new
The best of the latest Swedish literature, selected by Independent columnists sofia gydemo
and björn kohlström, presented by the Swedish Arts Council. spring edition 2015
SWEDISH books
Children’s
and Young
Adult Literature
Fiction
Poetry
Swedish
Literature
Exchange
Your free copy
Spring
2015
Mikael Berglund
Photo: Brombergs
Lina Hagelbäck
Photo: Malin Hoelstad
Photo: Sofia Runarsdotter
Photo: Opal
Photo: Mia Carlsson
Photo: Stefan Tell
Therese Henriksson
Jörgen Hjerdt
Loka Kanarp
Birgitta Holm
Photo: Hippo
Photo: Sara Mac Key
Photo: Private
Photo: Terese Andrén
Photo: Private
Viktor Johansson
John Holmvall
Lars Gabel
hanna gustavsson
Hans Gunnarsson
joanna hellgren
Alex Haridi
Doris Dahlin
Photo: Casia Bromberg
Photo: Martin Stenmark
Photo: Henrik Lindahl
Photo: Opal
Beate Grimsrud
Photo: Berghs Förlag
Lena Arro
Sara Gimbergsson
Photo: Ulla Montan
Photo: Peter Jönsson
Photo: Opal
Photo: Kari Lovaas
Lars Andersson
Elise Karlsson
Ellen Karlsson
Spring
2015
what is this?
The publication you’re holding in your hand is intended to function as a
guide to really good Swedish literature, selected by independent, external
writers. The selection of books for children and young adults has been put
together by Sofia Gydemo, librarian at The Swedish Institute for Children’s
Books. Books for adults have been selected by Björn Kohlström, critic and
teacher. This is not a presentation of everything published in Sweden, it’s
an expression of the writers’ personal opinions on what they view as the
absolute best books published during spring 2015. Publisher and rights
information can be found at the end of each piece.
who are we and what do we do?
The Swedish Arts council is tasked with coordinating efforts to enhance
the status of Swedish literature abroad, and to support international literature exchange. We attend international book fairs, take part in international networks, and provide grants for translations as well as for projects
and events focusing on Swedish literature abroad. A part of that work is
this publication – New Swedish Books.
support and grants
The Swedish Arts Council offers support for translations, projects, travels
for publishers, organizations and translators of Swedish literature. In the
back, you will find information about our various grants for Swedish literature in translation, as well as contact details for the rights holders. More
information about the Swedish Arts Council’s work with international
literature exchange, and previous editions of New Swedish Books can be
found online at www.swedishliterature.se.
Photo: Ulrika Zwenger
Photo: Zac O’Yeah
Photo: Heléne Karlsson
Photo: Kennet Ruona
Photo: Hippo
Enjoy!
Children’s and Young Adult Literature: 2
Fiction: 28 | Poetry: 42 | grants: 47 | addresses: 48
Ylva Karlsson
Åsa Maria Kraft
Charlotta Larsson
Petter Lidbeck
Pija Lindenbaum
Children’s and Young
Adult Li terature
reading books is an activity often
associated with solitude, but recently,
the social potential of reading has been
widely practised and discussed in Sweden.
Reading unites people, regardless of age
and gender. A parent reading with their
child, or a teacher reading aloud to a
class, fosters a sense of togetherness.
But even though literature itself can be
a social activity, solitude is a recurring
theme in Swedish children’s and young
adult literature. This was one of the
observations of the Swedish Institute
for Children’s Books in its annual report
on Swedish children’s and young adult
books in 2013. In 2015, this tendency
still prevails. In some cases the solitude
is enforced, as in Ulf Stark and Stina
Wirsén’s book about an unaccompanied
child refugee in the Second World War.
Meanwhile Cat, in Loka Kanarp’s comic
Cat and Squirrel on Summer Island, enjoys
solitude, at least to begin with. Kanarp’s
comic is also an example of the apparent renewed interest in children’s and
young adult comics, an area that’s long
been underrepresented in Swedish publishing. The following selection features
a number of titles from the range of
new swedish books
children’s and young adult comics
published this spring.
This spring’s titles also make space
for other worlds. There’s a world that
might not be visible at first glance, but
which on closer inspection is crawling
with little creatures, and it’s found
in the picture books Bugball by Tove
Pierrou and Joanna Hellgren, and Bosse’s
Walk by Jenny Wik.
There’s a noticeable trend, in
recent years’ books for young adults,
towards horrific visions of the future.
This spring’s batch features authors
with a real sense for language who take
new approaches to the theme. Survival,
courage and tension mix with strong
portrayals of characters and society,
as in Sofia Nordin’s As If I Was Fantastic.
Tension abounds too in the books for
children aged 9-12. Heavy stone statues
that suddenly and inexplicably move
send chills through the reader in
Kristina Ohlsson’s Stone Angels. There’s
a thrill too in But Still Exists, by Petter
Lidbeck, the protagonist of which can
become invisible, leading to a reading
experience that’s pacey, to say the least.
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Sirkka ler.
– Skratta inte, säger mamman. Du hör ju att hon
gör sitt bästa.
Så går hon till köket.
– Tack för att du inte talade om att det var jag som
sprang ifrån dej, säger Margareta.
– Jag tycker inte om dej. Men jag skvallrar inte,
säger Sirkka.
Picture Books: 4
– Och jag tycker inte om dej. Men du kan i alla fall
Books for 6–12: 14
få bo i mitt rum.
Young Adult Fiction:
Comics: 22
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i l l u s t r at i o n f r o m “ t h e s i s t e r f r o m t h e s e a” by u l f s ta r k ( t e x t ) a n d
st i n a w i r s é n ( i l l u st r at i o n s ) , s e e pag e 8
Picture Books
the right
words
With four books behind her, Klara Persson has quickly
established herself on the Swedish book market. Her
debut Molly & Sus won prizes both as a debut book and
a picture book. Two previous titles, Maximilian & Minimilian, and Jag blir en bubbla som blir ett monster som blir ett
barn (I’ll Turn into a Bubble that Turns into a Monster
that Turns into a Baby), were nominated for the August
Prize. In Words–where are you ?, the reader joins Solvej in
her search for the right letters and words. Solvej wants to
explain how dearly she loves Mitty. But the words are all
gone! Solvej looks for the words. She tries small words
and big ones. Nothing happens. Maybe Solvej could try
whispering the words: “I like you more than badminton”.
Words–where are you ? is a charming story about nervously
trying to express in words how much you love someone.
Klara Persson
Words–where are you?
Urax
Rights: Urax
i l l u st r at i o n f r om “ w o r d s – w h e r e a r e yo u ? ” by k l a r a p e r s s o n
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Rebus, kom med din bygglåda!
Rebus, kom med din bygglåda!
Vad blir det för något?
everyday drama I
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An unusual
Vad blir det för något?
creation story
Later, Mum says. Åse’s so tired of hearing the word later.
