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Johanna Sinisalo awarded the Pro Finlandia Medal!

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As Finland prepares to celebrate its Independence Day tomorrow, we are thrilled to announce that the award-winning and internationally bestselling author Johanna Sinisalo has been awarded the Pro Finlandia Medal for services to Finnish literature!

Founded in 1943, the Pro Finlandia Medal of the Order of the Lion of Finland is a distinction awarded by the President of Finland to artists and writers in recognition of their long meritorious work and exceptional services to Finnish art, drama, literature and music. Awarded just before Independence Day (December 6th) to 10-15 people across all fields of culture, the Pro Finlandia Medal is widely considered the highest national accolade for Finnish artists and writers.

One of the leading Finnish science fiction and fantasy authors, Johanna Sinisalo’s literary career spans five decades and her works include novels, short stories, radio, TV and comic book scripts. Her first novel, Ennen päivänlaskua ei voi (TROLL), was published in 2000 and received the coveted Finlandia Prize. Her works have since been translated into twenty languages.

In addition to the Finlandia Prize, Sinisalo has also won several literary prizes abroad, such as the 2004 James Tiptree, Jr. Award and the 2017 Prometheus Award, and was nominated for the Nebula Award in 2008, the Prix Escapades in 2012, and the Grand Prix de L’Imaginaire in 2017.

Huge congratulations to Johanna!

Below you can find some of Johanna’s amazing titles!

Troll

Johanna Sinisalo

Mikael, a young gay photographer, finds a small, man-like creature in the courtyard of his apartment block. It is a young troll, familiar from Scandinavian mythology: a demonic, wild beast. And it is the most beautiful thing he has ever seen. Supposedly extinct, today it is regarded as a hairy, cuddly toy by Nordic children. Mikael gives the troll a name, Pessi, and takes him home and hides him.

The first thing Mikael does is research everything he can about trolls on the internet, from folklore, nature journals, and newspaper clippings. Despite his studies, Mikael does not learn that trolls exude pheromones that smell like a Calvin Klein aftershave and that this has a profound aphrodisiac effect on all those around him. Shooting an assignment for an ultra-hip brand of jeans, Mikael finds himself fast-tracked into a dangerous liaison with Martes, the sexually ambivalent art director of the advertising agency concerned, while a couple of his friends in turn fall in love with him because he carries the troll’s scent.

What Mikael fails above all to learn, with tragic consequences, is that Pessi the troll is the interpreter of man’s darkest, most forbidden impulses.

Download the full English PDF here!

Blood of Angels

Johanna Sinisalo

“The queen is dead. The bees are gone. Thus, the world is about to end. But if you follow the bees, there are doors in the air. And a desperate man is ready to go through one.”

Albert Einstein is claimed to have said that if bees disappear from the earth, mankind has four years left to live. When mass bee-vanishings of unprecedented scope and devastation hit the United States, Orvo, a beekeeper, knows all too well where it will lead. And one day, when Orvo goes to check on his hives, he is forced to witness something he wishes he had never lived to see. The queen is dead. The epidemic has spread to Europe. The world is coming to an end.

The light of Orvo’s life is his son, Eero, whose secret animal activist existence Orvo discovers far too late. Eero’s activities as a defender of animal rights and an ardent opponent of Orvo’s inherited way of life propel the family into irreversible, gutwrenching conflict. Orvo takes a desperate step onto a path where only he and the bees know the way… This novel is a magical plunge into the myth of death and immortality, a tale of human blindness in the face of overwhelming choices and inevitabilities.

Download the full English PDF here!

The Core of the Sun

Johanna Sinisalo

Johanna Sinisalo tells the story of The Eusistocratic Republic of Finland in 2013. Her thriller-like story of flight and fight is also between the lines a feisty social polemic. How did Finland turn into the North Korea of Europe?

The Eusistocratic Republic of Finland has prioritized social stability and national health, and outlawed practically everything that might give one pleasure or cause addiction. Well, almost everything: the distribution of sex, an essential commodity of pleasure, is made as efficient as possible. In order to achieve this, the state has bred a new human subspecies: one that is receptive, submissive and always willing. They used to be called women.

Vanna and Jare become involved in buying and selling a stimulant known to be extremely dangerous: chili. Then Jare comes across a strange religious cult in possession of the Core of the Sun, a pungent chili that is too hot to handle.

Download the full English PDF here!

The Storm Flute

Johanna Sinisalo

Beauty comes in many forms—stunning, exciting, thrilling, perilous. Weather has all of them.

Predicting or altering the weather is the eternal dream of humanity. A merchant named Jonah, living in Assyria 600 years before the common era, gets caught in a storm. Is the storm a curse from God, or is it his own doing? In Finland in the 2010’s, Leena Lind loves her job as a meteorologist, but the activities of an aggressive finance company have her wasting her expertise at menial tasks. When her daughter Leia plays a game that involves making a video of a thunderstorm, Leena’s life is blown irretrievably off track and soon no one is safe anymore.

Download the materials for the title here!

TROLL
ENNEN PÄIVÄNLASKUA EI VOI
Tammi, 2000, 268 pp.

READING MATERIALS
English edition

RIGHTS SOLD:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)
ALBANIA: Dituria
BRAZIL: Devir
BULGARIA: Perseus
CZECH REPUBLIC: One Woman Press
DENMARK: Jensen & Dalgaard
FRANCE: Actes Sud
GERMANY: Tropen Verlag
ITALY: Guanda Editore
JAPAN: Sunmark Publishing Inc
LATVIA: SIA Apgads Atena
LITHUANIA: VAGA Publishers
POLAND: Terytoria
RUSSIA: Amphora
SLOVENIA: Modrijan Zalozba
SPAIN: Ediciones Poliedro
SWEDEN: Wahlström & Widstrand
UK: Grove Atlantic
US: Grove Atlantic
FILM & TV RIGHTS: Marlind International AB

 

BLOOD OF ANGELS
ENKELTEN VERTA
Teos, 2011, 275 pp.

READING MATERIALS
English edition

RIGHTS SOLD:
FINLAND: Teos (orig.)
BULGARIA: Perseus
CROATIA: Naklada Ljevak
DENMARK: Jensen & Dalgaard
FRANCE: Actes Sud
HUNGARY: Metropolis
POLAND: Foksal
UK: Peter Owen Limited

 

THE CORE OF THE SUN
AURINGON YDIN
Tammi, 2013, 340 pp.

READING MATERIALS
English edition

RIGHTS SOLD:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)
CZECH REPUBLIC: Euromedia
DENMARK: Jensen & Dalgaard
FRANCE: Actes Sud
GERMANY: Klett-Cotta
HUNGARY: Metropolis
LATVIA: Petergailis
SPAIN: Roca Juvenil
TURKEY: Ithaki Yayinlari
US: Grove Atlantic

 

THE STORM FLUTE
UKKOSHUILU
Otava, 2021, 400 pp.

READING MATERIALS
English sample and synopsis

RIGHTS SOLD:
FINLAND: Otava (orig.)
DENMARK: Jensen & Dalgaard
HUNGARY: Metropolis

About author


Johanna Sinisalo

Johanna Sinisalo (b. 1958) is a Finlandia-Prize winning superstar of Finnish speculative fiction. In addition to her nine novels, she has also written short fiction and film and television screenplays. Her works have been translated into twenty languages.

Sinisalo has won several literary prizes also abroad, such as the 2004 James Tiptree, Jr. Award and the 2017 Prometheus Award, and was nominated for the Nebula Award in 2008, the Prix Escapades in 2012, and the Grand Prix de L’Imaginaire in 2017.

In 2022, Johanna Sinisalo was awarded the Pro Finlandia Medal for services to Finnish literature! Founded in 1943, the Pro Finlandia Medal of the Order of the Lion of Finland is a distinction awarded by the President of Finland to artists and writers in recognition of their long meritorious work and exceptional services to Finnish art, drama, literature and music.

Read more

Bibliography


2021, Fantasy & Science Fiction

The Storm Flute

Johanna Sinisalo


2020, Fantasy & Science Fiction

Strangers Inside

Johanna Sinisalo


2018, Fantasy & Science Fiction

IRON SKY: RENATE'S STORY

Johanna Sinisalo


2013, Fantasy & Science Fiction

The Core of The Sun

Johanna Sinisalo


2011, Fantasy & Science Fiction

Blood of Angels

Johanna Sinisalo


2010, Middle Grade (8-12 Years)

The Möbius Twist

Johanna Sinisalo


2008, Fantasy & Science Fiction

Birdbrain

Johanna Sinisalo


2000, Fantasy & Science Fiction

Troll

Johanna Sinisalo

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Finnish Cultural Foundation’s grand prize for Sirpa Kähkönen!

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We are incredibly thrilled to share the news that our author Sirpa Kähkönen has been awarded the Finnish Cultural Foundation’s grand prize! The 35 000 € prize is awarded for significant cultural contributions, on the eve of the Kalevala Day and the Day of Finnish Culture.

Kähkönen is a talented writer whose works have been nominated for the Finlandia Prize and for the Nordic Council Literary Prize, and her newest novel, THE GREEN CHAMBER, won the prestigious Savonia prize! 

Download the materials for the Green Chamber here! 

The Finnish Cultural Foundation Jury said: 

“Sirpa Kähkönen writes about society by writing about people. She describes contemporary questions through historical narrations.

Born in Kuopio in 1964, Sirpa Kähkönen studied literature and history, and worked as an editor prior to setting out as a full-time writer. Her studies provided her with a clear direction: Kähkönen is particularly known as a master of historical novels.

As someone who enjoys digging through newspaper archives, Kähkönen is accomplished at providing the details that make the past come alive. While describing the private sphere and bringing historical events up close, she is able to make her work universal. Through her characters, Kähkönen asks life’s big questions, demanding answers from the reader.

The author has created a world of her own – a Kuopio of times past, which is fictional but true. — Sirpa Kähkönen is characterised by humaneness, being always on the side of the individual.”

 

Congratulations, Sirpa!

THE GREEN CHAMBER

Rights sold:

FINLAND: Otava (orig.)
ESTONIA: Koolibri

Reading material:
English synopsis and sample

About author


Sirpa Kähkönen

Sirpa Kähkönen was born to a family that had been harshly treated by the history of the 1900s. World War II and the Civil War preceding it, had wounded her family members and marked them with heavy silence and unspoken words.

Mapping out that silence became Sirpa’s work. The first questions that arose were related to her closest circle: what had happened to her beloved grandparents? From her personal sphere the intellectual curiosity widened to touch upon the history of Finland and then the history of Europe, and finally, researching the fate of an individual during times of crisis.

Sirpa Kähkönen lives and works in Helsinki. She constructs her works upon research, using a wide array of archives, newspaper clippings, research material, and contemporary literature. Inspired by microhistorical research tradition, Sirpa writes about how mentalities are formed, and how the immaterial inheritance runs in family lines and in societies.

