Gyldendal Agency Catalogue Spring 2016

Gyldendal Agency Foreign Rights Guide Spring 2016

omslag litt 2016.indd 1

29.02.16 10:49

Gyldendal Agency Spring 2016 ANNE CATHRINE ENG RIGHTS DIRECTOR ANNE.CATHRINE.ENG@GYLDENDAL.NO

GYLDENDAL AGENCY IS AN IN-HOUSE LITERARY AGENCY

Gyldendal Agency Gyldendal Norsk Forlag AS P.O. Box 6860 St. Olavs plass 0130 Oslo, Norway Tel: +47 22034100 http://eng.gyldendal.no/

Contents

Fiction 4 Crime and general fiction

Children & Young Adults

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Two murders separated by 25 years of silence and secrets in Marit Reiersgård’s new crime novel.

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35

A new teeming and super-detailed picture book universe from the creator of Block.

Your father is a thief. That’s what everyone says to you. And you can’t deny it. Everyone is right. Your father is a thief.

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Picture books Read aloud / read alone Middle grade Young adults

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FICTION CRIME

Paradise Hill Marit Reiersgård

“Reiersgård is a solid author with a strong grip on storylines as well as characters, and there is a quivering nerve throughout her stories ...”

VG

Almost 25 years have passed since Camilla Carlsen was found murdered in the small grove halfway up Paradise Hill. The case was never solved and the Drammen police are now making another effort, hoping that fresh eyes and new methods will solve the mystery.

Camilla’s closest female friends have all been freshly interrogated and meet at a tavern to discuss their experiences and recollections from the time of the murder. One of the friends, May, is being stared at by a man at the bar and when May goes outside to have a smoke, the man follows. The next morning she is found murdered in a show window and the way in which the body has been arranged reveals that the killer wants to convey a message.

The police investigators Bitte Røed and Verner Jacobsen have to pursue both the ghosts of the past and the fresh clues of the present.

About the author Marit Reiersgård has trained her hand at writing short stories for ten years, and has published books for children and young adults. Her ­debut as a crime writer came in 2012 with Tall Snow. In 2014 followed The Girl With No Heart, which got shortlisted for the prestigious ­Riverton Prize. The Paradise Hill is her third crime novel.

CRIME // ORIGINAL TITLE: PARADISBAKKEN // 400 PAGES

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FICTION NOVELS AND SHORT ST CRIME

The Girl with No Heart SHORTLISTED FOR THE RIVERTON PRIZE 2015 Two mysterious, cruel intrigues and a conflict of intense emotions.

“Crime that moves … writing a follow-up to a good debut isn’t easy. But Marit Reiersgård does so splendidly.”

DRAMMENS TIDENDE

Tall Snow Everybody knows everybody, everybody knows something. And they all wish for more in their lives.

“The plot is complex and beautifully structured, with the tension built up around a small circle of people whom we follow and empathize with.”

ADRESSEAVISEN

CRIME THE GIRL WITH NO HEART // ORIGINAL TITLE: JENTA UTEN HJERTE // 338 PAGES FOREIGN SALES // CZECH REPUBLIC, DENMARK, GERMANY TALL SNOW // ORIGINAL TITLE: STOLPESNØ // 320 PAGES FOREIGN SALES // CZECH REPUBLIC, GERMANY

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FICTION NOVELS AND SHORT STORIES

Max, Mischa & the Tet Offensive Johan Harstad Friendship, exile, love, war and art: Johan Harstad’s breathtaking new epic has it all.

“Open your eyes wide! This is a novel which aims high, overflowing with the joy of storytelling, sharp reflections and a deep knowledge of the human being (...)

Brutally clever!”  VG

Shortlisted for The Norwegian Literary Critics’ Prize

“A gigantic novel about war, love, flight and art which takes your breath away (…) Harstad brings to life the most complex themes with a literary ease, orality and originality which make this a hypnotical read.”  DAGBLADET

“Harstad’s masterpiece (...)

A truly great novel.”

ADRESSEAVISEN

“A novel can do so many interesting things to you. It can induce laughter and tears, reflection and doubt, forgetting and remembering, understanding and empathy, impatience and irritation. Harstad’s novel does all of this. I have only one thing to say: Respect!”

AFTENPOSTEN

“Outstanding epos (…) It is an incredible achievement, and almost impossible to describe. You would have to experience it yourself – which you can if you read this novel.”

