Middle-Grade

Six deals in one month for Laura Lähteenmäki’s COUNT SILENTLY TO TEN!

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We are extremely thrilled to announce another deal for Laura Lähteenmäki’s stunning middle-grade novel Count Silently to Ten.  The Czech rights for the title were acquired by Portál in a deal closed by Martti Berner – marking the sixth rights sale in just a month.

With this latest deal, the novel has now been sold in seven countries: Czechia, Sweden (pre-empt), Denmark (auction), Italy, Germany (pre-empt), Estonia (auction), and Poland. 

A huge congratulations to Laura Lähteenmäki on this incredible international success!  Rights still available in the UK, Spain, Norway, France, Hungary, Turkey…

This beautifully written novel by Laura Lähteenmäki was nominated for the prestigious 2024 Nordic Council Children and YA Literary Prize. It offers a poignant and timeless portrayal of childhood and the delicate transition to adolescence, exploring the magic of play and the emotional complexities of friendship.

Below, read what the acquiring editors have to say about this beautiful novel:

“Spending this summer with Myy is like revisiting your childhood with its mixture of carefree simplicity and insidious complexity, when the first adolescent issues appear. A truly relatable and touching reading experience.”

– Lisette Agerbo Holm, Editor, Straarup & co, Denmark

“A wonderful story about friendship and belonging, and about play as both a source of power and a refuge when you’re not quite ready to grow up yet.”
– Olivia Demant, Editor, Lilla Piratförlaget, Sweden

“Anyone who is (or once was) ten years old will identify 100% with this girl caught between childhood and growing up struggling to find her place. A beautifully told, finely observed children’s book about the power of friendship.”
– Wiebke Andersen, Editor, Carlsen Verlage, Germany

Click here to request reading materials for COUNT SILENTLY TO TEN!

About COUNT SILENTLY TO TEN:

Myy, Viivi, Heta, Aada, and Camilla are a close-knit group of five girls who call themselves Pätkikset. But as the fourth grade draws to a close, Myy finds that something has changed. She feels that she’s no longer part of the gang. She notices that lively conversations fall silent when she approaches her friends. When the girls hug each other in a tight circle, there’s no room for Myy.

COUNT SILENTLY TO TEN is a story about friendship between girls and the changes that come about as you grow up, but which are difficult to accept. Myy is left out and feels that there may be something wrong with her, since she still wants to play and isn’t interested in make-up and growing up. As things become difficult with the girls, a new boy appears in the area provides a wonderful opportunity for Myy to throw herself into the world of play. Myy and Lassi run to a nearby forest and immerse themselves in a joint game where time and space disappear.

Publication Info:
Laske salaa kymmeneen, WSOY 2024, 206 pp

Rights Sold:
FINLAND: WSOY (orig.),
CZECHIA: Portál
ESTONIA: Hea Lugu
GERMANY: Carlsen
ITALY: Terre di Mezzo Editore
POLAND: Muchomor
SWEDEN: Lilla Piratförlaget

Reading Material:
English sample & synopsis
Full Swedish translation
Finnish edition

About author


Laura Lähteenmäki

Laura Lähteenmäki is a Finnish writer of children’s and youth literature. Since her debut youth novel in 1998, she has written around twenty works. Lähteenmäki writes about young people’s lives and their search for a place of their own. She was awarded the Arvid Lydecken prize for a first-class children’s novel for her book Marenkikeiju in 2007 and her work has also been nominated for the Topelius and Finlandia Junior prizes. Her latest novel Count Silently to Ten was nominated for the 2024 Nordic Council Literature Prize! Laura Lähteenmäki lives in Jyväskylä and, in addition to her work as a writer, she is executive editor in a publishing house.

Read more

Bibliography


2023, Middle Grade (8-12 Years)

Count Silently To Ten

Laura Lähteenmäki

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Introducing Ahlback Agency SPRING 2025 CHILDREN’S & YA Catalogue

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We are thrilled to present our Children & YA Catalogue for Spring 2025!

We are delighted to welcome Päivi Lukkarila and her 2024 Finlandia Prize-winning novel for Children’s & YA literature, Deep in the Woods. This captivating story invites young adult readers on a smartphone-free wilderness expedition, offering adventure and self-discovery.

In addition, Girls Girls Girls provides a stunning and intimate portrayal of three teenage girls on a transformative journey of self-discovery.

For picture book lovers, The Marvelous Suitcase is filled with wonders, while Stiven, is a cat who is convinced he never gets enough food.