Sirpa Kähkönen’s historical novel begins where source information ends. It opens the gates to experiencing the past in a sensory way; the characters live out the story as physical, sensual beings.

Sirpa Kähkönen has published thirteen novels of which one (36 Urns: A History of Being Wrong) has won and four others have been nominated for the prestigious Finlandia prize and one has been nominated for the Nordic Council Literature Prize. She has also published three non-fiction titles, one of which was nominated for the Tieto-Finlandia prize for non-fiction literature. In 2022, Kähkönen received the Finnish Cultural Foundation's Grand Prize for significant achievements in culture.

Awards and nominations:

Kirjallisuuden valtionpalkinto 1992 - The State Literary Prize 1992

Savonia-palkinto 1999 - Savonia Prize 1999

Kuopion taiteilijaseuran kirjallisuuden tunnustuspalkinto 2003 - The Kuopio Artist Society's Literary Award 2003

Kiitos kirjasta -mitali 2008 - Thank You for the book medallion 2008

Savon Sanomien Savonmuan Hilima -titteli 2010

Otavan kirjasäätiön Veijo Meri -palkinto 2012 - Otava Literary Fund Veijo Meri Prize 2012

Pro-Finlandia -mitali 2015 - Pro Finlandia Medallion 2015

Suomi-palkinto 2016 - Suomi-Finland Prize 2016 from the Ministry of Education and Culture

Savonia-palkinto 2021 - Savonia Prize 2021

Suomen Kulttuurirahaston suurpalkinto - The Finnish Cultural Foundation's Grand Prize 2021

Finlandia-palkinto 2023 - Finlandia Prize 2023

Read more Author's page

Bibliography


2023, Literary Fiction

36 Urns: A History of Being Wrong

Sirpa Kähkönen


2021, Literary Fiction

The Green Chamber

Sirpa Kähkönen

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THE RED ROOM by Kaj Korkea-aho shortlisted for Runeberg Prize 2022!

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We could not be happier to share that THE RED ROOM by Kaj Korkea-aho has now been shortlisted for the prestigious Runeberg Prize 2022!

ABOUT THE BOOK: When a gentleman living alone offers a young author the home of his dreams in exchange for writing a book, the young man finds himself involved in a remarkable game. He begins to write a story that takes the reader to the labyrinth of desire and submission, to the nightlife of 1980s Helsinki, and to the intricate setups of relationships between men – but what is his place in it?

Download the English synopsis and sample by clicking here

ABOUT THE PRIZE:
The Runeberg Prize is open to all Finnish works of fiction. Since 1982, it has been distributed 35 times so far, and in addition to novels, collections of short stories and poems have emerged as winning works.
The winner of the award will be announced on Runeberg Day on February 5, 2022.

JURY PRAISE:

THE RED ROOM  is psychologically skillful and pulsates with drive and strong allure. It depicts a world that for most readers is unfamiliar and hidden.
–             Runeberg Prize Jury on THE RED ROOM

THE RED ROOM
by Kaj Korkea-aho

Lust and power collide in an upscale apartment in the fashionable southern Helsinki. The steep and sturdy Art Nouveau walls have seen decadent parties and cruel games.
At first, it’s just a joke: a newspaper ad in which a young writer promises to write a book in exchange for an affordable apartment. But when a gentleman living alone offers him the home of his dreams, the young man finds himself involved in a remarkable game.
He begins to write a story that takes the reader to the labyrinth of desire and submission, to the nightlife of 1980s Helsinki, and to the intricate setups of relationships between men – but what is his place in it?

Kaj Korkea-aho (b. 1983) is a writer, columnist and a comedian. Moreover, he has a career as an actor and a host in TV and radio. In his varied acting roles, he has often taken a stand for the rights of queer people, and his texts often discuss themes such as growing up, sexual minorities, religious revival communities and literature.

THE RED ROOM
Röda rummet
Förlaget, 2021, 320pp

RIGHTS SOLD:

FINLAND (Swedish): Förlaget (orig.)

FINLAND (Finnish): Otava
SWEDEN: Förlaget

About author


Kaj Korkea-aho

Kaj Korkea-aho (b. 1983) is a writer, columnist and a comedian. Moreover, he has a career as an actor and a host in TV and radio. In his varied acting roles, he has often taken a stand for the rights of queer people, and his texts often discuss themes such as growing up, sexual minorities, religious revival communities and literature.

Korkea-aho has published four novels: Se till mig som liten är (God Who Holds The Little Dear) (2009), Gräset är mörkare på andra sidan (The Grass Is Darker on the Other Side) (2012), Onda boken (The Evil Book) (2015) which has been already translated into six languages and sold to Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Germany and Denmark, and now - Röda rummet (The Red Room) (2021). His books have attained wide readership in Finland and have scored several prizes, such as the The Swedish Literary Society’s prize in 2010 and 2013, the Thanks for the Book Award in 2016 and the Längmans Cultural Foundation’s prize in 2018. In 2017, Korkea-aho’s YA book Virala genier (Viral Geniuses) was nominated for the prestigious Finlandia Prize for children’s and young adult’s literature.

Since 2005, together with Ted Forsström, Korkea-aho has created comedy in Swedish for radio, TV and plays, whilst also writing the YA series Zoo! (the basis for the TV series Virala genier). Together, they also run the Ted & Kaj podcast, one of the biggest podcasts in Finland.

Kaj Korkea-aho was born and raised in the small town of Esse in Ostrobothnia, but now lives in Helsinki.

Read more

Bibliography


2021, Literary Fiction

The Red Room

Kaj Korkea-aho

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Introducing the Finlandia Prize winner 2021 Anne-Maija Aalto with the YA novel WHERE THE LIGHT COMES IN

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We are incredibly proud to announce that the Finlandia Prize winner for Children’s & Young Adult Literature this year, Anne-Maija Aalto with the YA novel WHERE THE LIGHT COMES IN is now represented by Elina Ahlbäck Literary Agency.

Join us in welcoming and congratulating Anne-Maija Aalto!

Finlandia Prize 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.
Download the Finnish pdf for WHERE THE LIGHT COMES IN from this link.

The English sample and synopsis are available in early January 2022. If you need a Finnish reader or translator, find them here.

Finlandia Prize Jury’s motivations:

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 winner: WHERE THE LIGHT COMES IN
by Anne-Maija AaltoWhat is a person if you take away their memory? Who determines what we believe? A captivating story of rebellion, hope and humanity.

Alexei is a young man whose father runs a human research institute in Tokyo, which is now partly covered by the sea. New cargoes of test subjects regularly arrive at the facility, one containing Satomi, a young woman whose memory is set to be erased. Satomi becomes Alexei’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.

WHERE THE LIGHT COMES IN won the Finlandia Prize and was also selected as the audience favorite among the Finlandia Prize for Children’s & Young Adult Literature nominees at the Cultural Gala held in December 2021..

The Finlandia Prize for Children’s & Young Adult Literature is a recognition presented by the Finnish Book Foundation for meritorious Finnish children’s and young adult writing. The amount of the award is 30,000 euros. The Finlandia Prizes were presented on December 1, 2021.

Anne-Maija Aalto (b. 1988) holds a Bachelor of Arts in creative writing from the University of Turku. She enjoys good stories and traveling to foreign cities. Her acclaimed debut novel Into Deep Water was published in 2016. Her second novel, Dragonfly, appeared in 2020 and was nominated for the Topelius Prize. Her 2021 Where the Light Comes In is the 2021 Finlandia Prize winner.

Bibliography:

*   Into Deep Water, 2016
*   Dragonfly, 2020 – Topelius Prize nominee 2020
*   Where the Light Comes In, 2021  – Finlandia Prize winner 2021

WHERE THE LIGHT COMES IN
by Anne-Maija Aalto

Mistä valo pääsee sisään
Otava, September 2021, 320pp

RIGHTS SOLD:

FINLAND: Otava (orig.)

READING MATERIALS:

Finnish manuscript.
English sample and Synopsis coming early January 2022

About author


Anne-Maija Aalto

Anne-Maija Aalto is an award-winning Finnish author of both YA and adult fiction. Her YA novel Where the Light Comes In won the prestigious Finlandia Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature in 2021 and has received praise for its effortless narration, beautiful prose and compellingly current story.

Where the Light Comes In is a standalone sequel for Dragonfly which was nominated for the Topelius Prize in 2020. The prize is awarded yearly to an expectional novel for young people, and the jury described Dragonfly as “a deeply touching and beautifully written story of friendship, loss and social inequality.” Her other works include YA novel Into Deep Water and novel The Silence of Snow. Her books often dwelve into the darker sides of humanity, exploring the themes of loss, loneliness, identity and coming of age.

Anne-Maija holds a Bachelor of Arts in literature from the University of Turku where she also studied English and creative writing. She lives in Turku with her husband and an extensive collection of half-filled notebooks. When she isn’t writing, she can most likely be found walking in nature with her camera or lounging on the couch with a good book.

Read more Author's page

Bibliography


2021, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Where the Light Comes In

Anne-Maija Aalto


2020, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Dragonfly

Anne-Maija Aalto

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Tuutikki Tolonen’s AGNES AND THE GARDEN OF DREAMS has won the coveted Lukuvarkaus prize!

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We are very happy to announce that Tuutikki Tolonen’s AGNES AND THE GARDEN OF DREAMS, illustrated by Kati Vuorento, has won the Lukuvarkaus prize: a unique award to the best children’s book of the previous year, chosen by a jury of children in ages 9-12. A shortlist for the award is picked by an adult pre-jury.

Previous winners have also included Sisterland by Salla Simukka (rights sold in 10 territories) and one of the titles shortlisted this year was Mabel Merryweather and Miniature Pirates by Noora Kunnas (rights sold in 6 territories).

AGNES AND THE GARDEN OF DREAMS is the first title in the Agnes series. It is written by Tuutikki Tolonen and illustrated by Kati Vuorento.

The series will be published in 6 countries, but rights are still available in Norway, Sweden, Lithuania, Hungary, Romania, the US, UK, Turkey, Poland etc.

Download the English materials for the Agnes series here.


Happy author Tuutikki Tolonen with the jury members (Photo by Aili Arias)

AGNES AND THE GARDEN OF DREAMS by Tuutikki Tolonen
Middle Grade (8-12 Years)11-years-old Agnes has to move to a small countryside town with her mother. Her parents are divorced, and Agnes doesn’t know anyone from her new hometown. She is not having the best summer of her life. But then something weird happens. Agnes finds an old tombstone that has her name and birthday engraved on it – only the birth year is different. Whose grave is it? And after the visit to the cemetery she starts to have very mysterious dreams. It feels like someone who lived a long time ago is trying to tell something to her… Is it possible that these two Agneses from different times have some connection?
Rights sold: FINLAND: WSOY (orig.), CZECH REPUBLIC: Portál, s. r. o., DENMARK: ABC Forlag, ESTONIA: Eesti Raamat, GERMANY: Carlsen Verlag, RUSSIA: Rosman

Download materials here
AGNES AND THE MYSTERIOUS MANOR by Tuutikki Tolonen
Middle Grade (8-12 Years)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’s no 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?
Rights sold: FINLAND: WSOY (orig.), ESTONIA: Eesti Raamat

Download materials here
Tuutikki Tolonen is the author of several acclaimed children’s books, plays and academic articles. For Monster Nanny she received the Arvid Lydecken award. She teaches creative writing and has worked as an editor and reporter at Vinski, Finland’s only literary journal for children.