Åse has found a squashed frog, which she’s now carrying
around in a jar. First they have to go home and eat, Mum
says. Åse’s story is high quality everyday drama. Ingrid
Olsson, who has previously written mostly for slightly
older children and young people, makes her picture book
debut with Åse and the Frog. At her side is the experienced
illustrator Charlotte Ramel, who with her deceptively
simple style perfectly captures Åse’s wilfulness.
A dragonfly darts across the first pages. Everything else
is empty. But there’s something missing. Rebus comes in
with his toolbox. Rebus is an ape-like figure, who starts
building a forest with a hammer, nails and a saw. Earth,
trees, an ants’ nest, small rocks, big rocks and moss.
Masses of birds, berries and other animals. Life grows fit
to burst in duo Lena Arro and Sara Gimbergsson’s
unusual creation story. When the children at last find
their way to the forest, Rebus is finished. He slowly
sneaks out of the picture, leaving behind a magical world
for creatures big and small to discover.
Ingrid Olsson (text), Charlotte Ramel (Ill)
Åse and the Frog
Lilla Piratförlaget
Rights: Lilla Piratförlaget
Lena Arro (text), Sara Gimbergsson (ill)
Rebus Builds a Forest
Opal bokförlag
Rights: Opal bokförlag
spring edition 2015
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kram.
mbindeln säger att de måste gå,
ort ett ögonblick. Så ger
k. Den är fuktig.
nyta dej, säger hon. Kom
h prata deras språk.
ennes röda rosett.
war and loss
everyday drama II
When a major war breaks out, everything changes for
Sirkka and Margareta. The two girls live on either side of
a sea and Sirkka is sent across that sea. She’s going to live
in a safer country, and comes to live with Margareta’s
family. Margareta’s disappointed. She thought they were
getting a dog, but instead, a sad little girl turned up. The
two don’t get along, and the hostility is clearly visible in
Margareta’s face particularly. The Sister from the Sea takes
place during the Second World War, but issues such
as unaccompanied child refugees, war and loss are as
topical today as ever. Author Ulf Stark, who has been
popular since the 1960s, has written a gripping tale about
friendship, accompanied by Stina Wirsén’s illustrations, which capture the girls’ feelings and the hallmarks
of the 1940s with deceptively simple brush strokes.
Since the early 1990s, when Pija Lindenbaum’s first
independently-authored book, Elsa-Marie och småpapporna
(Elsa-Marie and the Little Dads) came out, she has occupied a special position in the Swedish picture book world.
Pija Lindenbaum is phenomenal at giving feeling to her
characters with only the slightest of shifts in her images.
She often takes everyday occurrences as her subject, as in
I’ll Get the Pacifier, in which Micke feels frustrated that his
friend Manne’s little sister won’t stop crying. It makes no
difference whether Micke gives her her dummy or makes
silly faces. The little sister’s squeals turn into roars!
Pija Lindenbaum
I’ll Get the pacifier
Bonnier Carlsen
Rights: Bonnier Rights
Ulf Stark (text), Stina Wirsén (ill)
The Sister from the Sea
Bonnier Carlsen
Rights: Bonnier Rights
2014-11-11 16:23
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flagghav. Det är många som trängs kring planen: mammor,
pappor, småttingar, storasyskon och ett par hundar.
a philosophical
picture book
HIPPO BOKFÖRLAG
e
nf
a st
på v
arsin sid . Läs och vr
a
ch
id o
ts ä
for
läs
a.
H
är ä
r vä
rlden. Varsågod!
v
i
itt
.M
vän
H är
n
i
är jag och så m
tt
Somewhere in a town there lives a girl. She’s in a park.
With evocative images, the picture zooms out on the
park, the houses around it, out of the town, up into the air
and out into space and the solar system. Then the book
turns and the pictures zoom in again on another part of
the world. There’s a sea, an island, a forest, and – look –
another park with another child. This breathtaking
journey around the globe is illustrated with images by
Emilie Östergren, who makes every line undulate,
leading the reader on a voyage of exploration through a
hubbub of life. Ylva Karlsson accompanies the images
with sparse yet descriptive words. A philosophical
picture book for children big and small.
är
ld
Tränaren klagar. ”Du är sen igen”. Sen blir rösten mjukare:
”är allt okej?” Men Omko säger inget. Han petar med
foten i gräsmattan. Till slut är det Mamma som svarar:
”Ingen fara. Bara lite svårt att komma upp ur sängen.”
HIPPO BOKFÖRLAG
Ylva Karlsson (text), Emelie Östergren (ill)
Here’s the World
Hippo förlag
Rights: Hippo förlag
the little
things
in the big
picture
An understated portrait of an odd
little man. The book has a slow tempo, as the reader joins Bosse on an
ordinary walk, with a black cat for
company. Bosse’s enjoying himself
– the sun is shining, it feels good to
stretch his legs, there’s a beautiful
bird in a tree – and suddenly, absurd,
unexpected things start to happen.
The beautiful bird poos on Bosse’s
nose. An ant climbs across Bosse’s
arm. There’s a ladybird sitting on a
big flower. There are plenty of animals to discover. Bosse lets us come
along for the ride and see the little
things in the big picture. Jenny Wik
is an author and illustrator, with a
string of books for younger children
to her name.
save the
minibeasts!
Everything about Omko says ’I don’t want to play football’. His right shoe is too big and the ball hurts when it
gets you. It makes no difference how much his family try
to cheer. When the match starts, everyone runs to and
fro. Everyone apart from Omko. When he bends down to
pull up one of his socks, he finds a snail. It must be saved!
Omko realises that the whole pitch is full of life. A beetle,
a bumblebee, a grasshopper, a ladybird. Now Omko runs
faster than anyone on the pitch. All the minibeasts must
be saved. It’s lucky his right shoe is too big, it makes a
perfect cubbyhole. First-time author Tove Pierrou and
illustrator Joanna Hellgren capture precisely, in words
and pictures, what it’s like to get swept up in Omko’s
little world.
Omslag
Jenny Wik
Bosse’s Walk
Kabusa Böcker
Rights: Kabusa Böcker
Tove Pierrou (text), Joanna Hellgren (ill)
bugball
Natur & Kultur
Rights: Natur & Kultur
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i l l u st r at i o n f r o m “ h e r e ’ s t h e w o r l d ” by y lva k a r l s s o n ( t e x t ) a n d
e m e l i e ö st e r g r e n ( i l l u st r at i o n s ) , s e e pag e 1 1
far-right viking
How do you deal with your big brother when he starts to
dye his hair blonde, wear big boots, changes his name to
Viking and nails a swastika to his wall beside a picture of
some old guy with a little square moustache? Saga thinks
about it a lot. She had a pretty easy life before her big
brother Noah’s transformation. She played with her best
friend Anisa, went to nursery, baked pizza with Mum’s
boyfriend Martin. But then Noah starts to get angry all
the time. He’s mean to Anisa and says there’s something
wrong with her. Anisa’s skin is a bit browner than Saga’s,
and her hair’s a bit darker, and she’s the best friend in
the world. Mum sits at home crying, and one day Noah’s
gone. Together, Anna-Clara Tidholm and Joanna
Hellgren have created a really topical book. Now, as the
far-right tide sweeps over Europe, children and adults
have an important book to read together, in the form of
Saga’s forthright tale.
