in stories?

✓  Veera Salmi is the bestselling author of over 20 titles, winner of the Kaarina Helakisa Prize 2014 and nominated for the Finlandia Junior Prize 2015!

✓  German rights sold!

A spectacular novel about a world where literacy has been decimated and a boy who does not believe in stories.

Thirteen-year-old Oboi has run away to find his former homestead. He ends up in a peculiar and disaster-stricken city where no one knows how to read. People are led by the mysterious Wanda, who, via devices hooked up to one’s palm, says what everyone should know or do. At a flea market, Oboi meets a woman who gives him a book. According to her, this book can change everything and help find what Oboi thought was lost forever. Suddenly the story-averse Oboi notices he has become the hero, that orphaned boy deemed to save the whole world. 

“In Veera Salmi’s youth novel fresh off the press, literacy is lost and people are controlled by technology – The Book of Oboi praises stories, adventure and dreams.”
 – Keskipohjanmaa newspaper, Finland

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)
GERMANY: Cross Cult

PAAVALI PATTINEN JA JÄRISYTTÄVÄ JÄYNÄKIROUS
Otava, May 2023, 144pp

Age group: 9+

Reading material:
English sample & synopsis

Benjamin Bateman and the Curse of the Mind-Popping Pranks

Hannele Lampela, illustrated by Pasi Pitkänen

The super embarrassed superhero-in-training Benjamin Bateman is back for another hilarious adventure!

✓  Second book in the series by the award-winning and bestselling writer-illustrator super team Hannele Lampela and Pasi Pitkänen!

✓  Film in development!

✓  Book 1 was nominated for the Arvid Lydecken Award 2023!

How is the awkward superhero Benjamin Bateman managing when his archenemies are circling everywhere? The second book in the super funny middle-grade series!

Some weirdo succeeds in messing up Benjamin’s life with their little tricks: there’s salt in his hot chocolate and toothpaste all over the toilet.

Who on earth would do that? And the scary Mortem has not stopped chasing Benjamin. In order to take control of the situation, Benjamin has to learn to harness his powers – a vivid imagination and a good heart.

NEW!

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)
DENMARK: Bogoo 

PAAVALI PATTINEN, SUPERNOLO SUPERSANKARI
Otava, August 2022, 160pp

Age group: 9+

Reading material:
English sample & synopsis

Benjamin Bateman – Super Embarrassed Superhero

Hannele Lampela, illustrated by Pasi Pitkänen

What if your superhero costume looked like a butterfly and your only superpowers would be having a good heart and a lively imagination? Welcome to the embarrassing life of Benjamin Bateman!

✓  First joint 3-book series for award-winning and bestselling writer-illustrator super team Hannele Lampela and Pasi Pitkänen!

✓  Film in development!

✓  Nominee for the Arvid Lydecken Award 2023

✓  Rights sold to Denmark!

The wholly hilarious and thrilling adventures of a super embarrassing superhero for middle-graders!

Benjamin Bateman is stunned when he finds out that he is part of a family of superheroes. Who would’ve believed that about poor Benjamin?

Benjamin’s superhero costume is quite embarrassing though – a butterfly. And his superpower is even more mortifying – having a good heart and great imagination! But when Benjamin must battle the terrifying Mortem, his imagination will come in handy.

The story is enriched by the colorful illustrations of Pasi Pitkänen.

“Every kid wants to be a superhero. Benjamin Bateman finds out that he is a superhero from Martinlaakso, but the superpowers are missing every now and then. Is it possible there’s been a mistake after all? A very everyday story gets wings when Benjamin understands that he truly is of a superhero family. The narration is breathtaking, but not tiring. The plot really hooks one in, and it is hard to set the book down. The different time periods create ellipsis in the story, and the vivacity of it is awe-inspiring. As a superhero, Benjamin is humane and human-sized, which makes the story very relatable.”
– Arvid Lydecken Award jury

 

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)
DENMARK: Bogoo

BOOK 4: ISÄMIES JA MAHDOTON AIKASOLMU
Otava, January 2023, 174pp

BOOK 1: ISÄMIES JA RÄJÄHTÄVÄ KAKKA
Otava, June 2020, 176pp

BOOK 2: ISÄMIES JA PAHA PIKKUVELI
Otava, Februry 2021, 176pp

BOOK 3: ISÄMIES JA HYYTÄVÄ HYPNOOSI
Otava, January 2022, 192 pp

Age group: 7+

Reading material:
English sample of Book 4 & synopses of Books 1-4

The Dad Man Series

Arttu Unkari, illustrated by Kai Vaalio
The quirkiest cop in town! The Dad Man Series offers fast-paced adventures and humour for all ages – especially lower middle grade.

✓  German rights sold! (Books 1-2)

✓  For fans of David Walliams and Captain Underpants

✓  A perfect “Gateway series to literature” for reluctant readers

✓  Books in the series have been nominated for the Storytel awards 2020, 2021, and 2022 (Best children’s audiobook), Best Newcomer of the Year 2020, and the Runeberg Prize 2023!

✓  Bold and fresh 4-colour comic-book style artwork that add visual jokes to the narration

✓  100,000 copies sold in Finland!

✓  4 books available and more to come, with 5th book coming in 2024 – work as standalones and can be read in any order!

Dad Man is a dad, and a policeman – but he also has a superpower! Too bad his superpower is one shared by almost all dads – an unwavering belief in himself and his own abilities. Dad Man truly believes he knows everything and can do anything, but as it goes with most dads, the reality is quite different. And it follows that Dad Man’s nine-year-old daughter Oona needs to solve all of the issues herself.

Newest:
Book 4: Dad Man and the Impossible Time Warp

Oona and her friends find out that Dad Man would never have gotten into police school without help – from them! How is that possible? The friends have no choice but to jump into a time machine and go back to Dad Man’s police academy years to find out.
The four friends find themselves at the centre of a mysterious series of art theft. The case is being investigated by the police academy’s quirkiest cadets, including, of course, Dad Man. Luckily, Oona and friends have a clue of their own. There is a criminal in the police school who they have already caught once.

Also available:
Book 1: Dad Man and the Exploding Poop

A horrific poop explosion flies the minister of education to the Moon in the middle of a regular evening. And even worse is yet to come: it turns out there’s a mad inventor behind it all, who is threatening more explosions if no one solves his twisted riddle.
The pride and role model of the police force, the heroic Dad Man, is not one to flinch and immediately sets out to solve the case. However, his nine-year-old daughter Oona knows that Dad Man’s investigations lead to nothing but disarray. Oona has no choice but to take matters into her own hands.

Book 2: Dad Man and the Evil Little Brother
Something odd is going on, because adults have started to behave stranger than usual – they are telling the truth!
At the same time, there’s a wave of mysterious gold thefts in the city – even goldfish go missing! Oona is sure that her cute little brother Veikka knows more than he lets on. But how to prove it? As usual, the totally incompetent policeman Dad Man is mishandling his robbery investigations, and Oona must rush to the rescue. But the evil little brother is always one step ahead.

Book 3: Dad Man and the Horrible Hypnosis
When Oona and Eeli’s class gets a substitute teacher, strange things start to happen at school: the students become obedient, and at the same time get all excited about playing the recorder. Meanwhile, a strange series of factory fires keep policeman Dad Man busy, who, as usual, is vigorously chasing a false lead.
The appearance of the new teacher at the crime scenes makes Oona suspicious. Even the adults start to become obedient as the weird flute playing trend is spreading like wildfire and this time Eeli is of no help to Oona. Will Oona succeed on her own in stopping the substitute teacher from taking over the world?

“A funny and engaging series [–] The series has such delightful characters, carefree school anarchy, and flight of imagination, and one is looking forward to the continuation.”
–Ilkka Valpasvuo on Kulttuuritoimitus magazine

 

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)
GERMANY: Mixtvision

DENMARK: Bogoo

MUSTAN KUUN MAJATALO 
Lasten Keskus, October 2021, 310pp

Age group: 7+

Reading material:
English sample & synopsis

Black Moon Inn

Reetta Niemelä, illustrated by Katri Kirkkopelto

Black Moon Inn starts a new magical middle-grade series irresistibly blending mythology and environmental protection!

✓  Winner of the Arvid Lydecken Prize 2022

✓  Nominated for the Finlandia Prize 2022 – Audience favourite!

✓  Illustrator Katri Kirkkopelto was nominated for the Finlandia Prize several times (2005, 2016, 2020) and is the winner of the Kylli Koski Prize 2009

✓  Author and poet Reetta Niemelä won the The Kaarina Helakisa Prize in 2011 and has so far been nominated for the Finlandia Prize three times!