Tolonen is currently writing Agnes series, of which the first book “Agnes and the Garden of Dreams” has been nominated for Runeberg Junior Award 2020.
Kati Vuorento is an illustrator living and working in Helsinki, Finland. ”In small details there is an infinite magic. I want my illustrations to stir emotion in the audience. Emphatizing is important to me. In my illustrations I always include approachable characteristics to even the most hardened anti-hero. This is how I mold the characters into personalities with depth and dimension.”

Her known illustrations are for example middle-grade novel Agnes and the Garden of Dreams by Tuutikki Tolonen.

Rights sold:

FINLAND: WSOY (orig.)

CZECH REPUBLIC: Portál, s. r. o.
DENMARK: ABC Forlag
ESTONIA: Eesti Raamat
GERMANY: Carlsen Verlag
RUSSIA: Rosman

About author


Kati Vuorento

Kati Vuorento is an illustrator living and working in Espoo, Finland: ”In small details there is an infinite magic. I want my illustrations to stir emotion in the audience. Empathizing is important to me. In my illustrations, I always include approachable characteristics to even the most hardened anti-hero. This is how I mold the characters into personalities with depth and dimension.”

She is the illustrator of middle-grade Agnes Series by Tuutikki Tolonen that in 2021 was nominated for the Arvid Lydecken Award, received an honorable mention for the Runeberg Junior Award, and won the Luku Varkaus Award!


Read more Author's page

About author


Tuutikki Tolonen

Tuutikki Tolonen is the author of several acclaimed children’s books, plays and academic articles. She teaches creative writing and has worked as an editor and reporter at Vinski, a Finnish literary magazine for children. For Monster Nanny she received the Arvid Lydecken award.  Her inspiration for the Monster Nanny trilogy sparked during a family breakfast. “My son Leo, then six, said: ‘I heard on the radio yesterday that all moms have to go on vacation and monsters will take their places,” she says.

Her other bestselling series is the Agnes-series, of which the first book "Agnes and the Garden of Dreams" was in 2021 nominated for the Arvid Lydecken Award, received an honorable mention for the Runeberg Junior Award, and won the Luku Varkaus Award. Tolonen tells that the inspiration for Agnes comes for her interest for weird and inexpicable tales, ghost stories and mysteries: "I wanted to write  book my daughter Aili, then nine, would like to read - not too long, not too scary, but very curious."

Read more

Today Elina Ahlback Literary Agency celebrates its 12th anniversary!

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The story of the Elina Ahlback Literary Agency began in Manhattan, New York, in February 2009. While Elina’s son was skating in the skate park under the Brooklyn Bridge, the courageous decision to establish the agency was made — with its mission to build bridges between authors and publishers worldwide and with its passion to internationalize Finnish literature.

Elina Ahlback Literary Agency is Finland’s leading and first independent, international literary agency representing Finnish and Nordic authors’ and illustrators’ book, film & TV rights in international markets. The Agency also represents U.S. publishers and their authors exclusively in the Nordic countries.

We are enormously proud of the authors we have the honor to represent and  are celebrating with some of the best praises for our excellent authors and titles this Spring:

A New York Times Bestseller

Translated with icy precision, by Kristian London, is written in short, sharp, present-tense chapters, a technique which adds to its relentless tension.

– The Wall Street Journal on
The Witch Hunter by Max Seeck

 

 

 

 

 

Best Book of the Month

This provocative Finnish author enters the fray of American literature (thanks to translation from David Hackston) with a racy, wonderfully weird novel about a therapist’s sessions with a sex-obsessed woman.

– Entertainment Weekly on
My Friend Natalia by Laura Lindstedt

 

 

 

Best Travel Book of Year 2021

Packed with emotions, this book is like reading a travelogue, feminist’s manifesto and a self-help guide in one.

– The Independent on
The Women I Think About at Night by Mia Kankimäki

 

 

 

 

Best Debut Novel of the Year

By pushing her character into a crisis, a writer can sometimes observe the abyss of the mind. How eloquently we are led from the drama of a crisis into facing the questions of domination and subjugation. The intense mood is amplified by the close-knit style of expression. The general impression of this dense novel follows along the same lines as the communication between the characters: it surely is cold but it does emit some heat.

– Parnasso on
Arctic Mirage by Terhi Kokkonen

 

 

Winner of a National Crime competition 2019

Finland is the new Mecca of crime fiction. You need proof? Just read the first novel by A.M. Ollikainen. I couldn’t imagine a better start for a series. CARGO is outstanding.

– Marco Schneiders, Publishing Director, Bastei Lübbe on
Cargo by A.M.Ollikainen

 

 

 

Winner of The Best Crime Fiction Novel in 2020

This art detective thriller that is constructed around the masterpiece by Michaelangelo Caravaggio moves fluidly forward like an Italian little criminal on his scooter. The twists and turns are swift and the plot as intricate as the Sicilian courtly etiquette; yet the tranquil pace of the narration allows the reader to stay on board.

– KMV Magazine on
Lead White by Jyrki Erra

 

 

 

A national bestseller

Miika Nousiainen’s FACELIFT is first and foremost a fantastic humorous novel full of wit and charming characters. Moreover the author does not shy away from more serious issues and offers a refreshing perspective on many clichés and stereotypes. Reading Facelift is an experience not to be forgotten.

– Lucie Bregantová, Host Publishing on
Facelift by Miika Nousiainen

 

 

 

Winner of the Storytel Audio book Award 2020 for the Best Crime Novel
Winner of Elisa Kirja Book Award, Best Newcomer 2020

Our first impression after reading this wonderful book is ‘It is such a fascinating and engaging read, that your biggest challenge will be putting the book down.’ Scandinavian landscapes, 30-years old mystery, investigation, all the atmosphere – ideal mix. We even felt the True Detective vibes! We liked the masterful parallel storylines, the formed author`s style, and, of course, the perfect ending!

– Sofia Shramko, Mann Ivanov Ferber on
All The King’s Men by Elina Backman

 

A national bestseller

The title of this book immediately caught my eye, but it’s rare that a book delivers beyond its clever name. This book does. It’s an entertaining, thought-provoking read about the world we live in and the companies that, when unchecked, will shape our future.

– Joost van den Ossenblok, A.W. Bruna on
The 50 Most Dangerous Companies by Juha-Pekka Raeste and Hannu Sokala

 

 

 

An immediate national bestseller

Love is not – although abstruse – irrational….These two things, the search for love at the same time as you are escaping from it and the process of observing and describing it, are at the core of Irrational Things. — Little by little, all these irrational things are presented by Turunen to the reader in her endearing way that takes notice of the smallest details. Time flies, the narrator changes and becomes more and more aware. As a cunning writer, Turunen has fooled the reader into fearing how a distant relationship can survive. And suddenly, I as a reader, realize that all the while I’ve been following an artist’s development story.

– Suvi Ahola, Helsingin Sanomat on
Irrational Things by Saara Turunen

About author


A.M. Ollikainen

A. M. Ollikainen is a pseudonym for a husband-and-wife author duo Aki and Milla Ollikainen. Aki Ollikainen has published three novels and won the Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize in 2012. He has also been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and Prix Femina in 2016. Milla Ollikainen has published three crime novels and won Like Publishing and the Finnish Detective Society’s Crime novel writing competition in 2012. Cargo is their first novel together and the Winner of a National Crime Novel Competition. The couple lives in Lohja with their two children.

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About author


Elina Backman

Elina Backman is an author and a media & marketing professional living in Helsinki. Elina loves books (all sorts), traveling, cycling and is a host of a Book & Wine Club. She is a creative soul with a commercial mind, and her goal is to find readers globally.

Her debut novel All the King's Men was published in 2020 and immediately gained an enormous amount of attention from the Finnish media, including a praising review by the biggest daily newspaper Helsingin Sanomat. The Havas series is now a best-selling series in Finland and an international TV series is in development. Elina's books have sold over 70 000 copies in Finland.

Together with Heidi Holmavuo, Elina has also narrated the true crime podcast Ratkaisematon (Unsolved), which turned into a full-length audio book as the two crime writers started investigating the murder of a young girl in 1967. They were able to uncover new evidence and their research led the police to reopen the investigation. This story is narrated in the book Unsolved - The Case of Elli Immo.

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About author


Juha-Pekka Raeste & Hannu Sokala

Juha-Pekka Raeste covers international and domestic business for Helsingin Sanomat, the biggest newspaper in Finland. He focuses on the biggest corporations and the IT industry.

Hannu Sokala works as an investigative reporter for YLE, the Finnish Broadcasting Company. His work covers e.g. international finance and macroeconomics.

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About author


Laura Lindstedt

Laura Lindstedt (b. 1976) became a critical darling with her adoption-themed debut novel Scissors (Sakset, Teos 2007), which earned her a nomination for the Finlandia Prize, the country’s most prestigious literary honour. She is currently revising her Ph.D. thesis on French author Nathalie Sarraute. Lindstedt’s second novel Oneiron (Teos 2015) is a work of speculative fiction that takes place in the mysterious moments that follow one’s death. Oneiron has continued Lindstedt’s critical success, earning her the coveted 2015 Finlandia Prize. Lindstedt’s latest novel My Friend Natalia has been a critical success and the rights have been sold to 12 territories.

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About author


Max Seeck, New York Times Best Selling Author

Max Seeck - New York Times Bestselling Author of THE WITCH HUNTER.

Winner of the prestigious Glass Key Award 2023 for his novel THE LAST GRUDGE. 

“Another star has been added to the firmament of thriller writers,” announced Iltalehti newspaper, when Max’s debut novel was published in 2016. Four years and four books later, Max Seeck’s novels have been sold to more than 40 countries, including US, UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Nordic countries and as far as Korea!

His debut trilogy following protagonist Daniel Kuisma sold over 40,000 copies in Finland. His new Jessica Niemi series landed him on the New York Times Bestseller list! In Faithful Reader, AKA The Witch Hunter (US title), book 1 of the Jessica Niemi series, Helsinki Police Detective Jessica Niemi hunts an occultist serial killer. In Evil’s Net, AKA Ice Coven, Jessica and her team follow clues hidden on Instagram to solve the disappearance of a young influencer and a manga artist.

Max Seeck has a background in sales and marketing, and has lately been able to dedicate his time to his lifelong love of writing. His interests include well-conducted research, reading Nordic Noir and listening to movie soundtracks as he writes.