Anna-Clara Tidholm (text), Joanna Hellgren (ill)
My Brother’s name is Noah
Alfabeta
Rights: Alfabeta
Books for
6-12 years
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i l l u st r at i o n s f r om “ my b r o t h e r ’ s n a m e i s n oa h ” by a n n a - c l a r a t i d h o l m ( t e x t )
a n d j oa n n a h e l l g r e n ( i l l u st r at i o n s ) , s e e pag e 1 4
the blue door
The strange gift
Leo’s granddad is dead, and Mum can’t stop crying.
Nothing’s any fun. Dad promises they’ll do something
fun together, but it never happens. One evening at bedtime, Leo discovers something odd underneath his pyjama top. He has a blue door in his tummy. The door leads
into a sea. In a boat, Crossways, Lengthways and Taxi are
floating about. The four of them become friends and go
on voyages across the sea. Leo looks forward to bedtime
when he can meet up with his friends – the daytimes are
as solemn and grey as ever. August Prize winner Ellen
Karlsson and illustrator Josefin Sundqvist sketches a
lovely portrait of a child coming to terms with death and
a sadness he can’t fully comprehend.
Eleven-year-old My has inherited
a strange talent from her mum and
grandma. She can make herself invisible. My is absolutely forbidden from
showing anyone else what she can do.
But her secret is discovered, marking
the start of an adventure which takes
My all the way to the USA and the
White House. Nasty men want to
get their hands on My, her mum and
grandma, but they fight it. But how
can three people defend themselves
against a load of specially-trained
secret police? Petter Lidbeck is
famous for his absurd stories, which
surprise, amuse and unsettle the
reader. A linguistic acrobat who takes
readers on an adventure.
Petter Lidbeck
But Still Exists
Rabén & Sjögren
Rights: Rabén & Sjögren agency
Ellen Karlsson (text), Josefin Sundqvist (ill)
Inside my Blue Door
Hippo förlag
Rights: Hippo förlag
For the brave
In Simona’s grandma’s garden, there
are four large stone statues depicting two children and two adults. For
some inexplicable reason, Simona has
always felt afraid of the statues. This
feeling grows one day as she looks out
of the window and sees that the statues
are arranged in a different way, even
though no one’s been out in the garden. Kristina Ohlsson follows up on
her success with The Glass Children and
Silverpojken (The Silver Boy), about
three friends called Simona, Aladdin
and Billie. In the standalone book
Stone Angels, it’s not just a case of
statues that mysteriously move, but
also of inexplicably audible steps, and
voices on a cassette tape that no one
can explain. A gripping page-turner
for brave readers.
Kristina Ohlsson
Stone Angels
Lilla Piratförlaget
Rights: Salomonsson Agency
Saving a cat
A mangy cat changes everything for
Miranda. The cat gets run over, but is
saved by Idris the janitor, Miranda’s
best grown-up friend. With a patch
over its damaged eye, the cat becomes a pirate cat. An ugly pirate
cat, according to the owner of the
cat shelter where Idris and Miranda
try to hand it in. An ugly cat that will
soon be put down. Miranda goes
crazy! No one’s going to be putting
any cats down here. She smuggles
the cat home with her, and into
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her wardrobe. Just as long as Mum
doesn’t find it. Having a pirate cat in
your wardrobe isn’t easy. A longing
for and love of animals is a common
theme in children’s books. Maud
Mangold’s beautiful language and
likeable protagonist come together
to create a warm book that’s perfect
for reading aloud.
Maud Mangold
Miranda and the Pirate Cat
Rabén & Sjögren
Rights: Rabén & Sjögren agency
spring edition 2015
life changing
discovery
The Seth secret
This is the first novel from Alex Haridi, who has previously written screenplays for television. Tensions run
high from the very first page. A prologue tells the awful
story of 13-year-old Jonathan Anderson who in 1992
cycled home from school, did his homework, and then
hanged himself in the attic. Jonathan’s house has stood
empty ever since, and the local children dare each other
to go and knock on the door. Joel lives directly opposite
the empty house. One day, he sees a man entering the
house with a bag, only to come out empty-handed
later. A strong sense of curiosity drives Joel to the empty
house. What he discovers there will change his entire life.
Haridi’s debut is a psychological thriller about sadness,
friendship and identity.
A frozen winter landscape in northern
Sweden is the setting for debutnovelist Therese Henriksson’s
young adult novel. 17-year-old Saga
lives in a little community where
everyone knows each other and no
one stands out. When black-clad
Seth and his mum move in, it’s the
cue for Saga’s life to change for ever.
Slowly, Saga and Seth become close
friends, and maybe something more.
But she can’t understand why he
disappears for long periods. What’s
the secret Seth is hiding?
Therese Henriksson
Raven Moon
Opal bokförlag
Rights: Opal bokförlag
Alex Haridi
The anderson House
Bonnier Carlsen
Rights: Bonnier Rights
Young
Adult Fiction
Aftermath
In a terrifying present, large sections of the populace
have died from a horrible disease. A few teenagers are
left, and by coincidence, they meet. They struggle to
survive on a farm, with their solitude slowly hemming
them in. As If I Were Fantastic is the third, standalone part
of Sofia Nordin’s series about a group of teenagers
after a catastrophe. Ella and Nora decide to leave the
farm to go and search for other survivors. They’ve heard
murmurs from the city of Umeå which indicate people
might be alive. They’ve formulated a plan, but soon come
to realise that their journey is going to be far from easy.
The first part of the series, En sekund i taget (One Second at
a Time), was nominated in 2014 for the Nordic Council’s
Children and Young Adult’s Literature Prize, and the
second part Spring så fort du kan (Run as Fast as You Can)
was also praised by critics and readers alike.
Sofia Nordin
As If I Were Fantastic (part 3 in a series, standalone)
Rabén & Sjögren
Rights: Nordin Agency
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autumn edition 2014
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THE LIVING DEAD
The island of Gotland, off the south-east coast of Sweden,
has been isolated from the rest of the country due to
an epidemic that turns people into zombies. People’s
actions towards one another put all thoughts of morality
and humanity to one side. In her search, Emma has ended
up with Captain Grip, a horrendous man who keeps his
recruits in slave-like conditions. She manages to escape,
and finds herself in the company of a man who claims to
be a priest, and with whom other young people have taken
shelter. But who is to be trusted? Magnus Nordin twists
and turns the idea of humanity in his text, and grippingly
depicts Emma’s struggle for survival. Lars Gabel’s
illustrations are not for the faint-of-heart, the living
dead almost walk off the page towards you.