The animal-loving Saimi Salaper and her veterinarian father move to the city of Bluehill in order to set up a hospital for wild animals there. By coincidence, they buy an old inn, where one can hear weird noises behind closed doors, see rare butterflies fly past on the yard, and, at the rooftop, there seems to be… a perch for dragons.

Little by little, the house reveals its secrets to Saimi, and soon the Black Moon Inn is open for creatures of the secret folk who seek refuge there: the trolls, the fairies, and many more. But there’s a threat lurking just behind a corner, and the Inn takes both Saimi and the reader on an exciting adventure into the world of the secret folk.

“The novel, which refreshes the tradition of fairytales, speaks for environmental protection, animal rights and imagination. Just as important as it is to take care of nature and animals, it is to care for the world of magic, miracles, and imaginary creatures. The characters, customs and living areas of the trolls and fairies have been illustrated beautifully and with attention to detail. One wants to stop to appreciate each image, but also feels a strong need to carry on reading the story.”
–Finlandia Jury 2022

 

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Lasten Keskus (orig.)
ESTONIA: Varrak

MUSTAN KUUN MAJAKKA
Lasten Keskus, May 2023, 359 pp

Age group: 7+

Reading material:
English  synopsis

Black Moon Lighthouse

Reetta Niemelä, illustrated by Katri Kirkkopelto

Black Moon Lighthouse continues the charming magical adventure of Saimi and her friends of the secret folk!

✓  Book 1 in the series won the Arvid Lydecken Prize 2022 and was nominated for the Finlandia Children’s and YA Prize 2022

✓  Illustrator Katri Kirkkopelto was nominated for the Finlandia Prize several times (2005, 2016, 2020) and is the winner of the Kylli Koski Prize 2009

✓  Author and poet Reetta Niemelä won the The Kaarina Helakisa Prize in 2011 and has so far been nominated for the Finlandia Prize three times!

Something truly mysterious is happening in Bluehill! A group called “Bedtime’s Ugliest Fears Forgotten: Orcs Out at Night” aka B.U.F.F.O.O.N, which persecutes the secret folk, is circling the streets. Indeed, it seems that some folk have gone missing already! Saimi and her friends try to find out what it’s all about, but that is hard to do when adults are disturbing them. And if that wasn’t enough, a bunch of ghosts decide to celebrate the Kekri festival. Eventually the worst fears of Saimi and her friends come true: one of them disappears!

A dangerous operation begins, illuminated by the silver-coloured heartfires of dragons shining deep from within the ground. Is it possible that the ancient lighthouse would once more shine the beacons of the secret folk?

The second chapter in the BLACK MOON trilogy, this book is not lacking in peculiar characters with funny names and thrilling events. The language is original and rich, and the illustrations feed the imagination. Themes related to nature conservation are in the center of the story, but not in a traditional way. [It also] includes a proper amount of folklore and mythology. This series can be recommended for elementary school age friends of books and fantasy.
 – Kirjat kertovat blog

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Lasten Keskus (orig.)

WAARALINNAN SALAISUUDET 1: SEITSEMÄN KIELONLEHTEÄ
Tammi, June 2022, 352pp

Age group: 9+

Reading material:
English sample & synopsis

The Secrets of Grimhill: Seven Lily-of-the-Valleys

Janne Malinen, illustrated by Teemu Juhani

A captivating middle-grade trilogy about being an outsider, of friendship, bravery, and loss.

✓  A mystery adventure trilogy where nothing is what it seems

✓  The atmospheric setting, strong characters and unique plotlines make this an irresistible read

✓  Series trailer in English available

✓  For fans of Astrid Lindgren and Harry Potter

The thoughtful and elaborate opening of a middle-grade trilogy opens the doors to the mysterious Grimhill Sanatorium, where secrets and dangers lurk both on the labyrinthine corridors as well as in the surrounding forest.

Oskar is a perfectly average boy living with his parents in the red brick house by the biggest market square in the city. Everything changes when he is diagnosed with a serious illness. His parents send him to the remote Grimhill sanatorium, which from the very first moments feels suspicious and off-putting – and the staff don’t make it better. It seems like they are hiding something. Together with his new friends Robin and Vilma, Oskar gets pulled into a compelling adventure as they try to find out what is behind the ominous voices in the night. And what is hiding within the cold forest which seems to enchant the children?

The Secrets of Grimhill: Seven Lily-of-the-Valleys begins an exciting and warm trilogy where nothing is what it seems.

The book is thrillingly exciting, but at the same time it is also a comforting story about the importance of friendship and of bravery.”
 – Heli Keskinen in Kangasalan Sanomat newspaper

Proper adventures [–] Malinen’s narration is rich and thorough
 – Helsingin Sanomat newspaper

WAARALINNAN SALAISUUDET 2: VERENPUNAINEN KRISTALLI
Tammi, June 2023, 200pp

Age group: 9+

Reading material:
English synopsis

The Secrets of Grimhill: The Blood Red Crystal

Janne Malinen, illustrated by Teemu Juhani

A captivating middle-grade trilogy about being an outsider, of friendship, bravery, and loss.

✓  A mystery adventure trilogy where nothing is what it seems

✓  The atmospheric setting, strong characters and unique plotlines make this an irresistible read

✓  Series trailer in English available

✓  For fans of Astrid Lindgren and Harry Potter


The shadows over the castle grow, and no one is safe…

In the second part of the trilogy, fate leads the children from the shelter of Grimhill’s walls to the dark alleys of the city and nightly meadow.

The cold autumn winds are blowing, and a new school year begins in Grimhill. Oskar, Robin and Vilma meet again with the familiar staff of the sanatorium and the new head doctor, Hjalmar Klemet. All seems to be well on the surface, but underneath the surface the friendship between the trio is put to the test: Robin spends more and more time with the girl who arrived at the sanatorium in the spring and Vilma retreats more into her own world. The disturbing noises during the night are getting louder again and won’t leave Oskar alone. The final piece of the map leading to the forest is finally found, and the children learn of a mysterious and life-threatening task. A task that only the three of them can complete.

 

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)

#1 AGNES JA UNIEN AVAIN
WSOY, March 2020, 200 pp.

#2 AGNES JA HUVILAN SALAISUUS
WSOY, March 2021, 180 pp.

#3 AGNES JA VARJO IKKUNASSA
WSOY, May 2022, 186pp

Age group: 9+

Reading material:
English samples & synopses

Agnes Series

Tuutikki Tolonen, illustrated by Kati Vuorento

Weird dreams, a mysterious graveyard, and hidden keys – Agnes has to follow the clues to solve a long forgotten family mystery

✓  Winner of Luku Varkaus Award 2021!

✓  Nominated for Arvid Lydecken Award 2021!

✓  Honorable Mention for Runeberg Junior Award 2021

#1 Agnes and the Garden of Dreams

Moving to a new city is frightening enough for 11-year-old Agnes. But when she makes an exciting discovery at the local cemetery, the summer isn’t the same anymore! Everything began on that one summer day when Agnes walked through the cemetery gate. She had just moved to a boring new town and left behind her old home and friends. But then something strange happened and her life became more exciting than ever!

She finds a tombstone that has the name Agnes on it – and the same birthday as hers! From that day on, Agnes keeps having dreams of a girl who hides a key in a beautiful garden. When Agnes stumbles upon the same garden, she knows she must find the key. But what will it open?

#2 Agnes and the Mysterious Manor

Agnes’ adventures continue in this sequel that is both a ghost story and a family mystery. Agnes and her mother have inherited a beautiful old villa, but there seems to be something strange about it. There is a lovely scent of flowers in the air, even though there aren’t any flowers in the houses. Every morning, the lid of an old piano is found open even though no one has been playing it. More importantly, why can they hear steps on the staircase to the attic?

#3 Agnes and the Shadow in the Window

Agnes and her mother have moved into their mysterious manor where summer camps are held. Suddenly, drawings that no one claims to have drawn appear during an arts summer camp. A strange shadow is captured by Agnes’s camera, as if someone is standing next to the window in the empty room. Does the manor have more secrets to share?