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About author


Mia Kankimäki

Mia Kankimäki is the author of two best-selling books which blend travelogue, memoir, biography and women’s history. After taking a master’s degree in comparative literature at the University of Helsinki and working diligently in Finnish publishing, in 2010 she left her job and traveled to Japan to write her first book. Her books have received several literary awards, for example the Best Travel Book of the year 2013, the HelMet Award 2015, and Otava Book Foundation’s Non Fiction Award 2020. She currently lives in Helsinki, Finland, whenever she’s not traveling for her next book project.

Mia has been enthusiastic about Japanese culture for years, and is a qualified ikebana teacher of the Sogetsu school. Her first book Things That Make One’s Hear Beat Faster took her to Kyoto where she has spent long periods of writing and making research ever since. Kankimäki’s second book The Women I Think About at Night has sold over 54,000 copies in Finland and the translation rights have been sold to 20 territories, including USA and China.

Mia's both books have been aqcuired by Japanese publisher Soshisha:

"I am delighted to share that Mia Kankimäki’s debut title, THINGS THAT MAKE ONE’S HEART BEAT FASTER, is embraced and loved by many Japanese readers. A cross between an autobiography and a travelogue, the author finds an emotional connection with a woman geographically far apart and from a different era and tries to discover who she really was. I believe this style is reflected in THE WOMEN I THINK ABOUT AT NIGHT as well. Though some of the female figures in this second book might not be well-known locally, I am looking forward to seeing how our readers will react to their lifestyles." - Daisuke Watanabe, Editor, Soshisha

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About author


Miika Nousiainen

Miika Nousiainen writes sharp, gentle and often tragicomical novels about surprising themes like long-distance running, the desire to be Swedish, and dentistry. He works as a journalist and writes also for television.

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About author


Terhi Kokkonen

Terhi Kokkonen (1974) is a Helsinki-based musician and pop lyricist. She is known for the band Scandinavian Music Group, as well as being one of the singers of the band Ultra Bra. Kokkonen has studied dramaturgy at the Theater Academy and screenwriting and film editing at the Department of Cinematography and Stage Design at Aalto University. Arctic Mirage is her debut novel, and it was awarded as the best debut novel of 2020.

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Salla Simukka nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award!

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Salla Simukka nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award!

We are really happy to share the news that our author Salla Simukka is nominated for upcoming 2022 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award – the world’s largest children’s and young people’s book award!

The prize, established in 2002, is worth SEK 5 million and is awarded annually to one or more individuals. The award criteria are, among other things, the high quality of the works and the production, which has been carried out in the spirit of Astrid Lindgren.

Finnish Section of IBBY, Finnish Institute for Children’s Literature and Finnish Library Association nominated Salla Simukka and Linda Bondestam to represent Finnish children’s literature in the competition for the prestigious award.

Congratulations, Salla!

Below you can see some of Salla Simukka’s excellent titles!

NEW: TWO GIRLS, ONE SUMMER by Salla Simukka 
(Matalapaine/ Korkeapaine)The touching and beautiful title about great emotions in the summer is supported by Simukka’s light and airy narrative,A powerful, authentic novel about the summer and love, insecurities, and exploration of two young people by the popular YA author.Published 27th of May 2021, English materials coming soon!
Let us know of your interest by clicking here!
Rights sold: FINLAND: Tammi

THE SNOW WHITE TRILOGY
AS RED AS BLOOD by Salla Simukka
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. It turns out that three students from Lumikki’s high school have in their possession plastic bags containing bloody notes, and soon Lumikki finds herself caught in a tangled web of international drug trade.
AS WHITE AS SNOW by Salla Simukka
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 half 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 family community. She gets acquainted with the streets and graveyards of Prague when she is forced to run for her life to prevent the tragedy. The religion of the cult is not pure; and innocence is not as white as snow.
AS BLACK AS EBONY by Salla Simukka
Lumikki Andersson is set to play the leading role in a modern-day version of Snow White at her high school. The rehearsals are going well, and Lumikki seems to have found a stable and loving relationship with the boy playing the Huntsman. 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 blood bath unless Lumikki consents to his demands.
RIGHTS SOLD: THE SNOW WHITE TRILOGY
FINLAND,  Tammi (orig.), ALBANIA,  Botime B-Books,  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, 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 Books for Young Readers, VIETNAM,  Alpha Books, TV RIGHTS: Zerogravity Management (”Ozark”)
Download materials here

 
DETAINED by Salla Simukka
Fifty teenagers aged 16-17 are introduced to a fully automated prison with no guards or other staff. Probability calculations have shown that each of them will commit a crime at some time in their lives that will send them to prison.This is their last chance. They must solve their future crimes, confess them in the prison’s Confession Room, and demonstrate remorse. If they do, they will be set free. If they fail to discover their crimes before they reach age eighteen, they will remain in prison to serve their full sentences.
Rights sold: FINLAND: Tammi (orig.), ESTONIA: Pegasus

Download materials here
SISTERLAND by Salla Simukka
In the heart of Sisterland lies a wonderful garden full of all kinds of peculiar creatures: wind fairies, dream weavers and asking flowers. And in one tree, on a swing, is Marissa. All Alice has ever wanted is a best friend and now her dream has come true! But the girls have not ended up in Sisterland by coincidence. They must find the queen who rules  Sisterland to end the endless snowfall in their own world. However, Alice faces the hardest task when Marissa seems to have forgotten about their friendship.
Rights sold: FINLAND: Tammi (orig.), Belgium&Netherlands: Clavis, CHINA: Hunan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House, ESTONIA: Pegasus, FRANCE: Hachette Black Moon, JAPAN: Nishimura Co., Ltd., LATVIA: Zvaigzne ABC Publishers, UNITED STATES: Crown Books for Young Readers, WORLD ARABIC: Arab Scientific Publishers, Inc.

Download materials here
TURN OFF THE LIGHTS! TURN ON THE LIGHTS! by Salla Simukka
A collection of ”little awesome stories and little awful stories” from Finland’s internationally most successful YA author.What is the most awful or the most awesome thing that has happened to you? Salla Simukka’s anticipated new book includes little awful stories and little awesome stories about young people’s lives. Why are under-fifteens not allowed in the basement? What happened in Dog’s Head Park? Who makes nightly visits in Klara’s solitary confinement room? What does it take to make out with lights on?
Rights sold: FINLAND: Tammi (orig.), LATVIA: Zvaigzne ABC Publishers

Download materials here
ELSEWHERE by Salla Simukka
Eighteen-year-old Samuel is the stereotypical nerd. His nights are spent playing on the computer and his days in bed. Now that he has finished school, Samuel is in danger of completely losing touch with society. But then he is invited to join a secret project that pays shockingly well. Samuel is caught up in the construction of a virtual world that is full of surprises. However, the biggest surprise for him is that he falls in love. Everything else loses its meaning when Samuel decides to save Emmi, the girl of his dreams. Elsewhere is an astounding vision of what the world of virtual gaming could become in the near future. It also deals with the difficulties of relationships between parents and children and the inability of adults to cope with many of the problems young people face. And of course it is a story of first love, which is always intense, turbulent and beautiful.
Rights sold: FINLAND: Tammi (orig.), NETHERLANDS: Clavis Books

Download materials here
WITHOUT A TRACE by Salla Simukka
Have you ever wished that everyone else in the world would just disappear? You’d better watch out what you wish for.Emmi Aalto is a 15-year-old girl who feels like she doesn’t have anything. She hasn’t figured out what she’s good at in school yet; she’s still just a “Potential”. Her family doesn’t seem to pay any attention to her at home. And she has never had any friends. Emmi decides to run away, so she could at least  become the girl who disappeared. But when she comes back home, there’s no one there. Or next door. Or in the entire town. Everyone has disappeared – or have they?
Rights sold: FINLAND: Tammi (orig.), NETHERLANDS: Clavis Books

Download materials here

About author


Salla Simukka

Salla Simukka is the author of the international success story The Snow White Trilogy: rights are sold in 52 territories and in Hollywood. She has written several novels for young readers and her accolades include the Topelius Prize 2013 and the Finland Prize 2013.  Where It All Begins, published in 2022, is her first novel for adults

Previously Simukka has written book reviews for the newspapers, translated all kinds of texts into Finnish, worked an editor at a literary magazine and as a screenwriter for a popular TV show for young audiences.  She has written books for young adults and children, and now also for adults, and travels the world talking about them.

Read more

Bibliography


2022, Literary Fiction

Where It All Begins

Salla Simukka


2021, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

In the Dark I Can Be Yours

Salla Simukka


2020, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Detained

Salla Simukka


2018, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Turn off the Lights! Turn on the Lights!

Salla Simukka


2016, Middle Grade (8-12 Years)

Sisterland

Salla Simukka


2014, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

As Black as Ebony

Salla Simukka


2013, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

As Red as Blood

Salla Simukka


2013, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

As White as Snow

Salla Simukka


2012, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Elsewhere

Salla Simukka


2012, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Without a Trace

Salla Simukka

Related news

Emmi Itäranta wins Tähtivaeltaja Award and Saara Turunen goes to #1 on the Finnish Bestseller List!

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Fantastic news from the Fantasy world: with her book MOONDAY LETTERS, Emmi Itäranta has received The Tähtivaeltaja Award for the Best Finnish Science Fiction Book 2020!

According to the jury composed of experts, MOONDAY LETTERS has a style that is clear and crisp and very fluent. The jury says: “The author’s strong vision of the solar system shows us the direction we are heading at. Simultaneously it poses the question: are we changing while our everyday and our place of living change and what kind of a price are we paying for all this.” “Another poignant theme in the book is ecology. The vista into a collapsed and abandoned crust that humans have sucked empty, is cautionary and prophetic. This makes MOONDAY LETTERS astutely topical.”

Praise:

“Itäranta’s language is beautiful, and depictions almost poetic. The story grows, as emotions, clues, past, secrets and truth open like flowers. The plot flows forward and the mystery keeps readers hooked up. And it is a pleasure to read.” – Helsingin Sanomat newspaper

Download full English manuscript

With her fresh new novel IRRATIONAL THINGS, Saara Turunen tops the official Finnish Bestseller list and goes to No.1

Praise:

“We are honored to be the first foreign publishers of this masterly Work by Saara Turunen. We believe that its subject is a matter of great relevance in the face of the modern life-style and the readers will relate with and feel for the main heroine.”-Ieva Savukynaitė-Dubicka, BALTO, Lithuania

Download materials from here.

Only 2 weeks left to apply to FILI translation grants from Finnish and Finland Swedish!

Apply now:
The unique translation grant system in Finland gives you an opportunity to finance your translation costs up to 70%  read more here:  https://fili.fi/en/grants/

The Spring application period started on 1st of April and will be closed on 1st of May.

Please note that only translations from Finnish or Finnish-Swedish to foreign languages will be supported.

Translators:
We will advise you to find the best possible translators, and in some cases, you can also translate from English.  Find more information about translators here: https://kaantopiiri.fi/en/search-translators/
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MOONDAY LETTERS
Teos, 2020

Rights sold:
FINLAND Teos (orig.)