Magnus Nordin (text), Lars Gabel (ill)
revolution (fourth and final part)
Berghs förlag
Rights: Berghs förlag
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i l l u st r at i o n f r om “ r e vo l u t i o n ” by m ag n u s n o r d i n ( t e x t ) a n d l a r s g a b e l ( i l l u st r at i o n s )
s
c
i
m
o
C
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f r o m “ i g g y 4 - e v e r ” by h a n n a g u stavs s o n
s e e pag e 25
Dazed teens
It’s not easy to be Iggy, fourteen. Her
day-to-day is grey sludge, school
is boring and the boys are nasty.
When Iggy and her friend Julle get
to know some kids in the year above,
their friendship is put to the test.
Rivalries kick in, and Iggy starts to
feel as though even her best friend
is going to abandon her. Hanna
Gustavsson is bang on point in her
depiction of teenage life, where pain,
angst, sulkiness, powerlessness and
a lack of understanding from adults
are central factors in your life. Iggy
4-ever is a standalone sequel to
Nattbarn (Night Children), for which
Hanna Gustavsson was awarded the
2013 Urhunden prize for Best Swedish Comic Book.
Hanna Gustavsson
Iggy 4-ever
Galago förlag
Rights: galago förlag
Fairy tales–alive
and atmospheric
The trolls steal human children, love
gold, eat beetles and are skilled in
the magical arts. John Holmvall
draws a magical fairy tale forest with
trolls at its centre, where the trolls,
elves and humans are painted in
watercolours. The images are atmospheric and alive, strongly influenced
by the Swedish artist John Bauer,
who is well-known for his illustrations of fairy tale beings. John Bauer
died young in 1918, but his influence
lives on in artists like Holmvall.
John Holmvall
the Troll Forest
Rabén & Sjögren
Rights: Rabén & Sjögren agency
Friendship,
courage, identity
Cat and Squirrel are evidence that
opposites attract. Cat is reserved,
and likes to read and draw. Squirrel
is energetic, has loads of friends and
loves trying new things. The two
meet on sunny day on the beach.
The squirrel can’t understand why
Cat is just sitting still under a tree.
There are loads of fun things to do
on the beach! But Cat is shy and a
f r o m “ t h e t r o l l f o r e s t ” b y 20
j o h n h o l mva l l , s e e pag e 25
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bit scared. Things don’t get any easier
when some other animals start
being mean to Cat. Loka Kanarp has
created a subtle comic on friendship,
courage and getting the chance to be
who you are.
Loka Kanarp
Cat and Squirrel on Summer Island
Rabén & Sjögren
Rights: Rabén & Sjögren agency
spring edition 2015
Å!
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f r o m “ c a t a n d s q u i r r e l o n s u m m e r i s l a n d ” b y l o k a k a n a r p, s e e p a g e 2 5
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Photo: Martin Stenmark
Fiction
veering towards
the absurd
When the relatively successful author bearing the initials
C.G. wrecks his private life and can’t seem to finish his
latest novel he accepts an invitation to travel to Guadeloupe in the Caribbean in order to write a book about the
island. It’s all very cosy to begin with, but soon one person
after the other dies. At the same time C.G. discovers that
he’s been set up and that the mission is much more
dangerous than he could ever have imagined. When a
sense of doom sets in the reader can no longer make light
of the absurd events. People are not to be trusted and their
identities are unreliable in this novel that has the hallmarks of the whodunnit as well as the horror film. Hans
Gunnarsson has a good eye for mankind’s imperfections
and he twists and turns the plot of this nightmarish novel.
Hans Gunnarsson
All Inclusive
Albert Bonniers Förlag
Rights: Hedlund Literary Agency
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real life isn’t always enough.
The trend of autobiographical writing
among Swedish prose writers, previously
so prominent, has ground to a halt this
spring, to the benefit of novels that push
the boundaries of the imagination, reminding us that the object of fiction is invention. Of course, personal experiences
are not absent, but authors are now playing with reality. What they accomplish is
a new kind of realism. One that, without
bypassing magical realism, can still be
said to create unbelievable moments in
believable situations. An example of a
novel that has its roots in reality is Hans
Gunnarsson’s travelogue All Inclusive, in
which the central character C.G. is a
writer who shares the initials of his surname as well as other characteristics with
his author. Despite this the plot has a
tendency to veer towards the absurd and
the fabricated. It’s like an autobiography
kidnapped by fiction, and a story that
doesn’t lack flashes of self-irony.
exemplifies the tendency of writers to
make a statement about our own times
under the guise of the historical novel. All
these books illustrate the ongoing debate
about the long shadow cast by history
over the present time, but equally how our
current time is reflected upon through
the historical setting. The extent to which
there is a political agenda in these novels
is left implicit.
Play as Literary Method
One of the most playful novels this spring
is Åsa Nilsonne’s novel on love. Love
is put under the analytical microscope,
but its most original feature is that the
narrator is a part of the central character’s
brain. This initiates a discussion about the
exact location of love, and more generally
about the relationship between sense and
sensibility. Additionally, her novel is a play
on the concept of the unreliable narrator.
Beate Grimsrud also writes from within
her characters, and her different narrators
likewise illustrate a kind of unreliability
despite the novel being written in a more
traditional style.
Myths and the Classics
Among this spring’s publications are
several examples of authors who begin
with pre-existing myths or pre-existing
literary works and give them new meanings. The myth that Ola Nilsson works
with belongs among the most wellknown in history: the myth of Orpheus
and Eurydice, which is used to describe
the quest of two cousins to find each
other in the modern underworld – the
underground. Johanna Nilsson picks up
the story where one of the great Swedish
literary classics, the science-fiction
novel Kallocain by Karin Boye, left off.
On the Harshness of Life
Depictions of difficult circumstances are
not absent from this spring’s novels. Work
as something destructive is described in
two books. In Elise Karlsson’s novel The
Line the narrator feels inadequate at her
office, whilst Ola Nilsson gives us an unexpectedly illuminating account of the life
of an underground train driver in Isidor
and Paula. For Karolina Ramqvist the
subject is the plight of the single mother,
and the resulting sense of humiliation
when you’ve relied on unreliable forces.
Both Hans Gunnarsson’s and Jörgen
Hjerdt’s main characters are narrators
who write and who have suffered setbacks
in their careers. Lars Norén’s literary project Fragment gives us an insight into the
life of an older man marked by anxieties,
whilst Felicia Stenroth’s novel recounts
the precarious existence of a young
woman. Both are finely tuned examples
of the timeless nature of worrying.
The Presence of History
in the Now
Another group of current writers turn to
the past, amongst them Doris Dahlin with
her fine portrayals of the development of
Swedish society during the 1960s and 70s,
and the first novel from Mikael Berglund
set in the 17th century. Similarly, Lars
Andersson’s novel about a crime committed during the Second World War
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spring edition 2015
Jerker Virdborg made his debut as
a short story writer at the beginning
of the noughties. Having written
several well-received novels he now
returns to the genre in which he is
a master. In fifteen exciting short
stories he explores a country not dissimilar from contemporary Sweden
but in a state of high alert. Drama is
created from everyday situations and
from the suspicion that everything
isn’t as it should be, that something
Photo: Sara Mac Key
Society
on high alert
awful is just about to happen, something threatening the illusory sense
of safety. The city and the forest are
the setting for these unwavering
short stories written with a stylistic
flair that showcases the vitality of
the Swedish short story.