“Magically charming children’s novel [–] A lovely and mystical adventure story, which keeps you in its grip. Kati Vuorent’s beautiful and delicate illustrations bring the story alive. [–] Tolonen’s text flows with just the right pace and the dialogue sounds good in the mouths of the 11-year-olds. The description of the surroundings are just perfectly realistic and partly mystical. The fantasy elements feel natural and drive the story forward.”
– Minna Koivula on Bibidi Bobidi Book blog
“Deals with hard and big topics, for example parents’ divorce and bullying. [–] The great mystery plot advances well with its determined and sympathetic main characters.”
– Helsingin Sanomat newspaper

“Agnes is a very charming story about friendship and family, it is gripping and heart-warming at the same time. Tuutikki Tolonen takes us to a place full of mysteries, and dreams and she creates an atmosphere where the reader immediately feels comfortable. We are very happy to welcome Agnes to our list!”
– Wiebke Andersen, Editor, Carlsen Verlag, Germany

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: WSOY (orig.)
CZECH REPUBLIC: Portál, s. r. o.
DENMARK: ABC Forlag
ESTONIA: Eesti Raamat
GERMANY: Carlsen Verlag
HUNGARY: Cerkabella
ROMANIA: Editura Paralela 45
RUSSIA: Rosman

#1 SALMANTERIN TERTTU JA MINIMERIROSVOT
Otava, 2019, 140 pp.

#2 SALMANTERIN TERTTU JA HUIJAREIDEN KUNINGAS
Otava, 2020, 140 pp.

#3 SALMANTERIN TERTTU JA JUUSTOINEN MYSTEERI
Otava, June 2021, 144 pp.

#4 SALMANTERIN TERTTU JA SORKKARAUTAGAALA
Otava, May 2022, 144 pp.

Age group: 8+

Reading material:
English samples & synopses

Mabel Merryweather Series

Noora Kunnasillustrated by Teemu Juhani

A fast and funny middle grade mystery series by a Finnish children’s book author who loves Roald Dahl and crazy stories!

✓  Series sold to 9 territories!

✓  Winner of the Prix Chronos 2023 in Switzerland!

#1 Mabel Merryweather and the Miniature Pirates
Supergranny, a singing rooster, and mischievous mini pirates – a new series begins!

Nick and Lilly’s visit to their rule-loving, child-hating uncle turns into an adventure as the children get to know their exciting, eccentric neighbor: Mabel Merryweather. Mabel and her friends are preparing for a flower arranging competition, when the town is hit by a jewel thief. Nick, Lilly, and Mabel have their own problems as Mabel’s decorative miniature pirates have come to life and are rummaging through backyards. And what happened to the main judge of the competition – a pop singer Monika who disappeared that same day? Something must be done to bring peace and order back to the town of Dalton.

#2 Mabel Merryweather and King of Thieves
The wild gang is back! Nick, Lilly, Supergranny Mabel, and her talking rooster face a new enemy: an art hustler. The second book in a new middle-grade mystery series!

The town of Dalton is celebrating a local children’s poet’s 140th anniversary, and everyone is dressed up as a character from a poem. But amongst the happy people there is also a gentleman thief who has terrorized art museums all spring. Through many mistakes and misunderstandings, Nick and Lilly help the police catch the thief – and teach a lesson to a grumpy literary critic.

#3 Mabel Merryweather and Cheesy Mystery
The streets of Dalton have turned holey like Emmental cheese!

Mabel Merryweather’s friend Bruno and his goats have arrived from Switzerland to perform at the Dalton cheese festival. This fragrant event has attracted a lot of people to the venue, but to the horror of the townspeople, mysterious holes have started to appear on streets and courtyards at night. Who digs them – and why? The rumor spreads that the town is infested by aliens, but Lilly, Nick, and the mighty Mabel Merryweather don’t believe the gossip. With the help of yodeling goats, they dig up the truth.

#4 Mabel Merryweather and the Crowbar Gala
A bandit gathering at an awards gala causes havoc in town! The fourth title in this cracking detective series for middle-grade readers.

Nick and Lilly go camping and birdwatching on an island. Visiting Mabel’s inventor-friend Helga turns out to be anything but quiet when Pedro the Rooster vanishes. To boot, the news reports say that a bunch of bandits have escaped from prison.
Soon, they find out that the old factory building on the opposite shore is not being used for filming the newest season of a popular game show, but instead for organizing the Crowbar Gala, in which awards for the most successful bandits are given out. Without the wits of Nick, Lilly, and the mighty Mabel Merryweather, these goons would be able to continue with their mischief.

“Mabel Merryweather and the Miniature Pirates is a vibrant, cheerful and lighthearted from the beginning to the end. It is an adventure novel, but with new fresh elements like a singing rooster and mini-pirates. Not only has it an exciting story, it also has a very good message – the elderly people are not depicted as passive and helpless but on the contrary: the grannies and the children solve problems together!”
– Hanna Győri, editor, Pozsonyi Pagony Kft. Hungary

A supergranny, a singing rooster, and unruly miniature pirates. Speed and sneakiness for the middle grade. [–] Beginning of a new series with fast pace, funny twists and interesting characters. The gorgeous black-and-white illustrations are by Teemu Juhani.”
– LukuVarkaus 2020 award jury about Mabel Merryweather and the Miniature Pirates

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)
BULGARIA: Enthusiast
DENMARK: ABC Forlag
GERMANY: Mixtvision Verlag
HUNGARY: Pagony
ITALY: Terre di Mezzo
NETHERLANDS: Veltman Uitgevers
POLAND: Znak
RUSSIA: Eksmo

#1 ANNI KAVERINKESYTTÄJÄ
Tammi 2020, 128 pp.

#2 ANNI KAVERINKESYTTÄJÄ PUNAISELLA MATOLLA
Tammi 2021, 120 pp.

#3 ANNI KAVERINKESYTTÄJÄ SUOLAISILLA VESILLÄ
Tammi 2022, 128 pp.

Age group: 7+

Reading material:
Full English texts books 1-3

Anni the Friend Tamer series

Kaisa Paasto, illustrated by Mari Ahokoivu

Shy people of the world, unite!

✓  With hilariously quirky 4-colour artwork that perfectly illustrates the two sides of Anni: fun and witty at home, quiet and shy at school

✓  Teaching middle grade readers that it’s cool to be “weird” and that everyone can find their tribe of like-minded people

✓  An anti “pink girls” series!

✓  Rights sold to Germany and Albania!

✓  Illustrator Mari Ahokoivu won the Puupäähattu Comic Book Award 2023 and has been nominated for the Finlandia Prize in 2021

#1 Anni the Friend Tamer

Anni is a 10-year-old girl. When her friend Miisa moves abroad, Anni has a chilling realization: she has never had to find a new friend. Is it too late to learn how to make friends? Obviously, no one can learn a skill this big when they’re 10, can they? Anni also has another problem. Her new pet pig only wants to stay in his safe place, under the table. Good thing Anni’s brother has just had a back operation, as this means he has lots of time to lie in bed and dole out advice. Anni’s parents are alright as far as parents go, even if they laugh a bit too much at their own jokes.

So it’s not all bad – Anni just needs to become a ‘friend tamer’!

#2 Anni the Friend Tamer on the Red Carpet

Anni is inspired to do something good. Her class is shown a news clip about a hurricane in Brazil, and Anni sees a girl in it with a t-shirt exactly like one of her own. She must do something to help! Anni starts to make a movie with her friend Riia. The movie will be shown in the library auditorium to collect money for charity work in Brazil. But things don’t go as planned – the project is hijacked by “the pink girls”.

Anni’s mom, on the other hand, is having a career crisis, since her blog is not making money. But Anni can always be relied on for ideas! Anni learns that doing good is surprisingly easy – and surprisingly hard. The secret might actually be… teamwork.

#3 Anni the Friend Tamer in Salty Waters

Dealing with ghosts – and tricky cousins – is a lot more fun on a sunny island!

Get ready for some maritime vibes! If you like Vi på Saltkråkan (Seacrow Island) by Astrid Lindgren, this book may well be your new favorite.
Anni and her family spend the summer on a small island with her cousin’s family. Anni doesn’t remember her cousin Niko that well, but oh boy, does he turn out to be a pest. Niko keeps telling Anni about a ghost on the island, an old laundry lady who was also named Anni. Anni is not a gullible person, but when the evidence piles up, it’s hard not to be spooked… On a more fun note, a big treasure hunt is held on the island and Anni is determined to win it!

“Kaisa Paasto manages to carry out the inner emotional world of shy children, but at the same time effortlessly portrays the heroine as likable and self-confident. What immediately convinced us was the sweet little pig, which reflects the development of the protagonist: At first scared, strange, and a bit out of place, in the end an open, lovable friend. What a wonderful story!”
– Laura Hänel, Editor, Loewe Verlag, German

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)
ALBANIA: Muza (books 1-2)
GERMANY: Loewe Verlag (books 1-3)

#1 MÖRKÖVAHTI
Tammi 2015, 300 pp.