DAGSAVISEN

About the author Johan Harstad made his debut in 2001 with the prose c ­ ollection From Here On You Just Get Older. His first novel, Buzz Aldrin, What Happened to You in All the Confusion?, was published in 2005, and was a huge critical and commercial success. Harstad has also written short stories, theatre plays and a YA novel, and has been published in 20 territories.

NOVEL // ORIGINAL TITLE: MAX, MISCHA & TETOFFENSIVEN // 1104 PAGES FOREIGN SALES // THE NETHERLANDS

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FICTION NOVELS AND SHORT STORIES

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FICTION NOVELS AND SHORT STORIES

The Celestial Body Atle Næss

On Heaven and Earth, science and faith, and on love, both celestial and earthly.

Krokstad, Norwegian Bohuslän in the 1560s: Hans is born as a preacher’s son with a bright head and a keen interest in the mysteries of the sky. Thus he ends up in service for the Danish nobleman Tycho Brahe, first in the observatory on the island of Hven, and later at the emperor’s court in faraway Prague.

Tycho Brahe (1546-1601) is known as the founder of modern astronomy, but in spite of his precise observations of stellar and planetary positions he held on to the Christian geo-heliocentric system with the earth being the center of the universe.

However, as Hans will discover, new ideas are developing.

About the author Atle Næss has written a series of critically appraised books. He often bases his work on historical sources. In 2001 he was awarded the Brage Prize for his biography of Galileo Galilei. His books have been translated into 15 languages.

NOVEL // ORIGINAL TITLE: I HIMMELENS TJENESTE // 400 PAGES

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FICTION NOVELS AND SHORT STORIES

The Refugee’s Inevitable Impasse Øystein Lønn Helen is a musician who came to Norway as a refugee when she was a child; Svend is in the police force. Each year, the two of them spend the same three days in August at a hotel in a town on the Skagerrak coast. Their eleven-year-old relationship is characterised by transience and constancy.

Against a backdrop of the refugee crisis that is so topical now, The Refugee’s Inevitable Impasse describes both the unfathomable ways of love and those of fleeing and living under cover. And how the roles we assume, deliberately or by chance, create conditions for our choices and thus for the directions our lives take.

With his inimitable, economical narrative style, Øystein Lønn demonstrates yet again his great ability to inscribe himself into his age and provide an insightful picture of the complex psychological interactions between people.

Against a backdrop of the refugee crisis, Lønn depicts the mysterious ways of love and those of being exiled and living under cover.

About the author Øystein Lønn has written novels and short stories since 1966. He has received a number of awards, among others The Nordic Council’s Literary Award, The Brage Prize, The Critics’ Award, the Dobloug Prize and Gyldendal’s Fund. Lønn’s books have been published in English, German, French, Russian and several other languages.

NOVEL // ORIGINAL TITLE: FLUKTENS NØDVENDIGE BLINDVEIER // 200 PAGES

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FICTION NOVELS AND SHORT STORIES

4 Stein Sørensen

“A well written, witty and original action drama … a crime novel for those who might not be particularly fond of crime novels. And a brooding book for those who usually do not read philosophy … He is a master of digression and fills the retrospective story with interruptions, explanations, elaborations, deliberations, aphoristics – while bringing the drama ever closer to the present, where it discharges in a bloody climax.”  DAGBLADET

The year is 2014. Kyrre Tanding sits with an electronic ankle monitor serving the final part of a sentence for accessory to murder. But he is not waiting for his release. He is waiting for the informal punishment that the criminal circles have sentenced him to. Kyrre has lived this way for 11 years, and he has had enough. To be free he needs to find the courage to use the only means of power he has: telling the truth. If he tells everything he knows, there will be no point in killing him. The full story might destroy Kyrre, but it’s even more dangerous to the people threatening him.

4 is a gangster novel from Oslo, where crime weaves itself imperceptibly into the lives of the law-abiding citizens. It is a learned and suspenseful novel, told with great credibility and bottomless humour.

“A sensational crime debut (…) Raw, captivating and mind-blowingly smart …”  ADRESSEAVISEN

About the author Stein Sørensen works as a nurse at the infection department at Oslo’s largest hospital. He has published numerous pieces in large and small journals. 4 is his first book.