Jerker Virdborg
The Air-raid Shelter on
Lux Street
Albert Bonniers Förlag
Rights: hedlund literary agency
The past painfully present
Photo: Niklas Palmklint
authentic and
uncompromising
In Doris Dahlin’s novels the past is
always painfully present to her characters. Such is also the case in her
new book, where Maria, an author,
visits the place where she grew up in
order to help the teenage daughter of
her childhood friend, who has locked
herself away in her room. There are
clear parallels between the young
teenager’s destructive experiences
and Maria’s own adolescence,
and the novel paints a fine picture
of Sweden during the sixties and
seventies. With the help of flashbacks to Maria’s difficult youth her
present issues are brought into focus.
We are allowed to follow in close
proximity the protagonists’ struggle
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If there has been a longing for a less well-mannered
report from life as an immigrant, Neftali Milfuegos’s
first novel definitely answers its call. The central character
returns to his native Chile to study journalism, but spends
most of his days taking drugs, having sex, and figuring out
his half-Chilean half-Swedish identity. Aided by a
language that’s energetic and uncompromising we get
close to his passionate mindset, and the author doesn’t
attempt to portray him in a favourable light. It’s more a
case of showing us an authentic personality, a complete
picture. He’s not just consumed by his own troubles, and
applies his own analysis to the failures of the society
around him.
for independence, at the same time
as the revelation that coexistence
isn’t always to be taken for granted.
Doris Dahlin
There Were No Clouds in the Sky
Ordfront
Rights: Carina Deschamps
spring edition 2015
Neftali Milfuegos
Breathless Thoughts
Wahlström & Widstrand
Rights: Wahlström & Widstrand
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spring edition 2015
Photo: Heléne Karlsson
Mature
and insightful
Twelve-year-old Vera is used to her dad disappearing
from time to time. Then her mother travels to Russia and
is never heard from again. Thirteen years later Vera is
pregnant and decides to find out what happened to her
mother. This debut novel from Charlotta Larsson is
a tightly knit and evocative novel about disappearance,
and the longing that loss causes. It offers an unusually
mature perspective on the subject. The central character’s
frustration surrounding the obscure circumstances of her
mother’s disappearance is treated with great sensibility.
The novel takes us on a journey from Vienna through to
Stockholm and Paris with a thrilling conclusion in a
forest outside St. Petersburg.
A tense crime story
In the spring of 1944 a woman is
found dead almost literally on the
border between Sweden and
occupied Norway. Police inspector
Leonard Ringer returns to his former
home town, in the county of Wermland, to investigate the crime. He
soon discovers that the identity of
the woman is not clear-cut. Is she
a Norwegian refugee, or a German
who served on the Eastern front,
or someone else entirely? The diverse
list of characters encompasses spies,
refugees, dangerous women and
Nazis, as well as the children’s author
Astrid Lindgren, secretary to Leonard’s
old teacher, Harry Söderman. Lars
Andersson made his debut in the
seventies and has received many
prizes since. With this novel he has
written a tense crime story, where
we become aware of how historical
atrocities remain frighteningly
relevant to current events.
Lars Andersson
Our Ones
Albert Bonniers Förlag
Rights: Albert Bonniers förlag
Photo: Ulla Montan
Charlotta Larsson
The Transformienne
Forum
Rights: Forum bokförlag
love, according
to the brain
The brain scientist H, with the memory as his area of
specialisation, is in love with the model D. But the coming
together of beauty and brains is secondary. The novel’s
defining character is instead its narrative perspective. The
narrative voice is operated by a specific part of H’s brain, a
narrator equally arrogant as charming as he quarrels with
his neighbours in the nearby cerebral regions. As much as
it’s a novel about love it’s also an essay on memory, and a
lesson on the influence of our brain on our sense of reason
and emotion. Åsa Nilsonne, professor of psychiatry,
balances entertainment with an informed sensibility in
this experimental novel where the machinery of love gets
its own MRI-scan from a playful expert.
Åsa Nilsonne
H
Natur & Kultur
Rights: Natur & Kultur
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autumn edition 2014
Photo: Anna Lena Ahlström
Personal evolution
Four lonely and slightly bruised
people living in Stockholm make up
the list of characters in this novel
that rouses the reader’s sense of
engagement and sympathy. The
characters’ everyday lives are filled
with small and large problems. The
novel exposes the repercussions of
being stuck in a rut and not daring to
follow your dreams, when your emotional life is in danger of stagnating.
The story doesn’t follow well-trodden paths. Instead it allows the read-
er to find new paths together with its
uncompromising narrator, who also
challenges our perception of normality. The tangible world is filtered
through subjective impressions.
Beate Grimsrud’s worldview may
seem odd, but it is distinct and reveals the value of personal evolution.
Beate Grimsrud
The Forever Children
Albert Bonniers Förlag
Rights: Albert Bonniers förlag
Photo: Malin Hoelstad
kallocain 2.0
Karin Boye’s dystopian 1940 novel Kallocain is one of the
classics of Swedish literature. In Johanna Nilsson’s
continuation one of its main characters, Linda Kall, has
fled the totalitarian society, described in the original,
for the relative freedom of the Desert City. She gets a
job as a gardener and is reunited with her daughters.
But even here threats remain from both within and
without. Together with her daughter Laila she, like her
husband in Kallocain, develops a drug named Kallocain 2
to be used to pacify the citizens. The original’s pacifist
message is renewed in this novel, without becoming a
pastiche. Human beings’ free will is discussed with great
poignancy alongside a thriller-like plot that reveals the
continuing urgency of the theme.
Johanna Nilsson
The Greener Abyss
Forum
Rights: Grand agency
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freedom through art
Birgitta Holm demonstrates in a
number of newly written essays how
art can function as a leap into freedom through its capacity to lift us up
from our humdrum existence. She’s
assisted partly by authors that write
about freedom, and partly by the
physical freedom offered by our own
bodies, as illustrated through dance
or cycling. The book becomes a meticulous exploration of freedom and
involvement as aesthetic methods, in
a prose that with great perspicacity
describes these claims. As such the
writing itself becomes an example
of the freedom that’s in question.
The book contains close readings of
both well-known classics and some
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slightly less expected works, where
the gap between Virginia Woolf and
the Beatles is closer than you might
have thought.
Birgitta Holm
The Leap into Freedom
Ordfront
Rights: Ordfront
spring edition 2015
Karolina Ramqvist (left) made
both her critical and popular breakthrough with the novel Girlfriend
from 2009. The story centred on the
young woman Karin’s love affair
with a criminal man. In this sequel
Karin lives alone with her daughter
Dream in the big, expensive house
that the man left for her. The money
is dwindling and the house is about
to be seized. In despair Karin pleads
with the man’s accomplices. At the
same time she tries her hardest to be
Photo: Kristin Lidell
Photo: Jasmin Storch
With an exceptional
sense of style
a good mother to her child. The cool
elegance of the prose is juxtaposed
with Karin’s desperation. With an
exceptional sense of style Ramqvist
has succeeded in portraying how
security is replaced by insecurity,
and the humiliation felt when
realising how little one matters to
one’s friends.