#2 MÖRKÖREITTI
Tammi 2016, 285 pp.

#3 MÖRKÖVIESTI
Tammi 2020, 250 pp.

Age group: 7+

Reading material:
Book 1: English edition
Book 2-3: English sample & synopsis, German editions

 

Monster Nanny Trilogy

Tuutikki Tolonen, illustrated by Pasi Pitkänen

The Monstrous Mary Poppins – international bestseller with a Hollywood Film in development

✓  Rights sold in 37 territories!

✓  A feature film in development, co-produced by Ridley Scott!

✓  Monster Nanny is the winner of Arvid Lydecken Award 2016 and the Monster Nanny series was a Anni Polva Award nominee (2017)

✓  Tuutikki Tolonen is also the winner of the LukuVarkaus Award 2021 and has been nominated for the Arvid Lydecken Award 2021, the Anni Polva Award 2021, and has received an honorable Mention at the Runeberg Junior Award 2021

#1 Monster Nanny
The Hellman children have been sent a nanny to look after them while their mother is at a spa. The only problem? Their nanny is a monster.

Grah is hairy, dusty, and doesn’t talk. When the siblings discover that other neighborhood kids have been left with similar creatures, they start to wonder where the monsters came from. With the parents away, the kids work together (between bickering) to figure out the mystery of the monsters.

#2 Monster Route
Mimi, 6 years old, has snuck into the monsters’ underground world after her monster friend Grah. She travels in their tunnels, led by the odd Gatekeeper. Back at home, Koby and Halley put their heads together and manage to get in touch with Mimi. But who is the mysterious and frightening ruler of the monster world?

#3 Monster Message
The Hellman kids face new troubles. Mom and Dad want to move into a bigger home on the other side of the city. When Mimi finds crumpled leaves with strange markings in her room, they look like messages from the underground, but who’s delivering them and why? And why does the Gatekeeper of the underground world appear in their bathroom?

The upbeat tone, oddball details, and Pitkänen’s humorous b&w cartoons combine to create a strange but entertaining romp that will surprise readers at every turn.
– Publishers Weekly, USA
We’re thrilled to be bringing Monster Nanny to Greek readers, who will adore this wonderful, adventurous tale about three loveable siblings and the monster in the hall closet that changes their lives. For us, reading the books felt like a breath of fresh air; what best to propose to our children!
– Patakis Publishers, Greece
An adorable and fun adventure story with quirky humor and an intriguing mystery to be solved. Monster Nanny is incredibly imaginative, compelling, and highly readable middle grade book.
– Dijana Orsolic Hrstic, Editor in Chief, Znanje, Croatia

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)
AUSTRALIA: Allen & Unwin
ALBANIA: Westprint
BOSNIA: Šahinpašić
BRAZIL: DarkSide Books
BULGARIA: Robertino
CHINA: Beijing Children’s Publishing House
CROATIA: Znanje
CZECH REPUBLIC: Portál
DENMARK: Turbine
ESTONIA: Tiritamm
FRANCE: Editions Robert Laffont
GERMANY: Carl Hanser Verlag
GREECE: Patakis
HUNGARY: Tessloff Babilon
ITALY: Salani/Mauri Spagnol
JAPAN: Sekaibunka
KOREA: Seosawon
LATVIA: Zvaigzne
LITHUANIA: Nieko Rimto
NETHERLANDS: (print) Luitingh-Sijthoff
NETHERLANDS: (audio) Saga Egmont
NEW ZEALAND: Allen & Unwin
NORWAY: Gyldendal Norsk
OCEANIA: Allen & Unwin
POLAND: Vesper
PORTUGAL: Asa Editiones/Leya
ROMANIA: Univers
RUSSIA: Rosman
SERBIA: Laguna
SLOVAKIA: Arkus
SLOVENIA: Mladinska knjiga
SPAIN (Spanish): La Galera
SPAIN (Catalan): La Galera
SWEDEN: Rabén & Sjögren
TURKEY: SEV Redhouse Kidz
UKRAINE: School Publishing House
VIETNAM: Nha Nam
WORLD ENGLISH: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
FILM RIGHTS: Scott Free Productions

Young adult

NARAKA
WSOY, autumn 2023, tbc pp.

Age group: 15+ fantasy

Reading material:
English sample & synopsis

Naraka

Elina Pitkäkangas

The sequel to SANG takes the reader back to Fusang and the world where Kong Dawei is faced with impossible choices.

✓  Part 2 in a fantasy duology by the talented YA writer and TikTok star Elina Pitkäkangas!

✓  Rights to SANG sold in Germany, Denmark, and Turkey!

✓  SANG won the Topelius Award 2023 and the City of Tampere Literature Prize 2023!!

✓  Rare representation of sign language in YA

 The conclusion of a duology about war and human relations by the winner of the Topelius Prize

Kong Dawei has returned to his home region, but nothing is the same. The second book of the duology, loved by readers and praised by experts, is a vivid and an intensive novel about war, morals, and ever holding love.

The sequel of the top-rated book SANG presents Fusang’s region Naraka, a workcamp where the unfortunate citizens are sent. The resistance is growing there. When Kong Dawei finds himself in the middle of The Iron Rebellion, he must face the boundaries of his loyalty. Whose side does he want to be on? Can there be winners in the war?

“In the dystopian world recovering from a brutal war the different societal classes are miles apart, and the distance grows with a citizenship debt to be paid yearly. [–] Pitkäkangas describes the inequality and abuse of power skillfully. Warmth and balance is brought by the love between the brothers, but also romantic love and sexual desire. The object of the feelings is a friend, another boy, and the queer theme fits Sang without a fault.”
 – Arla Kanerva in Helsingin Sanomat newspaper on SANG

“Elina Pitkäkangas is an incredibly skilled storyteller. The story of Sang sucks me in before I can blink. With all my senses, I’m deep in the story, thanks to the detailed descriptions. I love it when I can feel so many emotions when reading a book – sadness, joy, anger, relief, happiness… [–] I also want to applaud the representation and using sensitivity readers. This is how a good book is made”
 – Paperimato bookstagram on SANG
Rights sold:
FINLAND: WSOY (orig.)
DENMARK: Straarup & Co

SANG
WSOY, September 2022, 496 pp.

Age group: 15+ fantasy

Reading material:
English sample & synopsis

Sang

Elina Pitkäkangas

An epic novel about love and power in a fictional East Asia of the future! When a person’s value is determined by money and happiness by family, what will be left when both are ripped away?

✓  Rights to SANG sold in Germany, Denmark, and Turkey!

✓  Winner of the Topelius Award 2023 and the City of Tampere Literature Prize!

✓  Praised by readers and critics for its convincing world-building, multifaceted characters and cinematic descriptions

✓  Rare representation of sign language in YA

The state of Fusang is recovering from a war that ravaged the world. 16-year-old Kong Dawei, an earnest young man, is living in a poor mountain village and tries to pay his adopted siblings’ citizen dues by transporting contraband goods at night.

After a series of unfortunate events, Dawei ends up in the southern capital which is ruled by the cruel matriarch of the White Tiger Clan. When there is nothing else to lose, Dawei has only one goal: to get back to his loved ones – whatever it takes.

Sang is an addictive fantasy novel that travels through cold mountains and humid cities, noisy bazaars and opulent halls, and the world after the Black Rain, in which one’s value is measured in money.

“The dystopian novel upholds a beautiful and dark atmosphere in the state of Fusang. Sang is an epic story about a youngster trying to fight against the impossible circumstances of a totalitarian state. Kong Dawei joins the rebels, and breathtaking events follow one another. Pitkäkangas’ skill to conjure with believable details a whole world is enchanting. Our choices create a chain which not only joins us together, but also in the end defines who and what we are. Sang is a story about love, but above all it is a story about morale: all the things we are ready to do for one another.”
 – the Topelius Award jury on SANG

Sang, Elina Pitkäkangas’ fantasy novel, is an incredibly beautifully built title, rich in its language, intensive, and truly exciting, luring the reader into the story right from the start and keeping its grip till the end – and in a way that the reader waits for the sequel. Sang is a story about poverty and wealth, about power and oppression, about the relationship between nature and humans, about love and brotherhood. Its timeless, enchanting, multilayered story utilizes the cultures from China and East Asia skillfully, respecting them. A fantastical work, also for those who are not traditional friends of fantasy literature.”
 – the City of Tampere Literature Prize Award jury

Rights sold:
FINLAND: WSOY (orig.)
DENMARK: Straarup (2-book deal)
TURKEY: Indigo Kitap
GERMANY: cbj

SARVIJUMALA 
Otava, March 2023, 162 pp.