Reading materials:
Full English manuscript

 

 

IRRATIONAL THINGS
Tammi, 2021

Rights sold:
FINLAND:Tammi (orig.)
LITHUANIA: Balto

Reading materials:
Long English sample, synopsis

About author


Emmi Itäranta

Emmi Itäranta (b.1976) holds two MA degrees, one in Drama and another in Creative Writing. Her award-winning debut novel Memory of Water (Teemestarin kirja) was published in Finland in 2012 to great accolades, followed by The Weaver (Kudottujen kujien kaupunki) in 2015. Her latest novel The Moonday Letters was published in September 2020.

Itäranta’s writing has been compared to that of Ursula K. Le Guin. Her honours include the Young Aleksis Kivi Prize 2013, the Kalevi Jäntti Literary Prize 2012 and first place in the Teos Fantasy and Sci-Fi Literary Contest 2011.

Memory of Water has sold to over 25 languages to date, and it has also been nominated for the Philip K. Dick Award, the Arthur C. Clarke Award recognizing the best science fiction novel published in the UK in 2014, and the Golden Tentacle award. In addition, Itäranta has been included on the Honor List of the Otherwise Award (formerly James Tiptree, Jr. Award). 

Itäranta’s cv is an eclectic mix of writing-related activities, including stints as a columnist, theatre critic, press officer and dramaturge. Her poems, short stories, articles and essays have appeared in anthologies, film magazines and science fiction magazines in the UK and Finland. She now lives in Finland after 14 years in the United Kingdom.

Read more Author's page

About author


Saara Turunen

Saara Turunen is an internationally acclaimed award-winning author, playwright and director. Much of her work examines the themes of art, identity and social norms. Turunen is known for her three highly acclaimed novels - Irrational Things (2021), The Bystander (2018) and Love/Monster (2015), but also for her work in theatre. Her plays have been translated into 15 languages and performed all around the world. Turunen was awarded with the Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize in 2015, with the Finland Prize in 2016, with the City of Helsinki’s The Artist of the Year Award in 2018 and with the Lea-Prize in 2020, all high-profile awards given in Finland.

Her latest novel Irrational Things (2021) became an immediate bestseller and a critical darling. It has already sold over 20,000 copies in Finland.

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Courage in Journalism Award for Jessikka Aro! New review for her PUTIN’S TROLLS!

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We are very proud to announce that Jessikka Aro, author of PUTIN’S TROLLS, has received International Women’s Media Foundation‘s Courage of Journalism Award!

The other three award recipients were imprisoned Egyptian multimedia journalist Solafa Magdy; Yakeen Bido, a freelance broadcast journalist in Syria; and, Uighur journalist of Radio Free Asia, Gulchehra Hoja.

“Right now, the pursuit of truth, and the need for diverse journalism, is at a critical high,” said the IWMF’s Executive Director Elisa Lees Muñoz. “This year’s Courage in Journalism Award winners remind us that those who tell the world’s most vital stories, whatever the risk may be, are our true heroes. We congratulate Jessikka, Solafa, Yakeen, and Gulchehra for your spectacular work and uncommon bravery.”

Jessikka Aro reports from the frontlines of Russian information warfare, conducting courageous investigations inside troll factories while enduring incessant attacks and sexual harassment.

Her story is now available in her bestselling narrative nonfiction PUTIN’S TROLLS that has already been acquired by publishers in 7 territories and sold over 20 000 copies in Finland.

Ask for the full English manuscript of PUTIN’S TROLLS by clicking here.

NEW EXCELLENT REVIEW FOR PUTIN’S TROLLS

“Jessikka Aro’s ambitions are to show that the Russian troll business is not a single phenomenon, but a whole system that does not rule out unpleasant surprises in the future. She succeeds well in proving this.”

Here is the full review from Hufvudstadsbladet (in Swedish)

OTHER PRAISE:

“Valuable insight into Russian troll operations worldwide. ”
– Helsingin Sanomat newspaper, Finland

“Have you ever thought about how defenseless one person can be when systematically attacked with information warfare?
This is what happened to Finnish journalist Jessikka Aro. The book is an outstanding personal and educational story about the dangers of modern information society and the possibilities of defending oneself against them.
Precaution – reading this can severely damage one’s naivety with irreversible consequences.”
 – Raul Rebane, Stratkom, Estonia

“A brave and forceful attempt in the time of the ongoing information warfare
to make the invisible culprits visible.”
– László Kúnos, Director, Corvina Kiado, Hungary

”The extraordinary story of Finnish journalist Jessika Aro is a prime example of a great personal courage and journalist’s dedication face to face new types of threats at the time of an actual hybrid information conflict. The book represents important evidence in the recent debates about the risks we underestimate or even don’t realize.”
– Ján Simkanič, Director, Denik N, Czech Republic

About author


Jessikka Aro

Jessikka Aro is an award-winning reporter with Yle, the Finnish Broadcasting Company, specializing in Russia, extremism and information warfare. In 2014 and 2015, she published a series of articles on pro-Kremlin social media trolls and their influence outside of Russia’s borders. Due to her investigations, Jessikka became the target of a severe and still ongoing international propaganda and hate speech campaign, which she recounts in Putin’s Trolls.

In 2019, the US State Department awarded Jessikka the International Women of Courage Award, but the award was mysteriously rescinded by the Trump administration, allegedly due to her social media criticism of then President Trump. On December 1, 2020 Jessikka Aro received the International Women’s Media Foundation Courage in Journalism Award, presented in partnership with the Washington Post and hosted by CNN’s Christiane Amanpour. Jessikka was recognized for her award-winning investigative reporting of Russian information warfare. Jessikka lives in Helsinki, Finland.

Read more Author's page

Bibliography


2024, Narrative Nonfiction

Putin's World War: Russia's Covert Operations to Destroy the West

Jessikka Aro


2019, General Nonfiction, Narrative Nonfiction, History & Politics

Putin's Trolls

Jessikka Aro

Related news

Elina Ahlback Literary Agency shortlisted for The Literary Agent Award in LBF!

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We are delighted to announce Elina Ahlback Literary Agency Ltd (Finland) has been shortlisted at The London Book Fair International Excellence Awards 2020 for The Literary Agent Award.
We are very proud to announce that the founder and owner of Elina Ahlbäck Literary Agency – Elina Ahlbäck has been shortlisted for The Literary Agent Award in LBF International Excellence Awards 2020!

“We are passionate to bring world-class literature from Finland to the global publishing market. We are very proud to represent the best of the best Finnish authors” said Elina Ahlbäck.

The Elina Ahlbäck Literary Agency, founded by Elina Ahlbäck in 2009, is Finland’s first, and only, independent literary agency as well the most well-known agency in Finland, which has internationalized Finnish literature with great results and with a determined sense of direction.

Recent success stories for the Agency in 2019 include Max Seeck and his The Faithful Reader, sold in 35 territories at auctions, and pre-empts, in two months, including sales in the UK (Welbeck Publishing) and US (Berkley, Penguin Random House) as well as TV rights optioned in Hollywood by Greg Silverman’s Stampede Ventures. 12 foreign sales (in three months) for Finlandia-winner Laura Lindstedt’s novel My Friend Natalia, with North American rights sold to W.W.Norton/Liveright, French rights to Gallimard, and German rights to dtv.

In narrative non-fiction, Mia Kankimäki’s The Women I Think About at Night has sold in 13 territories including North American rights to Simon & Schuster, Chinese rights to Winshare Publishing and Japanese rights in negotiation with Soshisha. In children’s non-fiction, Laura Ertimo’s Weird Weather has sold in 12 countries.


Toomas, Julia, Nicole and Elina celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Agency.

See the agency’s contacts here.

Related news

WILD EAST by Aapo Roselius & Oula Silvennoinen nominated for Finlandia Prize, first sales to Estonia!

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WILD EAST by Aapo Roselius & Oula Silvennoinen nominated for Finlandia Prize, first sales to Estonia!
WILD EAST is the untold story Finnish Kindred Nation Wars in the aftermath of the World War I in North-Eastern Europe –  and the fierce events of the year 1919. 

The book is nominated for the greatest non-fiction award in Finland: Non-Fiction Finlandia Prize.

While the Finlandia winners will be announced in two weeks on the 27th of November, we are very excited to announce that Estonian Rahva Raamat has already acquired the Estonian translation rights for the book:

“The ending of World War I in 1918 created a situation in Europe that rarely happens – a lot of nations gained independence at once. But not all of them – after gaining its own independence in 1917,  some of the Finns went on expeditions trying to help their kindred nations towards self-government – the movement was called the Kindred Nation Wars.  In WILD EAST, the authors have discussed these years in detail, concentrating not only on Finland but also on the neighboring countries and their developments. It is a refreshing view to the aftermath of the World War in Finland and North-Eastern Europe – an untold story.”
– Rain Siemer, Publisher, Rahva Raamat, Estonia

Click here to request the info sheet and full Finnish manuscript for Wild East.

The book has been praised for its realism and shocking impression on the reader:

“The work brings new, dark tones to the mythical picture of the Finnish Kindred Nation Wars and the construction of the Greater Finland. It positions the wars in the great power game of the early 1920s and in the ideological continuity between the World Wars. A dramatic story of the actions, motives and destinies of individual people reveals how war breaks people’s bodies and minds.”
‒ Finlandia Nonfiction Award jury 2019

“The researcher duo is making a convincing, sometimes shocking, impression on the reader. The
connection to the general turmoil of the era deepens the horizons, and the warfare in its outrageousness and nonsense is portrayed well in dense prose.”
‒ Helsingin Sanomat newspaper

We are also very happy to introduce the two new authors for our agency:
AAPO ROSELIUS  is a resercher and a nonfiction author, who has studied extensively the Finnish Civil War and the history of the 1920s and 1930s.

OULA SILVENNOINEN, PhD, is a historian and an author of narrative non-fiction who specializes on the upheavals of the modern era within the Nordic and Baltic sphere. Among other topics, he has published on the themes of policing, war, fascist movements and the Holocaust. His works have been translated also into German, Swedish and Estonian. Oula Silvennoinen is currently based in the University of Helsinki, Finland.

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


Related news

Dressler/Oetinger acquires the German rights to the prize-winning fairytale The Grumblebelly Cat at auction

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The first foreign rights deal for The Grumblebelly Cat by Magdalena Hai has been struck! The book is one of our children’s books’ highlights, a multiple prize-winner and a fantasy tale like the Brothers Grimm would have written in the 21st century.

Dressler Verlag, a publisher within the renowned German publishing group Oetinger acquired the German language rights for the book at auction. Their authors include names like A. A. Milne and Cornelia Funke, and the publisher focuses on literary fiction and political or socially critical topics. Dressler’s editor Anna Herberhold was very excited about the acquisition:

“From the first moment I met Magdalena Hai’s wonderful girl hero, I knew that this manuscript was something incredibly rare and wonderful. Ms Hai has written a very timely, but timeless, relevant and empowering story about universally important themes without ever talking down to her readers. She’s at eye level with the children, even the very smallest of them, who will all be delighted by the story of the brave, compassionate and fierce girl defeating greed and saving the ever-hungry cat with the grumbling belly. The power of this book’s message will reach every child just as much as us adults reading it with or to them,” she said.

