To close out Women in Translation Month 2025, I'm pleased to share educator Nadine Bailey's review of the work of beloved author and artist Tove Jansson. Currently, all of Jansson's fiction is checked out of my library, which is a normal occurrence. Read on to learn more about her fascinating and timeless work for adults. … Continue reading #WITMONTH 2025: Tove Jansson & Islands
#WorldKidLit Wednesday: We Go to the Park
To borrow from a popular internet meme, I once again want to remind you that picture books are for everyone. Luckily, Enchanted Lion Books understands the assignment. Specifically targeted at teen and adult readers, the company's groundbreaking Unruly imprint has already brought us complex, award-winning written and visual narratives that both delight and discomfit. Originally … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: We Go to the Park
#WorldKidLit Wednesday: The Cat Way
If your daily walks are becoming a bit same-ish, then perhaps you ought to consider doing things the cat way. The Cat Way is a 66-page picture book neatly divided into two parts. It opens with a child of about 9 years of age taking their unnamed pet cat for a walk. Unfortunately, things don’t … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: The Cat Way
#IntlYALitMonth Review: The Secret of Helmersbruk Manor
Review by Kimberly Bayliss Could there be anything more magical than a Christmas mystery novel split into twenty-four advent readable chapters? This book combines my two favourite things – Christmas and mystery – and would make a remarkably fun yuletide read for a middle-grade or younger YA reader who also enjoys a bit of mysterious … Continue reading #IntlYALitMonth Review: The Secret of Helmersbruk Manor
#WorldKidLit Wednesday: Children of the Forest
According to my research, if you were a child growing up in 20th century Sweden, you are very familiar with Elsa Beskow's Children of the Forest. Originally published as Tomtebobarnen in 1910, this sweet picture book has been enchanting children for over 100 years. Currently in its eighteenth (!) English language printing by Scotland-based publisher … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Children of the Forest
#WorldKidLit Wednesday: The Stone Giant
Many of us are familiar with the tropes of Western fairy tales; somewhere in a far off place, there is a damsel in distress, a brave hero, and maybe a fantastical creature to boot. Something untoward then occurs, necessitating a rescue of some sort. There is maybe even some magic, or at least a supernatural … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: The Stone Giant
Speculative Fiction in Translation: Amatka
Amatka by Karin Tidbeck translated from the Swedish by the author Vintage Books June 27, 2017 224 pages *some spoilers* A lot has been written about Amatka– a strange, compelling, and truly fascinating novel- so I won’t rehash the plot and characters here. Instead, I’ll write about what I found most intriguing and why. Deal? … Continue reading Speculative Fiction in Translation: Amatka
Valdemar’s Peas
Valdemar is a young wolf who absolutely hates peas. The problem is his papa won’t give him an ice cream until he’s eaten them. What will he do? Yuck! Peas ‘taste so green and round and pointless’. Valdemar may hate peas with a passion, but he loves fish fingers; he wolfs them down – whole … Continue reading Valdemar’s Peas
The Little Old Lady who Broke all the Rules by Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg
I like the way the translated version of the title sets up a tension between the image of a biddable older woman and breaking the rules. All the best titles hold some contradictions I believe. And here is an older woman, not the stereotype of the little old lady, who is not afraid to stand … Continue reading The Little Old Lady who Broke all the Rules by Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
Tove Jansson was a Finnish writer, and will be familiar to readers of children’s fiction as the creator of the Moomins. They appeared in books and cartoons and then newspapers, eventually in 12 countries. They were so successful that Walt Disney wanted to acquire them. He was turned down. Tove Jansson was much more than … Continue reading The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
Global Literature in Libraries Initiative 