Age group: 14+ horror

Reading material:
English sample & synopsis

The Horned God

Magdalena Hai

Creeping horror for the YA audience

✓  Winner of the Finlandia Prize for children’s and YA literature of 2023! Nominated for the Topelius Prize of 2024!

✓  Magdalena Hai’s books have been sold in over 27 territories and she has been nominated for several prestigious awards (Finlandia Prize, Nordic Council Literature Prize)

✓  Magdalena Hai is the winner of the Finnish Literary Export Prize (2017) and Kaarina Helakisa Prize (2020)

When death touches your life, everything changes.

Lauri wakes up in the hospital after a fatal car crash and he doesn’t remember much about it. Mom is dead and now life has changed drastically.

When Lauri starts his slow recovery in a small town at his aunt’s house, he has an unpleasant feeling that everything is not right. The dead don’t stay dead and the beautiful neighbor Vilja-Maaria doesn’t want to live. When an ominous creature with antlers appears behind the window, Lauri begins to see nightmarish dreams that feel too real.

The grim horror novel is one of the bright spots of this spring’s YA literature. [–] The Horned God is top-quality horror, where the atmosphere gets tighter and tighter as the bitter dead extort their loved ones who are still living. A little solace for [the main character] Lauri is offered by Vilja-Maaria, who, like the horned god, appears in his dreams. Hai reaches convincingly both the inner landscape of a young man and the reality numbed by the accident. [–] The Horned God gives the reader a tight, chilling story of death and regret.”
– Joonas Riekkola in Keskisuomalainen newspaper

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)

RUMUUSPÄIVÄKIRJA  
Otava, March 2023, 160 pp.

Age group: 14+

Reading material:
English sample & synopsis

My Ugly Diary

Mari Kujanpää

A contemporary and touching YA novel about the courage to be yourself and finding your own people

✓  Mari Kujanpää won the Finlandia Prize in 2009

✓  Deals with body image, bullying and the pressure on teenagers to always be Instagram-ready

 “Everyone else has a purpose, and they always walk without looking at their surroundings. Someone’s waiting for them somewhere. I’m not going anywhere and I’m not expected anywhere. Yet my feet are moving me somewhere”.

Age 14, shoe size 42, height 175 centimetres, cup size AA and a hideously ugly face, that’s how Malva is defined. She knows she is ugly, and the other pupils remind her of it daily with words and looks. Malva escapes to art and nature. Then along comes Runo, who is passionate about the same things.

My Ugly Diary is a delicate story about how a bullied girl hating her own reflection slowly recovers from the anxiety of her looks. Everyone who has been insecure about their looks can relate to Malva’s experiences.

Finlandia award-winner Mari Kujanpää writes directly and sympathetically about subjects that touch young readers.

Mari Kujanpää’s My Ugly Diary shakes its readers to question the norms and beauty standards upheld by social media. 14-year-old Malva hates the fact that people are judged on the basis of looks, but notices she does the same herself. Malva’s story speaks strongly for self-compassion and body peace.”
– Päivi Heikkila-Halttunen in Helsingin Sanomat newspaper
MY UGLY DIARY breaks the well-tested mold of YA novels and doesn’t portray psychological violence as simple bullying or hidden infatuation. [The novel] does not attempt to turn embarrassing and hurtful situations into jokes or belittle them by exaggerating. [—] However, MY UGLY DIARY does not become wrapped up in misery, but turns into an empowering book. [—] MY UGLY DIARY is a book that guides instead of teaching.”
– Mari Viertola in Turun Sanomat newspaper
Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)
ESTONIA: Varrak
MATALAPAINE/
KORKEAPAINE
Tammi, May 2021, 138pp.

Age group: 15+

Reading material:
Full English translation

In the Dark I Can Be Yours

Salla Simukka

If your love can only be a secret, will it last?

✓  Rights sold to Actes Sud in France!

✓  Queer love story acclaimed for its beautifully realistic narration!

✓  Salla Simukka is Finland’s most internationally bestselling author with the Snow White Trilogy sold in 52 territories!

Varpu and Saga are two sixteen-year-old girls that are forced to stay in their hometown for the summer. After just one drunken kiss, prejudice and identity are shattered and it’s revealed how, behind the facade, everyone hurts and loves the same. In The Dark I Can be Yours is a touching and beautiful title about great emotions in the summer.

The authentic characters are supported by Simukka’s light and airy narrative. Each side of the book tells one girl’s story, which effortlessly melts together into a summer of love, insecurities, and the exploration of two young people.

A breath of summer love [–] The ending hangs in the air in a way that both makes you crave more and think that every word was right where it should’ve been. A beautiful work of art by Simukka.”
–Siniset Helmet blog
“The narration is light, almost poetical, and so one reads it quick. Despite this, the book is not an easy read. For the covers hide truly big, impactful issues, told by two different protagonists. [–] -the book describes beautifully one’s awakening sexuality and the pondering on one’s own identity.”

–Kirjapöllön huhuiluja blog
A dream-like atmospheric description of one summer from two different perspectives. [–] This made me cry!
– Siiri Enoranta, author
Dear people, here is a book worth of five stars. [–] The work has great contemplation of identity and sexual orientation, and the questioning of it. The longing and uncertainty regarding the feelings of the other was so touching and relatable that there might’ve been some tears shed
– Salla on goodreads.com

 MORE INFO

 AUTHOR VIDEO

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)
FRANCE: Actes Sud Jeunesse

MISTÄ VALO PÄÄSEE SISÄÄN

Otava, November 2021, 320 pp.

Age group: 15+ dystopia, love story

Reading material:
English sample and synopsis

Where the Light Comes In

Anne-Maija Aalto

What is a person if you take away their memory? Who determines what we believe? A captivating story of rebellion, hope, and humanity…

✓  Finlandia Prize winner – The best Children’s & Young Adult title in Finland 2021!

✓  Finlandia Prize audience favorite 2021!

✓  Winner of the Young Aleksis Award 2022!

✓  Rights sold to Editions Milan in France in a two-book deal!

Aleksei is a young man whose father runs a human research institute in Tokyo, which is now partly covered by the sea. New batches of test subjects regularly arrive at the facility, including one with Satomi, a young woman whose memory is set to be erased. Satomi becomes Aleksei’s trial case, since he is meant to continue his father’s work. But something is already churning beneath the surface, and the younger generation can see the horrors of the system their parents have created.

Finlandia Award winner Anne-Maija Aalto’s Where the Light Comes In is the dystopian love story of two very different characters with different values set in a water-covered former Japan. It is a stand-alone sequel to Aalto’s acclaimed novel Dragonfly and a tremendously skillful, captivating story of rebellion, hope and humanity. It was selected as the winner of the Finlandia Prize for Children’s & Young Adult Literature by futurist and non-fiction author Perttu Pölönen.

A strong and impactful work, which strikes at the heart of the perils of our time.”
–Tähtivaeltaja Award Jury 
“The narration is effortless, the world distant, yet timely. The great questions of humanity are present. The story elegantly invites young people to see how their relationships with their parents can change when they get to know them better.”
–Perttu Pölönen, Futurist, Non-Fiction Author, Finlandia Prize Jury 
Where The Light Comes In is a captivating dystopian description of a future world with problems so like our current ones. [–] The multiple points-of-view open the story to the reader, and the beautiful narration and text bring it alive. The dissidents of the new generation slowly but surely bring about an uprising which makes the citizens of New Tokyo question their society.”
–Young Aleksis Jury

FINLANDIA WINNER!

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)
HUNGARY: Metropolis Media Group
FRANCE: Editions Milan (two-book deal)

KORENTO

Otava, December 2020, 387 pp.

Age group: 15+ dystopia, love story

Reading material:
English info sheet

Dragonfly

Anne-Maija Aalto

✓  Independent prequel to 2021 Finlandia winner Where the Light Comes In!

✓  Topelius Prize Nominee 2020

✓  Young Aleksis Award Nominee 2021

✓  Rights sold to Editions Milan in France in a two-book deal!

A shocking, brilliantly told story about resistance in an unequal society. Two young women, Satomi and Mai have always stuck together. They were born in an internment village on an island that was called Japan before sea level rose. They are non-citizens whose purpose is to serve full citizens.
On good nights they go to the seaside together to wade. They still have that, even if everything else has been taken away from them.
Then Commander Rafikov takes Mai to make her a Nymph.
And Satomi can’t just wait anymore.

“I’m standing here and coming apart inside, just like that. I’m only thinking of the end.”