Karolina Ramqvist
the White City
Norstedts
Rights: Ahlander Agency
Photo: Cato Lein
Loss and longing,
myth and reality
Cousins Isidor and Paula grow up
under difficult circumstances. The
violence they witness as children
follows Paula in particular throughout her adult life. Isidor is an underground train driver who searches
like Orpheus for Paula’s Eurydice in
the underworld, the place where the
invisible people live. The mythological setting infiltrates the story so
deeply that it’s hardly perceptible to
the reader. Just as important is the
description of a workplace, giving us
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insights into a world that’s not often
given space in literature. With a discerning eye for the peculiarities of
humanity Ola Nilsson has written a
novel about loss and about the pain
you feel when the one you love is not
present. On top of this it’s a story
about friendship beyond illness and
delusion.
ola Nilsson
Isidor and Paula
Natur & Kultur
Rights: Natur & Kultur
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spring edition 2015
Photo: Peter Jönsson
The desolate
northern
landscape
One of Sweden’s most
talented young writers
An interrogator is trying to figure
out what happened by questioning
two parents who have separately
kidnapped their own children. The
father has taken his daughters to
save them from a conventional upbringing and the mother wanted her
son to escape the bullies at school.
Their good intentions have gone
overboard in this novel that illustrates the uncanny mechanisms of
obsession. Viktor Johansson is one
of Sweden’s most talented young
Judit is a single mother of twins, Niila and Rigmor, and
lives in Norrland in 17th century Sweden. She’s driven
and stubborn – qualities that are essential if you intend
to survive the desolate northern landscape. In southern
Sweden a state of war prevails, and Judit meets both
wandering nomads and threatening wolfs and bears.
People live in harmony with this hostile nature, grateful
for the little gifts it brings. With an acute attention to
detail the story comes alive, and brings with it an important message to the people of today. With restrained
language debut novelist Mikael Berglund draws a
convincing portrait of a person’s desire to survive in
straitened circumstances.
writers, with both poetry, novels and
film behind him. His writing is both
composed and daringly innovative
in this existential drama about the
good and bad side of parenthood.
The novel uses the characters’ dialogue to illustrate sinister patterns
of behaviour and leaves a lasting
impression on the reader.
Viktor Johansson
Bonsai Cat
Modernista
Rights: modernista
Photo: Angelic Zander
Mikael Berglund
An Object’s Story about Unrequitedness
Albert Bonniers Förlag
Rights: Albert Bonniers förlag
On the edge
Ebba is a fifteen-year-old girl spending the summer
in a community where the factory has closed and all
opportunities have gone. Her boyfriend’s off to Norway
for work, and her dad finds it difficult to look after his
child. Her cousin Edith moves to town, on temporary
leave from an existence filled with self-harm and social
services. Ebba is vulnerable and insecure, and the novel
paints a strong portrait of a young person on the cusp
of adulthood but with no goals in sight. Felicia
Stenroth’s second novel is both dreamy and evasive
yet is skilfully composed and provides a clear-sighted
depiction of a life on the edge of hopelessness.
Felicia Stenroth
Indian Games
Norstedts
Rights: Norstedts
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Photo: Sara Mac Key
Joining the dots
With a collection of more than 500
short text pieces the internationally
renowned playwright Lars Norén
presents us with his new work. It’s
not strictly speaking an assembly
of aphorisms, but rather fragments
according to the German romantic
tradition – texts that might be
perceived as either defective or
unfinished. The themes explored
are recognisable from his theatrical
repertoire and we are given access to
his perceptive thoughts on language,
memory, art and religion, but also
on society and human interaction.
The work gives us a snap-shot of a
person; if not as a full-length portrait then fragmented, allowing the
reader to join the dots and complete
the picture.
Lars Norén
Fragments
Albert Bonniers Förlag
Rights: Margareta Pettersson
Photo: Sofia Runarsdotter
Hold the line
The way forward
Matti is a middle-aged journalist
who feels that he’s failed both in his
role as a professional and as a family
member. He abandons his wife and
kids and escapes to a desolate cabin
for a few days. There he’s tormented
by self-contempt and memories of
his childhood. The isolation is suppose to help him find his way back to
his closed off feelings. Later on he’s
visited by the ghost of his father, who
committed suicide when Matti was
a teenager. Together they attempt to
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reconcile and find a way for Matti to
finally emerge from the dark shadow
cast by his father. Jörgen Hjerdt
has written a novel that recreates
the feelings of unease in a man faced
with death as an escape route, and
about what it actually takes to move
on when all seems hopeless.
Jörgen Hjerdt
Liberated
Weyler förlag
Rights: Weyler förlag
spring edition 2015
The office is a hotbed of intrigues, gossip and competition for favours. The main character Emma is employed
by a publishing company that publishes self-help books.
But helping herself turns out to be more difficult. She
starts affairs with her colleagues, but has no idea how
to proceed. Her existence is put on standby. At the same
time, the office appears to become increasingly allegorical as it prepares for financial cuts, and we begin to see
how the society outside the office’s walls is perceived as
a threatening force by those within it. Elise Karlsson
has already published two unyielding novels and continues to write along the same lines – books that explore worlds we know, but in ways that allow us to discover new perspectives on the familiar.
Elise Karlsson
The Line
Natur & Kultur
Rights: Natur & Kultur
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spring edition 2015
Photo: Kennet Ruona
Poetry
poetry in general is by and large
concerned with questioning and searching
for new modes of expressions. Such is
also the case this spring with several
interesting examples of poets fulfilling
high expectations in terms of linguistic
and conceptual renewal.
The Past, the Present,
and the Future
For her unusual story about a saint Åsa
Maria Kraft has found inspiration in the
middle ages, yet isn’t satisfied with only
depicting the past. There’s also a glimpse
of a future here. Jesper Sagfors’s motivation
is the Finland-Swedish poet Edith Södergran, yet he writes in a form that’s free of
external influences.
Autobiographical Poetry
With her second book about Violencia
Lina Hagelbäck confirms her position
as one of this century’s most promising
Swedish poets. By celebrating the imagination and utilising all the advantages of
poetry she revitalises the autobiographical
trend previously so prevalent in fiction.
Fighting
the devil
The End is Nigh
Wilfred Owen wrote in the foreword to his
collected poetry that: “All a poet can do
today is warn”. This is the starting point for
Niclas Nilsson, who writes apocalyptical
poetry for an ignorant mankind. Fredrik
Nyberg also focuses on the volatile nature
of our future in his ongoing project Coils
& The End of the World.