The Grumblebelly Cat won the Finnish Export Prize in 2018 and is nominated for the Nordic Council Children and Young People’s Literature Prize – the winner will be announced October 30th this year. Additionally the book was nominated for the Arvid Lydecken Prize 2017 and Runeberg Junior Prize 2018.

The book has been well received also by readers and critics:

“Wise and fearless.” – Aamulehti newspaper

“A great fairytale about a big issue.” – Kujerruksia blog

“Fascinating and intense.” – Arvid Lydecken Prize jury 2018

“The Grumblebelly Cat is above all an unadulterated fairytale which features typical elements of the genre, such as victory of the underdog and terrible opponents. However, Hai’s book revisits the tradition of the fairytale in a highly original fashion and adds new ingredients.” – Nordic Council Children and Young People’s Literature Prize 2018 jury on nomination

The beautifully detailed black-and-white illustrations are drawn by Teemu Juhani, an up-and-coming illustrator residing in London.

Magdalena Hai’s current works include the manga-inspired YA adventure The Royaume Chronicles, the first instalment of which, The Third Sister (Kolmas sisar, Otava), was just published in Finland to praising reviews. In addition she is working on the Little Shop of Nightmares (Painajaispuoti, WSOY) early readers’ series with Teemu Juhani.

Rights sold:
FINLAND, Karisto (Orig. publisher)
GERMANY, Dressler/Oetinger

About author


Magdalena Hai

Magdalena Hai is an award-winning author, lover of cross-genre fiction and all things strange. Her fiction often combines elements of sci-fi, fantasy and horror.

Her Little Shop of Nightmares series has been sold to 30 territories around the world. Among Hai's many accolades are winning the Finlandia Prize for children's and YA literature and the Finnish Literary Export Prize, and being nominated for the Finlandia Prize for Children's and Youth Literature and the Nordic Council Children & Young People's Literature Prize.

Besides being an author, Hai teaches writing and is an active member and editor in the publishing co-operative Osuuskumma.

Read more Author's page

Bibliography


2023, Chapter Books (6-9 Years)

Little Shop of Nightmares 4: The Crystal Skull

Magdalena Hai


2023, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

The Horned God

Magdalena Hai


2021, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

The Spell of Iset

Magdalena Hai


2021, Chapter Books (6-9 Years)

Little Shop of Nightmares 3: Sticky the Horrible Snowman

Magdalena Hai


2020, Middle Grade (8-12 Years)

Miss Swift’s Weird and Wonderful House

Magdalena Hai


2019, Chapter Books (6-9 Years)

Little Shop of Nightmares 2: The Mystery of the Missing Teeth

Magdalena Hai


2018, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

The Third Sister

Magdalena Hai


2018, Chapter Books (6-9 Years)

Little Shop of Nightmares 1: The Terrible Tickling Powder

Magdalena Hai


2017, Middle Grade (8-12 Years)

Grumblebelly Cat

Magdalena Hai


2012, Middle Grade (8-12 Years)

The Beggar Princess

Magdalena Hai

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The Red Abbey Chronicles: awards, events, sales

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Naondel, Maria Turtschaninoff’s second novel of The Red Abbey Chronicles, is gaining acclaim. The novel’s English edition, published in 2017 by Pushkin Press, has been longlisted for the 2018 CILIP Carnegie Medal, which is awarded annually to the writer of an outstanding book for children and young people. Medal holders include C.S. Lewis, Neil Gaiman, Phillip Pullman –Turtschaninoff is definitely in esteemed company.

Maresi, the first book of the trilogy, has in the meanwhile been selected as the teen category title – though it’s also beloved of adult readers alike – for Nordic Library Week: Monday the 13th of November is “The Big Reading Aloud Day” in libraries across the Nordics and beyond. Maresi, among two other titles, will be read out loud simultaneously, in different languages, in over 2000 places!

Additionally, Naondel was recently sold in Latvia. Petergailis Publishing was glad to continue The Red Abbey Chronicles with the publication of the second book: “Despite the horrific events of the story, Naondel is quiet and beautifully told,” said Kaspars Eizentals of Petergailis.

Click here for reading materials for The Red Abbey Chronicles!

Rights sold: The Red Abbey Chronicles

Original publisher: FINLAND, Schildts & Söderströms (Book 1)
Original publisher: FINLAND, Förlaget (Books 2-3)
BELGIUM, Clavis (Book 1-2)
BRAZIL, Morro Branco (Books 1-3)
CANADA (French), Editions de la Bagnole (Book 1)
CHINA (Simplified), Shanghai 99 (Books 1-3)
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)
NETHERLANDS, Clavis (Book 1-2)
NORWAY, Gursli Berg Forlag (Books 1-3)
POLAND, Wydawnictwo Debit (Books 1-3)
ROMANIA, Univers (Book 1)
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)

FILM, Film4

About author


Maria Turtschaninoff

Maria Turtschaninoff is known for crafting lyrical, historically inspired fantasy stories starring strong female protagonists. In addition to J.R.R. Tolkien, she counts Philip Pullman, Ursula K. Le Guin and C.S. Lewis among her favorite authors. She is a two-time winner of the Society of Swedish Literature Prize, winner of the Swedish YLE Literature Prize, winner of the Thank You for the Book Award, a nominee for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, and winner of the 2014 Finlandia Junior Prize. 

Her Red Abbey Chronicles YA trilogy has been sold into 30 languages, while her first adult novel Inherited Land has been sold to 21 territories. Maria has a Master of Arts in human ecology and works full-time as a writer.

Read more Author's page

Bibliography


2024, Middle Grade (8-12 Years)

The Manticore

Maria Turtschaninoff


2022, Literary Fiction

Inherited Land

Maria Turtschaninoff


2018, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Maresi: Red Mantle

Maria Turtschaninoff


2016, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Naondel

Maria Turtschaninoff


2014, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Maresi

Maria Turtschaninoff

Related news

Maresi charms readers around the world

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Maria Turtschaninoff’s YA fantasy Maresi, which has been sold to 22 territories and film so far, continues to gather great feedback among the readers.

In France, the fantasy website Elbakin.net awarded Maresi the prize for the best translated YA fantasy book of 2017.  “The author insists without hesitation that women have to assume power and form female friendships, but never does so forcefully or caricaturably.”

The UK-based literature blog Strange Bookfellows praised the novel’s atmosphere: “Maresi is unafraid of exploring the darker aspects of life and human culture–death, domestic abuse, patriarchal oppression, femicide–but it is never bleak for the sake of being bleak.”

In Norway, Maresi was recommended as the weekend’s best readings in VG, the biggest newspaper in Norway. Additionally, book bloggers are swooning over the book: “Maresi is a very special YA fantasy book. It has a very unique story, like Uprooted, and it takes feminism up on the same level as Wonder Woman,” said the Outland blog. Blogger Elise Cathrin recommended the book warmly: “It’s a strong story about brave women.”

 

About author


Maria Turtschaninoff

Maria Turtschaninoff is known for crafting lyrical, historically inspired fantasy stories starring strong female protagonists. In addition to J.R.R. Tolkien, she counts Philip Pullman, Ursula K. Le Guin and C.S. Lewis among her favorite authors. She is a two-time winner of the Society of Swedish Literature Prize, winner of the Swedish YLE Literature Prize, winner of the Thank You for the Book Award, a nominee for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, and winner of the 2014 Finlandia Junior Prize. 

Her Red Abbey Chronicles YA trilogy has been sold into 30 languages, while her first adult novel Inherited Land has been sold to 21 territories. Maria has a Master of Arts in human ecology and works full-time as a writer.

Read more Author's page

Bibliography


2024, Middle Grade (8-12 Years)

The Manticore

Maria Turtschaninoff


2022, Literary Fiction

Inherited Land

Maria Turtschaninoff


2018, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Maresi: Red Mantle

Maria Turtschaninoff


2016, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Naondel

Maria Turtschaninoff


2014, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Maresi

Maria Turtschaninoff

Related news

Johanna Sinisalo’s The Core of the Sun wins Prometheus Award for Best Novel

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The Libertarian Futurist Society has chosen The Core of the Sun, by Johanna Sinisalo, as the 2017 winner in the Best Novel category of the 37th annual Prometheus Awards. Previous winners include names such as Kurt Vonnegut, Cory Doctorow and Charles Stross.

The awards will be presented during WorldCon75, the 75th annual World Science Fiction Convention Aug. 9-13, 2017 in Helsinki, Finland, where Johanna Sinisalo is a Guest of Honor.

In the novel, the Eusistocratic Republic of Finland has prioritized social stability and national health, and outlawed practically everything that might give one pleasure or cause addiction: except the distribution of sex. To achieve this, the state has bred a new subspecies of women who are receptive, submissive and always willing.

“Written with wit and grace, […] the novel maintains an impressive grasp on plot and suspense, easily luring the reader into taking its characters, politics, and striking story to heart.” – Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

At the moment Sinisalo is finalizing the manuscript of Renate’s Story, a novel based her original story for the screenplay of the hit movie Iron Sky: sharp political satire that tackles the timely topics of indoctrination of the masses, the hunger for power – and, of course, the endless folly of mankind. The novel will be published in German and Finnish simultaneously with the premiere of the sequel, Iron Sky: The Coming Race, to be released at Berlin Film Festival in February 2018. Rights have also sold in France.

Click here to request reading materials for The Core of the Sun or Renate’s Story!

Publishers of The Core of the Sun:
CZECH, Euromedia
FINLAND, Teos
FRANCE, Actes Sud
GERMANY, Klett-Cotta
LATVIA, Petergailis
WORLD ENGLISH, Grove Atlantic

Publishers of Renate’s Story:
GERMANY, Klett-Cotta
FINLAND, WSOY/Johnny Kniga
FRANCE, Actes Sud

About author


Johanna Sinisalo

Johanna Sinisalo (b. 1958) is a Finlandia-Prize winning superstar of Finnish speculative fiction. In addition to her nine novels, she has also written short fiction and film and television screenplays. Her works have been translated into twenty languages.

Sinisalo has won several literary prizes also abroad, such as the 2004 James Tiptree, Jr. Award and the 2017 Prometheus Award, and was nominated for the Nebula Award in 2008, the Prix Escapades in 2012, and the Grand Prix de L’Imaginaire in 2017.

In 2022, Johanna Sinisalo was awarded the Pro Finlandia Medal for services to Finnish literature! Founded in 1943, the Pro Finlandia Medal of the Order of the Lion of Finland is a distinction awarded by the President of Finland to artists and writers in recognition of their long meritorious work and exceptional services to Finnish art, drama, literature and music.