 

Dragonfly is a dystopian set in the near future, a world after a flood. [–] The impactful book narrates with a beautiful language a story about friendship, loss, and the inequality in society and between genders.

–Topelius Prize jury  

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)
FRANCE: Editions Milan (two-book deal)

#1 JÄÄTÄVÄÄ
Tammi, July 2022, 168 pp.

#2 KELLOPELIKUISKAAJA
Tammi, August 2022, 224 pp.

#3 KORVAAJA 
Tammi, May 2022, 178pp

#4 MURHABALLADIT
Tammi, April 2023, 197pp.

#5 VALKEAN YÖN LAPSET
Tammi, June 2023, 220 pp.

Age group: 13+

Reading material:
English pdf book 1, English samples books 1-2, & series synopsis

Nordic Horror Series

A.R.S. Horkka

When the days are short, the nightmares are long. And your fears take a monstrous shape.

✓  YA horror series with 7 standalone novels with Nordic twist

The Nordic Horror series is a new horror series from the Nordics, where down-to-earth realism, northern darkness and cold, mystery, murder and mythology are woven together into a nightmarish drapery in the darkest corners of welfare society. But if you look more closely, there is also kindness, friendship and romance in the mix!

The series consists of 7 standalone novels that can be published and read in any order. Each novel introduces a new main character with a fast-paced, original, and fun-to-read plot from a different horror subgenre with a Nordic twist. Above all, each story is an honest and emotional study of its protagonists – of the fears that have made them who they are and how they still have to face their biggest fear of all, no matter what monstrous shape it takes.

Newest:
Book # 5: Children of the Midnight Sun (June 2023)

A remote island. The mystery of murdered children. A nightmare in the middle of the most beautiful midsummer.
16-year-old Dia is sent to spend the summer with her grandmother on a remote island, where a dark secret is revealed.
Dia is returning from her violin lesson when a menacing group of youths begin to follow her. Dia can escape them with the help of magic she learned as a child and the youth get lost in the forest. However, Dia is soon accused of drugging them. As punishment, she is sent to live with her grandmother on a remote island she fears. Dia is forced to confront her old fears and ends up in danger while solving the mystery of murdered children from decades ago.

Also available:

Book # 1: The Shivering (June 2022)
I don’t live in the cold, the cold lives in me.

When six-year-old Armas loses his parents in a plane accident, he is sent to a remote orphanage in northern Lapland, where children are called “hot bloods” who need to be “cooled down.” What people don’t know is that by being “cooled down”, the children are actually losing their emotions to demons. To get his emotions back, Armas, now 16, has to kill each of these demons, including the oldest and most dangerous monster of them all – the demon queen called the Snow Lady.

Book # 2: The Clockwork Whisperer (August 2022)
Do clockwork zombies dream of steam sheep?

Two fifteen-year-old steam engineering cadets, Orca and Vapor, each make a death-defying trip to Helsinki, the Lead City, which is teeming with clockwork zombies and enemy soldiers, to retrieve their beloved mentor, Professor Aeris, the Imperial Clockwork Whisperer, and the Fire Stone, a magical object with the ability to heal the plague raging in the empire and end the war with the Blood Army.

Book # 3: The Stand-In (August 2022)
The past haunts me. I haunt the past.

After a brain tumor diagnosis, 18-year-old Taika, an avid member of a historical reenactment group, develops a psychic connection to a medieval noblewoman, a Viking berserker, and a Finnish civil war photographer. Now, Taika must help them with their troubles, and they help her, to the point of curing her cancer. Ultimately, we learn that the ghost that has been haunting her has been herself all along.

Book # 4: Murder Ballads (April 2023)
Never meet your idol.

Will Krista manage to lift the demonic demo song curse before the Murder ballads will kill everyone?
Krista is a talented guitarist and singer who dreams of stardom with her wedding band. During her high school internship at a psychiatric hospital, Krista meets her heavy metal idol, the iconic lead singer of the legendary Pagan Angels. After helping the singer escape from the hospital with the help of some bandmates, Krista is rewarded with a notorious demo tape, that was thought to be lost. However, when the murder ballads come back to life, the curse must be broken and the monsters that became flesh must be destroyed.

MORE INFO

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Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (books 1-7) (orig.)
RUSSIA: Eksmo (books 1-3)

VIHREÄN LOHIKÄÄRMEEN RISTEYS
Tammi, September 2022, 281 pp.

Age group: 12+ thriller

Reading material:
English sample & synopsis

The Crossing of the Green Dragon

Leena Lehtolainen

The Crossing of the Green Dragon is a YA thriller about loss and the power of friendship. About things you don’t want to reveal to adults. About a world where fear and hope are entangled in each other, and where nobody makes it on their own.

✓  New YA thriller by Finland’s best-selling female crime writer!

✓  Leena Lehtolainen has sold over 2,5 million copies worldwide and has been translated into 30 languages! In the US, only Jo Nesbø has been translated more!

Who has painted the image of a green dragon taking flight on the electronic box at the crossroads? Why does it keep appearing again and again, despite being washed and painted over? 

High school freshman Viggo knows that the original painting was done by his brother Joel shortly before his disappearance. Joel used to play Japanese mahjong and the green dragon was his favorite tile in the game. Joel has been missing for over two years and the police have no leads whatsoever. Did he leave of his own volition or is he the victim of a crime?

Selma and her friend Sennu Koivu used to go and see the painting. Sennu, the daughter of a Vietnamese Chinese mother, used to play an Eastern dragon in their childhood games and Selma the Western one. Together, the girls came up with the language of the dragons that nobody else could understand. Sennu has since passed away, and Selma often visits the dragon to seek connection with her deceased friend.

Selma’s sibling Savu has worries of their own. A gang idolizing roadman culture has managed to extort Savu to join them in stealing designed clothes. Selma doesn’t want to idly watch Savu’s demise. Can she gather the courage to share her worries with her former best friend’s father who works in the police department’s youth intervention unit?

The Crossing of the Green Dragon, as the name suggests, depicts youngsters at the crossroads of their lives. The book depicts the crime and discrimination faced by young people, as well as poverty and many other social issues in a very real way. The book contains great sadness, but at the same time it is very hopeful and gentle.”
– Reetta Niemelä, author
Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)

#1 MARESI
Schildts & Söderströms 2014, 180 pp.

#2 NAONDEL
Förlaget 2016, 400 pp.

#3 BREVEN FRÅN MARESI
Förlaget 2018, 300 pp.

Age group: 14+ / crossover, fantasy

Reading material:

English PDFs

The Red Abbey Chronicles

Maria Turtschaninoff

The Red Abbey Chronicles is a historically-inspired feminist fantasy saga, aimed at young adult audiences.

✓  Rights sold in 31 territories!

✓  International TV series in development!

Maria Turtschaninoff is a two-time winner of the Society of Swedish Literature Prize, a nominee for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, and winner of the 2014 Finlandia Prize!

✓  INHERITED LAND, Maria Turtschaninoff’s first adult fiction novel, has been awarded the prestigious Swedish YLE Literature Prize 2022

#1 Maresi
The Red Abbey is a refuge for women and girls where everyone pursues their own areas of interest. Maresi prefers to spend her time reading and learning. Everything changes when the frightened Jai arrives on the island. She has seen her sister get buried alive for speaking to a young man, and her father and a crew of thugs are after her. Maresi and her friends have to fight to defend both Jai and their community.

#2 Naondel
An independent prequel to Maresi, Naondel tells the story of the First Sisters – founders of the Red Abbey.

Imprisoned in a harem by a dangerous man with a dark magic that grants him power over life and death, the women must overcome their mistrust of each other in order to escape. But they can only do so at great cost, both to those who leave and those left behind.

#3 Maresi: Red Mantle
The third book is an epistolary novel that follows Maresi after she leaves the Red Abbey to establish a school in her oppressed home province of Rovas. The return to her Northern home, and fitting in, is not easy even with all the knowledge she’s bringing with her, but she is determined to triumph over the difficulties. However, she does not need to make it alone, for life has yet another surprise in store: love.

“Maresi stands out for its startling originality, and for the frightening plausibility of the dangerous world it creates.”
– Rebecca Hawkes, Telegraph, United Kingdom

“It’s rare to find a YA fantasy with such polished writing… Utterly satisfying and completely different”
– Bookliststarred review

“Dark, powerful and original… it really stands out in a very crowded YA marketplace. Thrilling, suspenseful and gloriously feminist.”
– The Bookseller

“Beautifully written… Maresi has a touch of Katniss about her, and although the target market is different, female lovers of dystopian fantasy adventures will enjoy the journey.”
– The School Librarian

“It’s hard not to be impressed with Turtschaninoff’s magical world.”
– The Times 

“The novel is at once contemporary and timeless. Its unwavering feminism is resolutely modern, resonating with a range of texts from Ursula Le Guin’s 2001 Tales from Earthsea to Disney’s Frozen. At the same time, it feels authentically ancient and mythic.”
– The Guardian 

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER!

