From May 10 to 13 I will be a guest at Slovenia's Children's Literature Festival Branice pod slamnikom 2017.
Holland and Flanders being this year's honorary hosts at the 2016 Frankfurter Buchmesse, a wonderful book was published about Dutch and Flemish youth literature. The Book of Children's Books (original title Het boekenboek) was co-written by Mirjam Noorduijn and Veerle Vanden Bosch and translated into English by Laura Watkinson. Its fifty chapters deal with as many essential book titles and introduce twenty-five illustrators from the Low Countries. In addition there is a plethora of anecdotes, columns, reference lists and literary tidbits.
Among the fifty books selected for the canonical list is Against the Odds
De regels van drie (The Rules of Three) was recently published in German:
Opi Kas, die Zimtziegen und ich - Aladin Verlag, 2015. Translation Meike Blatnik. Illustrations Joëlle Tourlonias.
This month the book became winner of a Luchs. Every month Radio Bremen and quality newspaper Die Zeit award a Luchs to a newly published book. The twelve winners are nominated for Luchs of the Year.
The radio broadcast about Opi Kas, die Zimtziegen und ich is available online.
And more here.
From August 26 to September 5 I will attend the Café Amsterdã Festival in São Paulo en Rio de Janeiro. This event, organised by the Dutch Foundation for Literature and EYE Internationl, highlights Dutch books and movies. Besides readings and lectures by the authors there is a film programme (including a screening of Patatje Oorlog, based on my book Against the Odds) and an exhibition featuring the work of contemporary children's book illustrators.
Further information about the festival and the authors here.
Mein Opa und ich und ein Schwein namens Oma, the German translation of Mijn opa en ik en het varken Oma has been awarded the Swiss Prix Chronos 2015 in the juniors prize category. Pardon Monsieur ist dieser Hund blind? by Hervé Jaouen was chosen by the jury consisting of senior members
Mein Opa und ich und ein Schwein namens Oma, the German translation of My grandad and me and a pig called Granny, has been shortlisted for the Swiss Prix Chronos 2015. It is among the five titles selected by the Schweizerische Institut für Kinder- und Jugendmedien (SIKJM) from which the reading pulic will choose a winner. The Prix Chronos is a prize awarded by Pro Senectute Schweiz in association with Pro Juventute. All competition entries feature relationships between old folks and young - senior citizens and under fifteens.
The prize winning ceremony is on 23 April.
Slovenian publishers Miš have released a translation of De regels van drie (The rules of three)
Pravila treh - Dob pri Domžalah, Miš,2015.
Translated by Katjuša Ručigaj.
At the beginning of October I will be in Reykjavik, where I have been invited to attend the Mýrin festval / Mooreland Children’s and Youth Literature Festival.
Subsequently I will travel to Siglufjörður, where I will be working on a project I set up together with Lieke van Duin and the public library Hoogeveen. We matched an Icelandic school group (Grunnskóli Fjallabyggðar) with a Dutch one (Het Palet Hoogeveen). The students get in touch through an non-public weblog and work on creative assignments pertaining to Iceland and the Netherlands. I am happy to act as a kind of go-between.
De regels van drie (The rules of three) has been awarded a Vlag en Wimpel (which translates as Flying Colours), an honourable mention by the Griffel jury.
I am pleased to announce two more translations of Mijn opa en ik en het varken Oma (My grandad and me and a pig called Granny).
The Slovenian translation has retained the original drawings by Judith Ten Bosch. The German one was provided with new illustrations by Susanne Göhlich.
Mein Opa und ich und ein Schwein namens Oma, Hamburg, Aladin Verlag, 2014. Translation Meike Blatnik. Illustrations Susanne Göhlich.
Moj dedek in jaz in pujsa Babi, Dob pri Domžalah, Miš, 2014. Translation Katjuša Rucigaj. Illustrations Judith Ten Bosch.