Read more

Bibliography


2021, Fantasy & Science Fiction

The Storm Flute

Johanna Sinisalo


2020, Fantasy & Science Fiction

Strangers Inside

Johanna Sinisalo


2018, Fantasy & Science Fiction

IRON SKY: RENATE'S STORY

Johanna Sinisalo


2013, Fantasy & Science Fiction

The Core of The Sun

Johanna Sinisalo


2011, Fantasy & Science Fiction

Blood of Angels

Johanna Sinisalo


2010, Middle Grade (8-12 Years)

The Möbius Twist

Johanna Sinisalo


2008, Fantasy & Science Fiction

Birdbrain

Johanna Sinisalo


2000, Fantasy & Science Fiction

Troll

Johanna Sinisalo

Related news

Midsummer children’s news: prizes and reviews for Leinonen, Parkkinen, Pitkänen and Simukka

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With Midsummer upon us, we are thrilled to see more good news and reviews rolling in for our authors’ latest books across picture book, middle-grade and YA.

Monster Nanny illustrator Pasi Pitkänen’s endearing jungle island adventure picture book, The Island of Lost Animals, recently sold in China, has been warmly reviewed by Finnish literary bloggers for its warm yet cautionary tale of wildlife species decline:

“Pasi Pitkänen has succeeded with his first solo publication, which gets my recommendation. The illustrations are truly excellent.”  Kirjavinkit blog, Finland

My expectations were rewarded with this book and its superb illustrations. It is thrilling, touching and yet humourous with its cartoon-like pictures.[…] Pitkänen’s action-packed adventure tackles an important and timely issue, that of conservation and protection of wildlife and the natural habitat.”  Luentaanko tämä blog, Finland

In other adventures, Leena Parkkinen and illustrator Jussi Karjalainen’s exotic backyard adventure, Little Brother’s Marvellous Expedition continues to garner praise from reviewers:

“Children’s literature might be the last territory where anarchy is order and the unconventional is wished for. Echoes of these can be found in abundance in the work of Leena Parkkinen and Jussi Karjalainen. – – A healthy phenomenon is that children’s literature can handle societal themes with the aid of allegories. What does not necessarily open up immediately, might simmer in the subconscious and become a life-changing revelation later on.” – Turun Sanomat newspaper, Finland

We are so thrilled that Salla Simukka’s middle-grade novel Sisterland won Finland’s LukuVarkaus prize last week. Established by the town of Varkaus and paper company Stora Enso, the LukuVarkaus prize is awarded to a children’s book published in the previous year by a jury of school-age children. Congratulations again to Salla!

And more reviews for Anne Leinonen’s YA fantasy, Bookwitch; the first volume of Anne’s recently-published YA duology received another review this week:

“There are nice pinches of romance and suspense, and a surprising twist in the end, as I thought there would be. The story is thought-out and well-presented to the reader, guaranteeing a pleasant read.” – Dysphoria blog, Finland 

“Even with its fast-paced twists and turns, it’s a wonderfully relaxing comfort read.” — Helsingin Sanomat newspaper, Finland

Our warmest Midsummer greetings and good wishes to you, one and all!

About author


Anne Leinonen

Anne Leinonen (b.1973) is a multiple-award winning, key author, tutor and editor of Finnish science fiction and fantasy. Her most recent publication is the first volume of a YA urban fantasy duology, Bookwitch (Kirjanoita), which will be followed by Witchbook (Noitakirja) in 2018.

Leinonen’s short stories have been published in magazines and anthologies, earning her several Atorox awards (voted for by fans). Her science fiction novels, Viivamaalari and Ilottomien ihmisten kylä were published to positive reviews, as well as a trilogy, Routasisarukset, written in collaboration with Eija Lappalainen, In addition to writing YA and adult fiction, she has now started to work on audio and television dramas.

Anne Leinonen moves fluidly between science fiction and fantasy. Her texts deal with themes of otherness and unfamiliarity, as well as conflicts between the community and the individual. Nature plays an important part in her work, as a vehicle for the story, the stage of action and on a symbolic level. Leinonen’s prose is taut, with no superficial descriptions. Instead, she takes her readers right in to the middle of events and the lives of her characters. Her use of language shows talent and uniqueness, favouring experimentation with different styles and often works on several pieces at the same time. She is especially renowned for her collaborations with other writers.

Read more Author's page

About author


Leena Parkkinen

Leena Parkkinen has authored three prize-winning adults’ novels set in 20th century Europe, often about people living at the margins society. Her skillful use of detail is often imbued with an element of suspense. She has also written two children’s story books.

Parkkinen has received numerous literary awards, such as Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize for the best debut (2009), Academic Bookshop’s Bestselling Debut Prize (2009), Laila Hirvisaari Award (2010) and the Kalevi Jäntti Prize (2013), in addition to being nominated for the Tulenkantaja Export Prize 2017. Her works have been translated into seven languages to date.

Read more

About author


Pasi Pitkänen

Pasi Pitkänen has become known for his richly detailed illustrative work on several children’s books such as the extremely popular Monster Nanny trilogy by Tuutikki Tolonen. He has also worked at Rovio Entertainment as an illustrator, character designer, and graphic designer. Pitkänen is the illustrator of the popular Kepler62 series and the author of two Children's titles Monster Tournament and The Island of Lost Animals.

Among Pitkänen’s hobbies are quantum physics, people-watching, B-movies, insects and baking.

Read more Author's page

About author


Salla Simukka

Salla Simukka is the author of the international success story The Snow White Trilogy: rights are sold in 52 territories and in Hollywood. She has written several novels for young readers and her accolades include the Topelius Prize 2013 and the Finland Prize 2013.  Where It All Begins, published in 2022, is her first novel for adults

Previously Simukka has written book reviews for the newspapers, translated all kinds of texts into Finnish, worked an editor at a literary magazine and as a screenwriter for a popular TV show for young audiences.  She has written books for young adults and children, and now also for adults, and travels the world talking about them.

Read more

Sisterland wins the LukuVarkaus award

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Salla Simukka’s Sisterland has received the ’Lasten LukuVarkaus’ award, a literary prize given annually to the best Finnish children’s book for readers up to twelve years old and published in the previous year. The winner was selected by a jury of six elementary school pupils.

The kids’ jury appreciated especially the balanced combination of fantasy and realism, and the novel’s characters. In addition, the jury stated that there’s “not a single boring bit” in the book.

Sisterland has been sold to ten territories to date, the latest two being China and the Arab World.

Earlier this year Salla Simukka received also the Kaarina Helakisa award, given annually to an outstanding children’s book author or illustrator. “Salla Simukka has made Finnish YA literature world famous, shattered glass ceilings and always stood up for minorities. She is inspiring, visible and audible. She’s a prime example of nothing being impossible,” said the jury.

Rights sold:

FINLAND, Tammi (Original publisher)
ARAB WORLD, Arab Scientific Publishers
BELGIUM, Clavis
CHINA, Hunan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House
ESTONIA, Pegasus
FRANCE, Hachette Livre
JAPAN, Nishimura
LATVIA, Zvaigzne
NETHERLANDS, Clavis
UNITED STATES, Random House

About author


Salla Simukka

Salla Simukka is the author of the international success story The Snow White Trilogy: rights are sold in 52 territories and in Hollywood. She has written several novels for young readers and her accolades include the Topelius Prize 2013 and the Finland Prize 2013.  Where It All Begins, published in 2022, is her first novel for adults

Previously Simukka has written book reviews for the newspapers, translated all kinds of texts into Finnish, worked an editor at a literary magazine and as a screenwriter for a popular TV show for young audiences.  She has written books for young adults and children, and now also for adults, and travels the world talking about them.

Read more

Bibliography


2022, Literary Fiction

Where It All Begins

Salla Simukka


2021, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

In the Dark I Can Be Yours

Salla Simukka


2020, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Detained

Salla Simukka


2018, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Turn off the Lights! Turn on the Lights!

Salla Simukka


2016, Middle Grade (8-12 Years)

Sisterland

Salla Simukka


2014, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

As Black as Ebony

Salla Simukka


2013, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

As Red as Blood

Salla Simukka


2013, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

As White as Snow

Salla Simukka


2012, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Elsewhere

Salla Simukka


2012, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Without a Trace

Salla Simukka

Related news

Literary prize nominations and reviews – May 2017

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Nominations and reviews for Pauliina Susi, Jussi Valtonen and Leena Parkkinen
In this month’s fiction highlights, we’re thrilled to share news of In the Rear Window author, Pauliina Susi’s nomination for the ‘Glasnyckeln’ – Glass Key – crime fiction prize for Nordic crime fiction writers.  A Swedish translation of the novel is now available. The Glass Key winner will be announced in August – watch this space!

Meanwhile, Jussi Valtonen’s Finlandia Prize winning novel, They Know Not What They Do, was recently published in Germany (Piper) and Hungary (Cser) to warm reviews, and will be out in English this November from Oneworld with the superb cover featured to the right here.

Also in the spotlight is Decent Ingredients, Leena Parkkinen’s sensuous and atmospheric novel about social politics, forbidden love and food in 1950s Helsinki, which recently sold in Italy (Sovera) and we are now delighted to be able to offer you a newly-extended English sample translation by the talented Lola Rogers.

Click here to request further information and reading materials.

PRAISE FOR THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO:

“They Know Not What They Do” is a great novel that shows ambition and the willingness to take risks” – Sand am Meer, Austria

“All in all a time critical novel that explores the individual’s increasing identity struggle, the struggle to root and consolidate.” – Buchtips, Germany

“They Know Not What They Do speaks to a large audience. There are few contemporary novels that can address both adolescents and middle-aged people, university professors and young green activists, parents and children, Europeans and Americans. […] Different opinions collide, but no one is right and no one is wrong. They simply see things differently, as if they were living in another dimension. That’s what their tragedy is about.” – Olvass bele literary blog, Hungary

“Valtonen’s book offers a realistic prospect [of future], so this book is a great way to look a bit into the crystal ball that tells the future.” –  Librarius magazine, Hungary

“One of the most extraordinary books of recent times.” – Könyv utca literary blog, Hungary

“It is a thrilling, full-fledged, revolutionary, well-crafted work.” – Vilmos Csányi, Est Ujság, Hungary

PRAISE FOR DECENT INGREDIENTS:

“A fine novel that would have perhaps worked even without its plot about espionage. Bon appetit!” – Savon Sanomat newspaper, Finland

“Parkkinen hooks the reader with an intriguing story written in wonderfully ornate and rich language, which is, however, very accessible. She gives away so delicious recipes from Saara and Elisabeth’s kitchen that one can’t help one’s mouth from watering. Reading this book will make you hungry!” – Lukuneuvoja blog, Finland

“All in all a very readable book…” – Ja kaikkea muuta blog, Finland

“If you are at all interested in food, love, secret agents or well-told stories, you really ought to read Leena Parkkinen’s Decent Ingredients. Parkkinen’s third novel is so delicious that it is bound to be named by many as the best Finnish read of the year.” Aamulehti newspaper, Finland

“From the first page onwards, I became absorbed in that almost unbearably pleasurable reading frenzy that Parkkinen served in the world and characters she created. Decent Ingredients was a sinfully good novel, the reading of which you cannot stop once you’ve begun…” P.S. I love books, Finland

“Parkkinen is at her best when she describes the relationships between people. Saara’s clinging to Elisabeth is moving. And Elisabeth’s ruthlessness is annoying. The longing of two women’s bodies for one another is beautifully depicted.” Helena Ruuska, Helsingin Sanomat newspaper, Finland

“Leena Parkkinen is one of those writers whose text you are allowed to expect a lot of. And she does not fail you this time, either. Decent Ingredients is a multi-layered story that must be carefully read, up until the last clause, in order to understand everything that Parkkinen is telling us.” Etelä-Saimaa newspaper, Finland

About author


Jussi Valtonen

Jussi Valtonen (1974) is an author and psychologist from Helsinki. He has studied neuropsychology in the United States and screenwriting in the UK, and has also worked as a science reporter. He has written three novels and a short story collection.