Middle-grade readers can embark on an extraordinary journey between two worlds, one of which is Atlantis, or dive into the latest installment of a bestselling series..

Check out the Ahlback Agency Spring 2025 Catalogue here!

The Marvelous Suitcase

Sanna Sofia Vuori illustrated by Silja-Maria Wihersaari

A charming and enchanting children’s tale.

“Daria Duck staggered down the hill, kicking up sand and wobbling her bowler hat. She was on her way to see her best friend, Froberta Frog.”

Daria spots a battered suitcase in Froberta’s gateway. What on earth could be in it?

One by one, the neighbours turn up at Froberta’s house to wonder about the strange suitcase. Each visitor invents a story about what might be inside that reflects their own personality. For example, Simo the Lemon Butterfly’s imagination is full of fairies and dew beads. Etty Snail, on the other hand, thinks the contents will be a rockstar’s guitar. Finally, the suitcase is opened and the contents delight everyone!

Stiven

Ted Forsström, illustrated by Åsa Lucander

The food is gone! Stiven roars. This is urgent! Come out!

Have you ever thought about how frustrating life can be for a cat? When something as simple as food fails over and over again? For Stiven the Cat, it couldn’t be simpler: if there’s no food on Stiven’s plate, the plate needs to be filled with food. How can an entire family have such a hard time grasping this?

The glutton Stiven is a stubborn drama queen, holding the whole family hostage with one mission: more food immediately! He’s a big personality, alternately majestic and pathetic, and neither mom, dad, the child, nor the baby escapes his constant demands for food and attention. This leads to comedic moments in the everyday life of a young family with a pet, brilliantly captured in Åsa Lucander’s lively illustrations.

Ted Forsström’s text is atmospheric and down-to-earth, with his characteristic playful rhymes occasionally shining through. It’s highly relatable for families with young children and especially for anyone who owns a cat—or is owned by one. The duo’s previous bedtime story, STELLA, was nominated for the Finlandia Prize.

 

Twin World Series #1: Saving Atlantis

Siri Kolu

Can Atlantis be saved before disaster strikes?

12-year-old El(ektra) starts sleepwalking and has recurring nightmares of masses of water under which there is no escape. After doing research with her friends Maxxam and Cal, El discovers that the underwater city in her nightmares is ancient Atlantis.

In the city of Atlantis, young Elektra has strange dreams at night about tall glass towers and flying planes. With inventor genius Dobro, Elektra begins to test whether the visions could be real. Based on the dreams, they build a submarine called a wave diver.

Can the Elektras help each other? Can they be rescued from under the waves…and what would it cost?

 

Girls, Girls, Girls

Ilona Ahti and Daniela Hakulinen

In frosty Helsinki, the lives of three teenage girls change over the course of three weekends. They discover sex, love and friendship, but most of all, they discover their own voices.

Mimmi has decided not to believe in love, while her best friend Rönkkö thirsts for connection. The two work together at a smoothie bar, where one day they meet Emma.

The figure skating prodigy Emma finds herself in the middle of a bet on whether you can fall in love with just one look. Mimmi and Emma quickly form an irresistible bond, the kind of attraction between them that Rönkkö dreams of. In the end, each of them must ask themselves what they are prepared to fight for.

Ilona Ahti and Daniela Hakulinen’s unabashed text lets the girls’ feelings and thoughts bleed through the pages. The novel deepens and adds new layers to the story of the successful film written by the duo. Girl Picture hit the big screens in 2022, winning awards both in Finland and internationally.

Deep in the Woods

Päivi Lukkarila

Luka feels like he’s in high school only to satisfy his parents. Why bother with something you’re not interested in?

Sabina’s relationship with Nella has ended. Nella liked her when she was just “conveniently” queer, girly and long-haired. Now that Sabina has decided to be who she always wanted to be, Nella has left her. How do the other three participants in the hike feel about her?

Nasim, from Nokia, dreams of studying literature and becoming a writer, but is constantly confronted with prejudice.

Joel is convinced that one day he’ll be a world-famous stand-up comedian. Comedy’s tough, and it’s easy to overdo it when you’re trying to make people laugh. Joel tells a very different story about his background. What’s real, and what is he making up?

The expedition is only supposed to last three days, but a fateful event changes everything and the teens have to survive in the wild without their guide. They try to entertain each other with ghost stories, and as they tell them, their own frightening childhood experiences come back to haunt them. There seems to be something creepy about their surroundings. What was it in there that spooked all the tourists and will the four be left to wander the wilds until their final days?