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Rights sold:
FINLAND, Schildts & Söderströms (orig.) (Book 1)
FINLAND, Förlaget (orig.) (Books 2-3)
ALBANIA: Dritan (Book 1-2)
AZERBAIJAN: Alatoran (Book 1-2)
BELGIUM, Clavis (Book 1-2)
BRAZIL, Morro Branco (Books 1-3)
BULGARIA, Izida (Books 1-3)
CANADA (English): Abrams (books 1-3)
CANADA (French), Editions de la Bagnole (Book 1)
CHINA (Simplified), Shanghai 99 (Books 1-3)
CROATIA, Naklada ljevak (Book 1)
DENMARK, Turbine (Book 1)
ESTONIA, Varrak (Book 1-2)
FINLAND, Tammi (Books 1-2)
FRANCE, Rageot (Books 1-2)
GERMANY, Random House/Heyne (Book 1)
HUNGARY, Scolar (Books 1-3)
ITALY, Atmosphere Libri (Books 1-3)
LATVIA, Petergailis (Book 1-2)
LITHUANIA, Aukso Pieva (Book 1-3)
NETHERLANDS, Clavis (Book 1-2)
NORWAY, Gursli Berg Forlag (Books 1-3)
POLAND, Wydawnictwo Debit (Books 1-3)
ROMANIA, Editura Univers (Book 1-2)
RUSSIA: Eksmo (books 1-3)
WORLD SPANISH, Penguin Random House/Alfaguara (Book 1)
SWEDEN, Berghs (Books 1-2)
TURKEY, Altın Kitaplar (Book 1)
UNITED KINGDOM, Pushkin Press (Books 1-3)
UNITED STATES, Abrams (Books 1-3)

#1 PUNAINEN KUIN VERI
Tammi 2013, 240 pp.

#2 VALKOINEN KUIN LUMI
Tammi 2013, 240 pp.

#3 MUSTA KUIN EEBENPUU
Tammi 2014, 250 pp.

Age group: 14+ /crossover, thriller 

Reading material:

English PDFs

Snow White Trilogy

Salla Simukka

This international bestseller is an edge-of-your-seat thriller that chills to the bone –  and not just because of the icy winter setting.

✓  Hollywood TV show in development by Zerogravity (“Ozark”)!

✓  Rights sold in 52 territories! 

#1 As Red As Blood
It’s the coldest winter in decades: the streets of Tampere are frozen and white with snow. And nothing is as red against white snow as blood… 17-year-old Lumikki Andersson goes to a high school of performing arts. She has made it a rule to stay out of things that do not involve her.
However, the rule is put to the test on Leap Day when she finds washed five hundred euro notes hung to dry in her school’s darkroom. Soon Lumikki finds herself caught in a tangled web of international drug trafficking.

#2 As White As Snow
Lumikki Andersson is backpacking in Prague, where the weather is scorching hot. A girl approaches her in a small café and claims to be her step sister. Lumikki’s parents seem to be hiding a secret concerning the family’s past, so the girl’s claim rouses Lumikki’s interest. Despite her erratic behaviour, the girl manages to persuade Lumikki to join a religious community. But the religion of the cult is not pure; and innocence is not as white as snow…

#3 As Black As Ebony
Lumikki Andersson is set to play the leading role in a modern-day version of Snow White at her high school. As opening night approaches, Lumikki starts receiving notes from a secret admirer whose infatuation soon turns out to be a dangerous obsession. The admirer threatens to turn the premiere into a bloodbath unless Lumikki consents to his demands. Time is running out, the opening night is just around the corner, and Lumikki has to find a way to outwit the stalker with a soul as black as

“Lined in stark red, white, and black, this cold, delicate snowflake of a tale sparkles with icy magic.”
Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review), United States

“Simukka creates a tough, self-sufficient heroine in seventeen-year-old Lumikki Andersson. . . . Fans of Nesbø
and Larsson won’t be disappointed.”

– Publishers Weekly, Starred

“[A] YA novel in the tradition of Nordic noir—edgy crime novels set in frigid lands.”
– Booklist, Starred

“A compelling start, a strong female character, the rich background setting of Finland, and a hint of a Snow White retelling are highlights of this work.”
– SLJ, School Library Journal

“The Arctic setting of this import is used to full advantage, evoking a chilling mood and strewing genuine frigid weather obstacles in Lumikki’s way.”
– The BCCB, The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
“Lumikki, who calls herself the ”secret love child of Hercule Poirot and Lisbeth Salander,” tries to avoid meddling in other people’s business. That is, until she finds bloodied money in her art school’s darkroom.”
– The Booklist Reader

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER!

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Rights sold:
FINLAND, Tammi (orig.)
ALBANIA, Muza
ARAB WORLD, Arab Scientific
ARGENTINA, Nuevo Extremo
AZERBAIJAN, Qanun
BELGIUM, Clavis
BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA, BTC Sahinpasic
BRAZIL, Novo Conceito
BULGARIA, Egmont
CANADA (French), Hachette Livre
CATALAN, La Galera
CHINA, Modern Press
CROATIA, Znanje
CZECH REPUBLIC, Egmont
DENMARK, Gyldendal
ESTONIA, Pegasus
FAROE ISLANDS, Bókadeildin
FRANCE, Hachette Livre
GEORGIA, Bakur Sulakauri
GERMANY, Arena
GREECE, Metaixmio
HUNGARY, Athenaeum
ICELAND, Forlagid
ICELAND, Storyside (audio and e-book rights)
INDONESIA, Gramedia/Bhuana Ilmu Populer
ISRAEL, Yedioth
ITALY, Mondadori
JAPAN, Nishimura
KOREA, Gimm Young
LATVIA, Zvaigzne
LITHUANIA, Alma Littera
MACEDONIA, Bata Press
MALAYSIA, Buku Fixi
MONTENEGRO, BTC Sahinpasic
NETHERLANDS, Clavis
NORWAY, Gyldendal
POLAND, Foksal/WAB
PORTUGAL, Presença
ROMANIA, Trei
RUSSIA, Eksmo
SERBIA, Vulkan
SLOVAKIA, Verbarium
SLOVENIA, Mladinska
SPAIN, La Galera
SWEDEN, Rabén & Sjögren
TAIWAN, Emily Publishing
THAILAND, Nanmee Books
TURKEY, Altin Kitaplar
UNITED KINGDOM & COMMONWEALTH, Hot Key Books
UNITED STATES & CANADA, Penguin Random House/Crown
VIETNAM, Alpha Books
FILM & TV: Zerogravity Management

Children’s Non-Fiction

MIKÄ MAHTI! – LOTTA JA KASPER LUONNON PUOLELLA
Into, July 2023, 48 pp.

Age group: 9+ years

Reading material:
English sample+ synopsis

We Are Powerful!

Laura Ertimo, illustrated by Mari Ahokoivu

In We Are Powerful, Lotta and Kasper delve into how people use power. 

✓  Newest title by the Tieto-Lauri awarded duo Laura Ertimo and Mari Ahokoivu, tackling the question of power into something easily understandable by children!

✓  Independent sequel to Weird Weather, sold to 17 countries!

Best friends Laura and Kasper start junior high in a new school. In addition to the question of whether their friendship will survive in a new group, the two also start to wonder about power, as the nearby forest is under a threat.

How is power used? Does everyone have power? Who gets to decide what happens to the forest? Biodiversity loss and the climate crisis are real and a massive challenge – but how come it feels like not enough is being done? Who is responsible?

The book also peeks into our brain and ponders how humans are peculiar animals that are able to tell stories. Stories that we have the power to change. Could our connection to nature be the biggest story of them all?

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Into Kustannus (orig.)

AIKAMATKA – MITEN TELEFOONISTA TULI ÄLYKÄS
Tammi, 2022, 56 pp.

Age group: 6+ years

Reading material:
English sample, Spanish sample

Travels in Time: How the Telephone Became Smart

Pinja Meretoja

How did one machine come to feature thousands of years of technology? 

✓  A beautifully illustrated title about everyday inventions and their origins!

The smartphone includes a huge amount of functions that are the result of hundreds and thousands of years of progress. How did all these discoveries end up in a child’s pocket? Travels in Time delves into this mystery in a fun but precise way.