Margaret the virgin was martyred in Antioch at the
beginning of the 4th century. According to legend she
fought the Devil who, in the shape of a dragon, swallowed
her. Her fate is described with great poignancy in Åsa
Maria Kraft’s poetry collection. She starts off from the
myth in order to tell a story about a period in time that
then extends on through the middle ages and into the
future, to the 2020’s when bees have become extinct.
Different voices speak through the poems, showing
the way in which transformation can act as survival
mechanism, and how clever humans are at adjusting to
unexpected situations. The poems are written in a richly
figurative language in order to recreate the past and
make it present to our current time.
Åsa Maria Kraft
Marginal Miracles
Albert Bonniers Förlag
Rights: Albert Bonniers Förlag
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Photo: Sara Mac Key
Death as a source
of hope
To the Swedish poetry reader Karelia
is known as the place where Edith
Södergran, the dying poet, lived. The
place where Finland meets Russia
becomes a resting place for death.
But poetry has no home, it finds its
way across geography. Poems about
death and the dead are carved from
a steadfast realism, creating a death
fugue that gravitates towards life.
Hunger and hardship might work
against the human, but for those
who have a constructive mind
there’s still hope. In the presence of
death life is at its strongest. Jerker
Sagfors’s first collection illustrates
a unique life, strengthened through
difficult circumstances.
Jerker Sagfors
The Dead are from Karelia
Wahlström & Widstrand
Rights: Wahlström & Widstrand
Photo: Brombergs
Voices
orchestrated
around a theme
From the bible we read that “you have been weighed in the
balances and found wanting”. The poet Niclas Nilsson
takes this as a word of warning. His new poetry collection
encompasses a multitude of references from poets, philosophers, critics, rock songs and films. That the polyphony
of voices become a homogenous collection is the result of
an editorial doctrine, with the poet himself as one of many
contributors. The fragments are held together by a theme
that identifies a world fast approaching its end, without
being able to decode its discreet warning signals.
violencia returns
Violencia is sarcastic and quickwitted. She’s a dangerous character
in a world that’s equally beautiful and
demonic. We remember her from
Lina Hagelbäck’s much talked
about 2013 debut. This is a similarly
exceptional shimmering prose poem
where the volcanic Violencia decides
to travel through Europe in search
for her father. They unite in poetry
Niclas Nilsson
Mene Tekel
Wahlström & Widstrand
Rights: Wahlström & Widstrand
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writing, but she confronts him about
his disloyal abandonments and the
confrontation is violent. It’s a story
that crosses boundaries and uses a
spell-bound, lyrical language in order
to write in a general way about loss.
Lina Hagelbäck
Violencia and Her Father
Brombergs
Rights: Brombergs
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spring edition 2015
Photo: Khashayar Nederehvani
Playful and
profound
Grants
The Swedish Arts Council offers support for translations, projects and
travels for publishers, organizations and translators of Swedish literature.
For more information – see www.swedishliterature.se
That which is about to vanish from right under our
noses is described with a most original sense of humour.
The subject being how nature as we know it turns into
something less familiar. Written with the playful seriousness that has become Fredrik Nyberg’s trademark
as a writer, he constantly invents new words to suit his
style. We’re invited to share his thirst for exploration, in
a direct address that’s reader-oriented and filled with
colloquialisms, alliterations and rhymes. His collection
is a celebration of reading out loud. At the same time
there’s gravity to the project, where the impending doom
of civilised society identifies nature as the alternative or
the escape route for the anxious human.
GRANTS FOR TRAVEL AND
INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE
FOR TRANSLATORS OF
SWEDISH LITERATURE
The Swedish Arts Council is responsible
for allocating funds for work-related
travel and skill improvement activities
for translators of Swedish literature and
drama. Professional translators of
Swedish literature and drama may apply
for these grants. Swedish literature
means literature that is written in
Swedish, or any of the national minority
languages, and published in Sweden.
Open for application:
7 April – 5 May 2015
4 August – 1 September 2015
20 October – 17 November 2015
Fredrik Nyberg
Coils & The End of the World
Norstedts
Rights: Norstedts
TRANSLATION GRANTS FOR
SWEDISH LITERATURE
The support scheme applies both to
fiction for children and adults, comics
and non-fiction, and could be granted
for either translation costs or both
translation and production costs for
foreign editions of Swedish books, such
as fully illustrated children’s books,
non-fiction or comics and graphic
novels. Foreign publishers can also apply
for support for translation of Swedish
plays to be published in book form. One
condition is that the translation must be
done directly from Swedish or any of the
national minority languages rather than
via any third language.
Open for application:
9 April – 7 May 2015
8 September – 6 October 2015
new swedish books
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spring edition 2015
TRANSLATION GRANTS FOR
STAGE PERFORMANCE OF
SWEDISH DRAMA
The translation must be made directly
from Swedish or any of the national
minority languages rather than via any
third language. Application for this
support scheme may only be filed by the
theatre where the Swedish translation
will be performed, and the applicant
must have the right to perform the play
in question and have signed a contract
with the translator.
Open for application:
9 April – 7 May 2015
8 September – 6 October 2015
TRANSLATION GRANTS FOR
PUBLICATION OF SWEDISH
LITERATURE IN OTHER NORDIC
LANGUAGES
The translation must be made directly
from Swedish or any of the national
minority languages rather than via any
third language. The publisher must have
the rights to publication of the work in
the said language, and must have signed
a contract with the translator. The application can only be made by publishers
within the Nordic countries.
Open for application:
9 April – 7 Maj 2015
8 September – 6 Oktober 2015
GRANTS FOR LITERATURE
PROJECTS AND TRAVEL
The objective of this grant is to support
literary events and international
exchange which promote high quality
Swedish literature and drama internationally. Foreign publishers may apply
for funding to help cover the cost of
inviting Swedish authors for book
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launches, literature festivals and similar
events. Organizations may apply for
funding for projects or international
exchanges. Projects can include, but are
not limited to, translation seminars,
collaborative literary projects and
themed events. Financial support
may also be awarded to information
campaigns and publications aimed at
promoting Swedish literature internationally.
Open for application:
7 April – 5 May 2015
4 August – 1 September 2015
20 October – 17 November 2015
GÖTEBORG BOOK FAIR
FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM –
FOR TRANSLATORS,
PUBLISHERS AND SUBAGENTS
The Swedish Arts Council and the
Göteborg Book Fair together provide
funding for translators, non-Nordic
publishers and subagents interested in
attending the Göteborg Book Fair. The
travel program takes place from 23–26
September 2015. Non-Nordic publishers
and subagents who are interested in
publishing/working with Swedish literature of high quality can apply. Translators of Swedish literature can also apply
for this grant. The grant will cover a part
of the travel cost, accommodation for 3
nights, and entrance card to all seminars
at the fair. The program is partly booked,
with information meetings, lectures,
and evening activities, and partly open
to individual programs.