Carried by Wings (Siipien kantamat, Tammi 2007) was given second place in Bonnier’s novel competition, and received a warm reception from both critics and bloggers. In 2014 Valtonen was awarded the Finlandia Prize, the country’s highest-profile literary award, for They Know Not What They Do (He eivät tiedä mitä tekevät, Tammi 2014).

Read more

About author


Leena Parkkinen

Leena Parkkinen has authored three prize-winning adults’ novels set in 20th century Europe, often about people living at the margins society. Her skillful use of detail is often imbued with an element of suspense. She has also written two children’s story books.

Parkkinen has received numerous literary awards, such as Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize for the best debut (2009), Academic Bookshop’s Bestselling Debut Prize (2009), Laila Hirvisaari Award (2010) and the Kalevi Jäntti Prize (2013), in addition to being nominated for the Tulenkantaja Export Prize 2017. Her works have been translated into seven languages to date.

Read more

About author


Pauliina Susi

Pauliina Susi is a versatile writer who has authored a number of crime novels and a non-fiction book about private investigators. She has a master's degree in political science and she has worked as a journalist and editor at several well-known Finnish magazines.

Susi is known for her ability to incorporate current themes into her prose. Her debut novel was nominated for the prestigious Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize and In the Rear Window is the Winner of the Clue of the Year 2016, a recognition of the best crime fiction or detective novel of the year. The readers and critics have been charmed by her Tuulia Raja cozy crime series which combines witty language with complex relationships and intriguing murder mysteries, evoking similarities with the 1980s TV series Moonlighting.

While doing research for her novel, Susi has also become a trained private investigator herself!

Read more Author's page

Maria Turtschaninoff awarded Finland-Swedish prize for culture

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Congratulations to Maresi and Naondel author, Maria Turtschaninoff, who has been awarded the most prolific Finland-Swedish cultural prize! The €20,000 prize is awarded annually to one individual in recognition of their extraordinary contribution to education and culture by the The Swedish Cultural Foundation in Finland.

“Maria Turtschaninoff, author and legendary writer, has created worlds where songs of nature, the spirits of the worlds and girls’ strong voices are woven together to magnificent stories of the ancient and timeless.

Maria’s lyrical language guides the reader along paths lined with amazing creatures as well as topics and issues that clearly reflect in everyone’s reality-love, sibling, identity, and dare to go there no-one else gone.” said the Foundation.

Rights to Maresi and the Red Abbey Chronicles have been sold to 21 territories, and it is being developed into a film by Film4.

maresicovers

About author


Maria Turtschaninoff

Maria Turtschaninoff is known for crafting lyrical, historically inspired fantasy stories starring strong female protagonists. In addition to J.R.R. Tolkien, she counts Philip Pullman, Ursula K. Le Guin and C.S. Lewis among her favorite authors. She is a two-time winner of the Society of Swedish Literature Prize, winner of the Swedish YLE Literature Prize, winner of the Thank You for the Book Award, a nominee for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, and winner of the 2014 Finlandia Junior Prize. 

Her Red Abbey Chronicles YA trilogy has been sold into 30 languages, while her first adult novel Inherited Land has been sold to 21 territories. Maria has a Master of Arts in human ecology and works full-time as a writer.

Read more Author's page

Bibliography


2024, Middle Grade (8-12 Years)

The Manticore

Maria Turtschaninoff


2022, Literary Fiction

Inherited Land

Maria Turtschaninoff


2018, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Maresi: Red Mantle

Maria Turtschaninoff


2016, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Naondel

Maria Turtschaninoff


2014, Young Adult (13 or 14+)

Maresi

Maria Turtschaninoff

Related news

Sisterland nominated for the ‘Lasten LukuVarkaus’ award

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Salla Simukka’s Sisterland has been nominated for the ‘Lasten LukuVarkaus’ award, a literary prize given annually to the best Finnish children’s book for readers up to twelve years old and published in the previous year. The first jury, who shortlist the nominees, comprises professionals in the field of children’s literature, and the winner is selected by a jury of six elementary school pupils. “The story moves with a strong pace and is brimming with imaginative language,” said the jury on the nomination.

 

Sisterland is a middle-grade fantasy novel about the bonds of friendship in the vein of beloved classics such as Alice in Wonderland and The Snow Queen, with delicate monochrome illustrations by Saku Heinänen. It was published in 2016 by Tammi and has sold in seven territories to date. Please contact the agency for foreign rights inquiries and reading materials!

 

Salla Simukka is the author of the international success story, the ‘Snow White’ trilogy, sold in 52 territories and in Hollywood. She has written several novels for young readers and her accolades include the Topelius Prize 2013 and the Finland Prize 2013.

FINLAND, Tammi (Original publisher)
BELGIUM, Clavis
ESTONIA, Pegasus
FRANCE, Hachette Livre
JAPAN, Nishimura
LATVIA, Zvaigzne
NETHERLANDS, Clavis
UNITED STATES, Random House

About author


Salla Simukka

Salla Simukka is the author of the international success story The Snow White Trilogy: rights are sold in 52 territories and in Hollywood. She has written several novels for young readers and her accolades include the Topelius Prize 2013 and the Finland Prize 2013.  Where It All Begins, published in 2022, is her first novel for adults

Previously Simukka has written book reviews for the newspapers, translated all kinds of texts into Finnish, worked an editor at a literary magazine and as a screenwriter for a popular TV show for young audiences.  She has written books for young adults and children, and now also for adults, and travels the world talking about them.

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Oneiron nominated for the Nordic Council Literature Prize

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Laura Lindstedt’s Oneiron has been nominated for the Nordic Council Literature Prize. The prestigious prize is given annually to a work of literature that meets high literary and artistic standards, written in a Nordic language.

“Lindstedt’s artistic playfulness with the conventions of language, style, and prose makes the novel linguistically refined and impressive. The result is a work of multiple voices and multiple layers, in which modern expressions also assume something brilliantly classical. It is as if the author is striving to reach the infinite small details – the fractals – as she writes whole worlds within the space of the blink of an eye. The white reality of Oneiron, a blank page, is filled with living stories that celebrate human fantasy, with the possibilities that literature affords, and with uncompromising artistic work,” the jury motivated Oneiron’s nomination.

The prize is worth 350,000 Danish kroner. The winner of the Nordic Council Literature Prize will be announced and the prize awarded on 1 November 2017 at Finlandia Hall in Helsinki. Among the previous winners of the prize are for example the Nobel Laureates Tomas Tranströmer and Eyvind Johnson.

Oneiron won the Finlandia Prize 2015, and has sold 50,000 copies to date. The rights are sold in 12 territories, and the work has so far been published in four languages, to great reviews. The novel centers around seven women, each from a different country and unfamiliar to one another, who come together in a white, undefined space just seconds after their respective deaths.

Click here to request reading materials of Oneiron!

Laura Lindstedt is an award-winning author and literary scholar. Her novels verge on the postmodern and experiment with form and language in an accessible style. She is currently revising her Ph.D. thesis on the French author Nathalie Sarraute.

Rights sold: 

FINLAND, Teos (Orig. publ.)
WORLD ENGLISH, Oneworld
BULGARIA, Faber
CZECH REPUBLIC, Argo
DENMARK, Rosinante
FRANCE, Gallimard
HUNGARY, Scolar
ITALY, Elliot Edizioni
LITHUANIA, Versus Aureus
NORWAY, Oktober
POLAND, Foksal
ROMANIA, Paralela 45
SWEDEN, Norstedts

About author


Laura Lindstedt

Laura Lindstedt (b. 1976) became a critical darling with her adoption-themed debut novel Scissors (Sakset, Teos 2007), which earned her a nomination for the Finlandia Prize, the country’s most prestigious literary honour. She is currently revising her Ph.D. thesis on French author Nathalie Sarraute. Lindstedt’s second novel Oneiron (Teos 2015) is a work of speculative fiction that takes place in the mysterious moments that follow one’s death. Oneiron has continued Lindstedt’s critical success, earning her the coveted 2015 Finlandia Prize. Lindstedt’s latest novel My Friend Natalia has been a critical success and the rights have been sold to 12 territories.

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Bibliography


2019, Literary Fiction

My Friend Natalia

Laura Lindstedt


2015, Literary Fiction

Oneiron

Laura Lindstedt


2007, Literary Fiction

Scissors

Laura Lindstedt

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The Torch-bearer Prize 2017: recognition for our three new authors’ translation potential

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The agency has recently signed three new, wonderfully talented adult fiction authors, and what more could be better than to start with some good news for two of them. Leena Parkkinen and Laura Gustafsson have been nominated for this year’s Torch-bearer Prize (‘Tulenkantaja’), awarded annually to a Finnish book with the ‘best foreign sales potential’! We are also very pleased to be representing last year’s Torch-bearer Prize winner, Iida Rauma.

Leena Parkkinen’s The Decent Ingredient (Teos, 2016) is a story about the bourgeoisie of Helsinki during the Cold War; about forbidden love, dangerous secrets and, about food, which reflects life, love, class, sexuality and politics throughout this richly-detailed novel. Parkkinen has received numerous literary awards and her works have been translated into seven languages to date. Request reading materials for The Decent Ingredient

Laura Gustafsson’s Wilderness Warrior (Into, 2016) is a study of the human race: of the individual and the community. It’s inspired by survivalism, green movements, the Hobbesian social contract and notion of “a war of all against all”. Gustafsson’s accolades include nominations for the Finlandia Prize and Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize. Request reading materials forWilderness Warrior

Iida Rauma’s On Sex and Mathematics (Gummerus, 2016) is a frighteningly intelligent and visceral novel about people in crisis, environmental disasters, about the confusing and erratic life, and the beauty and logic of mathematics. And about the agonies and ecstasies of sex. Rauma has additionally received the Kalevi Jäntti Prize, and was nominated for the EU Literature Prize in 2016. Request reading materials for On Sex and Mathematics

The Torch-bearer’s jury has now shortlisted six nominees, and the winner will be announced on 25 March. The prize is worth €10,000.