Lucy visits a second-hand store with her aunt. When Lucy doesn’t recognize all of the objects there, she comes up with imaginative ideas as to what their use might have been. A generation that has access to all sorts of tools in one device might not know about the past importance of all the appliances.

Travels in Time is a visual and easily approachable non-fiction title that presents to children the history of different inventions, such as writing, the camera, the radio, the computer, and many others. It also invites adults to have discussions with younger generations about their experiences growing up – how one had to wait for their turn on the phone when a sibling was chatting with friends, how the modem used to be slow or what songs one used to record on a cassette tape. Sounds familiar? Delve into the past and discover something new!

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)
ESTONIA: Elust Enesest

#1 PIKKUTIETO: MISSÄ SINÄ OLET?
Minerva, 2020, 20 pp.

#2 PIKKUTIETO: MENNÄÄN PIILOON
Karisto 2021, 20 pp.

#3 PIKKUTIETO: KASVIN MATKA
Karisto 2022, 20 pp.

Age group: 2+ years

Reading material:
Full English PDFs

Mini Science Series

Laura Ertimo, illustrated by Sanna Pelliccioni

A science series for the smallest in the family!

Mini Science is a nonfiction series for the smallest in the family. The series tackles big science questions with lovely illustrations and encourages kids to wonder and ask questions. It feeds curiosity and is designed to start conversations about different topics that children might not think about on their own.

#1 WHERE ARE YOU

In Where Are You?, we follow Plop, a little creature who guides us through space to Earth and from there into human DNA and, finally, to the world of atoms. Zooming in all the way from the enormities of space to the minisculness of atoms, we learn a great deal in between.

#2 INVISIBLE WORLD

In the second title of the Mini Science series – Invisible World – the adorable character Plop will discover things one cannot see – electricity, a garden in the fog, darkness, microorganisms and other well-hidden things. When Plop gets sick, he learns about bacteria and viruses and how to avoid them. Vaccinations can seem scary, but they keep us healthy! Sometimes it’s better to stay home, even if it makes you bored, so that soon you can go off to discover the Dark Side of The Moon!

#3 TRAVELLING PLANTS

In the third title of the Mini Science series – The Travelling Plants – our adventurer Plop ponders a tricky question: if rooted to the ground, how can one travel? Plants are the foundation of the Earth’s living network. But they are not here just for animals and humans – plants have their own mysterious life, which, in the end, is not so different from ours. They grow, reproduce and send off their offspring, and indeed, even travel around the world.
The Travelling Plants shows how all of us are interconnected and need each other throughout life.

The book is suitably short and simple even for small children. I would imagine that the book will also arouse the imagination of older children and lead to interesting discussions. So be prepared to discuss difficult questions with your child!
– Lapsen Nimi portal, Finland for MINI SCIENCE #1 WHERE ARE YOU

NEW!

Rights sold:
FINLAND:
#1 Minerva (orig.)
#2-3 Karisto (orig.)
ESTONIA: Avita
GREECE: Klidarithmos
TURKEY: Yapi Kredi Publishing

MAAILMAN TUTKIJAT
Ursa 2021, 53pp.

Age group: 5+ years

Reading material:
Full English PDF

I’ll Become a Researcher

Tero Mielonen, illustrated by Mari Ahokoivu

Anyone can become a researcher!

✓  Have you ever wondered which children will grow up to be scientists? It’s kids like you!

✓  Mari Ahokoivu won the Tieto-Lauri Award in 2022, the Puupäähattu Comic Book Award 2023 and has been nominated for the Finlandia Prize in 2021!

South American Kat used to examine the starry skies with her father and now her job is to search for new planets. Marjane loved hunting for treasures, and she became an archeologist who solves the mysteries of ancient cultures. Eduardo loved playing video games. He did not become a professional gamer, but now he creates climate models and ponders what our world will be like in a hundred years. All kinds of people do science, and anyone can become a scientist!

I’ll Become a Researcher tells you the basics of every discipline with accuracy and precision. Even If a preschooler will not understand all words, the excellent illustrations can help bring the research equipment and objects of investigation to life.  The presentation was also approved by my 12-year-old son, who is a little older than the target group. The comic in the end of the book gets a special commendation. Clear demonstration, I liked it!
– Elina Lindfors, Tähdet ja Avaruus -magazine, Finland

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Ursa (orig.)
BULGARIA: Enthusiast
LATVIA: Latvijas Mediji

IHME ILMAT
Into 2019,  48 pp.

Age group: 6+ years

Reading material:
English edition

Weird Weather

Laura Ertimo, illustrated by Mari Ahokoivu

This book answers children’s tough questions about climate change, and explains how we can all fight against it.

✓  Rights sold to 17 territories and published in the US!

✓  Mari Ahokoivu and Laura Ertimo won the Tieto-Lauri Award in 2022 and have been nominated for the Finlandia Prize in 2021

✓  Laura Ertimo is the star of Finnish non-fiction books for children and her books have been sold in 18 countries!

✓  Mari Ahokoivu won the Puupäähattu Comic Book Award in 2023!

Two clever buddies, Lotta and Kasper, get tired of their parents’ evasive answers about weird weather. They decide to research what climate change is really about. Weird Weather! is an accurate but hopeful children’s nonfiction title that explains how humans are responsible for climate change and what we can do to ensure a brighter future. It also gives tips on how everyone can make better choices and practice climate-positive skills every day.

But climate change won’t be beaten with tiny tricks, and that’s why this book also encourages talking to children about how to make societal changes and how working together can change everything.

I’m so excited to add WEIRD WEATHER to Sky Pony’s list! This important book delivers information about climate change to children in a way that’s both easily digestible and entertaining. Hopefully children and parents alike will get a better sense of the world around them – and what they can do for it – after this read!
– Nicole Frail, Senior Editor, Skyhorse Publishing/Sky Pony Press, United States.

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Into Kustannus (orig.)
DENMARK: Staarup & Co.
ESTONIA: Avita
GERMANY: Cross Cult
HUNGARY: Ciceró Könyvstúdió
ITALY: Mondadori/Edizioni Piemme
LATVIA: Jumava
LITHUANIA: Obuolys
MEXICO: (Latin American Spanish rights): Ordinal Books
NORTH MACEDONIA: Feniks
NORWAY: Aschehoug
POLAND: Amber
SERBIA: Odiseja
SLOVAKIA: Ikar
SPAIN: Astronave
SWEDEN: Rabén & Sjögren
TURKEY: Kolektif
UNITED STATES (North America): Skyhorse Publishing/Sky Pony Press

AIKA MATKA! LOTTA, KASPER JA LUONTOKADON ARVOITUS
Into, October 2021, 48 pp.

Age group: 6+ years

Reading material:
Full English PDF + synopsis

Where Did the Animals Go?
Travelling Through Time with Lotta and Kasper

Laura Ertimo, illustrated by Mari Ahokoivu

How has humanity survived this long? How can we, and other species, survive in the future? A much-needed book that helps make sense of the biodiversity crisis! 

✓  Tieto-Lauri Prize Winner 2022 – Best Finnish Non-Fiction Children’s Title!

✓  Nominated for the Finlandia Award in 2021!

✓  Sequel to Weird Weather, sold to 17 countries!

Lotta and Kasper keep hearing worrisome news: dying bees, endangered animals, plastic in the Mariana Trench and on the glaciers of Antarctica, rivers polluted by mines, forest fires… The children realize that even if the problems of climate change were solved, Mother Nature would still be in trouble! Climate change is only one part of an escalating environmental crisis. How will we survive?

The fossil gremlin, now retired, suggests that Lotta and Kasper set out on a grand journey through time in search of threads that may connect the past to the present and provide solutions for the future.

With the gremlin as their guide, the children find clues about the great changes that life has undergone in the past and how life has continued after major catastrophes. Throughout their journey, they come to see the roots of the current situation, understand why solving it is so tricky, and learn how the human species has overcome previous crises for continued survival.

The journey into the enigma of the loss of biodiversity flows smoothly through the playful arrangement of imagery and writing. The text meanders from the smallest of small to the greatest of matters, satisfying the thirst for knowledge of all age groups. The expressive illustrations walk alongside the text, at times excitedly getting carried away into an independent cartoon adventure where future, present and history unite. The entity is a vivacious cornucopia that induces the reader to do research, to come back to the book, and to take action.
– Finlandia Award Jury

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Into Kustannus (orig.)
ESTONIA: Avita
GERMANY: Cross Cult
HUNGARY: Tessloff Babilon
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