Open for application:
16 February – 7 May 2015
spring edition 2015
Jerker Sagfors
Jerker virdborg
Photo: Magnus Liam Karlsson
Anna-Clara Tidholm
Felicia Stenroth
Ulf Stark & Stina Wirsén
Photo: Sofia Sabel
Photo: Sofia Runarsdotter
© The Swedish Arts Council 2015
Texts: Sofia Gydemo and Björn Kohlström
Translations: Nichola Smalley/Anna Tebelius
Editor: Andreas Åberg
Graphic design: Studio Mats Hedman AB
Printed by Taberg Media Group AB
Photo front cover: Alex Haridi, photo Stefan Tell
Back cover: Illustration by Josefin Sundqvist from
“Inside my Blue Door” (see page 16)
Jenny Wik
charlotte Ramel
Tove Pierrou
Photo: Salli Skött
Karolina Ramqvist
Photo: Peder Lingdén
Susanna Höijer,
Translator’s travel grants
+46 (0)8 519 264 50
susanna.hoijer@kulturradet.se
Klara Persson
Fredrik Nyberg
Photo: Lilla Piratförlaget
Zoi Santikos,
Literature project-, travel- and events grants
+46 (0)8 519 264 87
zoi.santikos@kulturradet.se
Photo: Khashayar Nederehvani
Susanne Bergström Larsson,
Co-ordinator & Translation grants
+46 (0)8 519 264 83
susanne.bergstrom.larsson@kulturradet.se
Norstedts förlag
Box 2052
SE-103 12 Stockholm
+46 (0)10 744 22 00
info@norstedts.se
www.norstedts.se
Photo: Sara Mac Key
Nordin Agency
Box 4022
SE-102 61 Stockholm
Joakim Hansson
+46 (0)40 6116939
joakim@nordinagency.se
www.nordinagency.se
Swedish Arts Council
Box 27215
SE-102 53 Stockholm
www.swedishliterature.se
Kristina Olsson
Ingrid Olsson
Niclas Nilsson
Lars Norén
Photo: Angelic Zander
Weyler förlag
Box 2262
SE-103 16 Stockholm
+46 (0)72 202 32 32
info@weylerforlag.se
www.weylerforlag.se
Photo: Thron Ullberg
Natur & Kultur
Box 27323
SE-102 54 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 453 87 35
www.nok.se
Fiction:
Nina Eidem
nina.eidem@nok.se
Children’s books:
Catharina Lantz
catharina.lantz@nok.se
www.nok.se
Sofia Nordin
magnus nordin
Photo: Benjamin Assouad
Wahlström & Widstrand
Box 3159
SE-103 63 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 696 84 80
info@wwd.se
www.wwd.se
Johanna Nilsson
Photo: Kari Lovaas
Modernista Group AB
”Garaget”
Kvarngatan 10
SE-118 47 Stockholm
+46 (0)8-702 04 11
Pär Sjölinder
par@modernista.se
www.modernista.se
Urax Förlag
c/o Bokslukaren
Mariatorget 2
118 48 Stockholm
+46 (0)72 322 08 60
ellen.karlsson@uraxforlag.se
www.uraxforlag.se
Ola Nilsson
Åsa Nilsonne
Photo: Urax
Galago förlag
Box 17506
SE-118 91 Stockholm
+46 (0)704 10 20 83
Margareta Petersson
Agent & Produktion
maggan.petersson@comhem.se
Salomonsson Agency
Götgatan 27
SE-116 21 Stockholm +46 (0)8 22 32 11
info@salomonssonagency.com
www.salomonssonagency.se
Photo: Emelie Asplund
Carina Deschamps Agency
carina@carinadeschamps.com
www.carinadeschamps.com
Lilla Piratförlaget
Kaptensgatan 6
SE-114 57 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 412 13 50
Erik Titusson
erik@lillapiratforlaget.se
www.lillapiratforlaget.se
Photo: Jasmin Storch
Brombergs Bokförlag
Hantverkargatan 26
SE-112 21 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 562 620 84
Janina Rak
janina.rak@brombergs.se
www.brombergs.se
Rabén & Sjögren Bokförlag
Box 2052
SE-103 12 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 789 88 00
info@rabensjogren.se
www.rabensjogren.se
Photo: Thron Ullberg
Bonnier Rights
Box 3159
SE-103 63 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 696 89 10
www.bonnierrights.se
Children’s books contact:
Ludvig Kullander
ludvig.kullander@bonnierrights.se
Fiction contact:
Amanda Bertolo Alderin
amanda.bertolo.alderin@bonnierrights.se
Kabusa Böcker
Box 14001
SE-400 20 Göteborg
+ 46 (0)31 85 95 80
Kerstin Aronsson
red@kabusabocker.se
www.kabusabocker.se
Neftali Milfuegos
Maud Mangold
Photo: Magnus Johansson
Bonnier Carlsen Bokförlag AB
Box 3159
SE-103 63 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 696 89 30
info@carlsen.bonnier.se
www.bonniercarlsen.se
Rabén & Sjögren Agency
Box 2052
SE-103 12 Stockholm
+46 (0)10 744 21 11
Kerstin Öberg
kerstin.oberg@rabensjogren.se
www.rabensjogren.se
Photo: Sara Moritz
Bokförlaget Forum AB
Box 3159
SE-103 63 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 696 84 40
info@forum.se
www.forum.se
Hippo förlag
Malmgårdsvägen 55A
SE-116 38 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 684 39 550
marianne.lindfors@hippobokforlag.se
maria.skymne@hippobokforlag.se
www.hippobokforlag.se
Photo: Berghs
Berghs Förlag AB
Box 45084
SE-104 30 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 31 65 59
info@berghsforlag.se
www.berghsforlag.se
Ordfront förlag
Box 17506
118 91 Stockholm
+46 (0)70 410 20 84
forlaget@ordfrontforlag.se
www.ordfrontforlag.se
Photo: Cato Lein
Alfabeta Publishers
Box 4284
SE-102 66 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 714 36 32
AnnaKaisa Danielsson
annakaisa@alfabeta.se
www.alfabeta.se
Photo: Anna Lena Ahlström
Hedlund Literary Agency
Box 2262
SE-113 16 Stockholm
+46 (0)70 669 05 68
Magdalena Hedlund
magdalena@hedlundagency.se
www.hedlundagency.se
Photo: Ulla Montan
Albert Bonniers förlag
Box 3159
SE-103 63 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 696 86 20
info@abforlag.bonnier.se
www.albertbonniersforlag.se
Opal Publishers
Tegelbergsvägen 31
SE-168 66 Bromma
+46 (0)8 28 21 79
Catrine Christell
catrine@opal.se
www.opal.se
Photo: Sara Mac Key
Gilla böcker
Bergsundsgatan 25 bv
SE-117 37 Stockholm
+46 (0)709 942 160
foreignrights@gillabocker.se
www.gillabocker.se
Photo: Christer Ehrling
Ahlander Agency
Västmannag. 73
SE-113 26 Stockholm
+46 (0)8 27 54 55
info@ahlanderagency.com
www.ahlanderagency.com
Emelie östergren
Josefin Sundqvist