NOVEL // KOLON FORLAG // ORIGINAL TITLE: 4 // 484 PAGES

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FICTION NOVELS AND SHORT STORIES

A Tiger in The Garden Ari Behn A Tiger in The Garden contains ten short stories that portray violence and death, life in public and journalists at war, a TV-team meeting the yakuza in Japan, a male asylum seeker on the run with one of the victims of Utøya, young love in America, loneliness and loss of love.

The stories offer precise descriptions of people’s lives and fates. They are turned towards the world, and represent a new development in Behn’s writing.

About the author Ari Behn grew up in England and northern Norway. He made his debut with the acclaimed short story collection Sad as Hell in 1999, and has since published three novels and a short story collection. In 2011 he made his debut as a playwright.

SHORT STORIES // KOLON FORLAG // ORIGINAL TITLE: TIGER I HAGEN // 92 PAGES

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FICTION POLITICAL THRILLER

Apocalypse Right Now? Alexander N. Wilken

A Norwegian philosopher is thrown into a maelstrom of threats and deceit, ambush and violent aggression.

The international bestselling author and journalist, Tellef Bekk, suddenly falls ill and dies a painful death whilst on vacation in the southern part of Norway. His friend, prof. Geir Grovendal, suspects that someone has murdered Beck by using a new type of nerve gas. He knew too much about the correlation of politics and crime and could reveal secrets that could damage “the international society”.

Grovendal begins to investigate with the help of an old colleague, the Scottish-American neuroscientist Kathleen McDuff, better known as the old “action-lady”. Their investigation starts a chain of dramatic and violent events that in the end have great impact on international politics.

About the author Alexander N. Wilken is a professor of philosophy. He has published several books, but Apocalypse Right Now? is his second political thriller. Alexander N. Wilken is a pseudonym.

POLITICAL THRILLER // ORIGINAL TITLE: APOKALYPSE ALT NÅ // 300 PAGES

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FICTION CRIME

Blind Spot Bjørn Olav Nordahl Oslo, 2013. A Christian couple from Iran sit in front of a Pentecostal congregation. Their appeal for asylum was refused and they fear for the future.

What will happen with the information they have.

What can they tell, and on what should they forever be silent?

In a smaller city, less than an hour drive outside of Oslo, lives the journalist Ingeborg Nergård Kahn with her husband Imran. She is following some leads about mafia and possible human trafficking, and about corruption in unexpected places.

Her colleague, Magdalena Mellomstrand, is on the other hand looking into an old case that she just cannot put to rest.

Great suspense and highly topical issues are cleverly tied together to a captivating read.

Money in motion, ruthless traffickers and refugees with no control of their own destiny. In the year before the refugee crisis in Europe broke out for real.

About the author Bjørn Olav Nordahl worked for many years as a digging journalist for the major newspaper Dagens Næringsliv. He has won a number of awards for his journalistic writing. He made his literary debut in 2010, with the novel Almost Present. His first work of crime fiction, the critically acclaimed Shadowland, was published in 2012, soon to be followed by Point Zero in 2014.

CRIME // ORIGINAL TITLE: DØDVINKEL // 400 PAGES

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FICTION CRIME

The Courier Kjell Ola Dahl AWARDED THE BRAGE PRIZE 2015!

“Solid crime, rooted in war history ...

If anybody should write crime novels at all, Kjell Ola Dahl should be among them” NRK P2

“Intensely engaging ... It’s hard to put the book down” ROMERIKES BLAD

“A sober and successful spy thriller, which gives associations to the black and white classic The Third Man ... A solid comeback”

In 1942 the Jewish courier Ester is betrayed, narrowly avoiding arrest by Gestapo. She escapes to Sweden, and saves her life. Her family is deported to Auschwitz.

In Stockholm she meets the resistance hero Gerhard Falkum, who has left his little daughter and fled both the Germans and the suspicion of murdering his wife Åse, who helped Ester get to Sweden.

Their burgeoning relationship ends abruptly when Falkum appears to perish in a fire.

In 1967 Falkumn shows up in Oslo, having been declared dead since 1943. He wants to reconnect with his daughter. But why does he turn up only now, 25 years later?

Ester has also returned to Norway, having worked for the Israeli intelligence since the end of the war. Now she gets new information on Gerhard Falkum, information that forces her to take a new look at her past, and to revive her rusty combat skills.

DAGENS NÆRINGSLIV

About the author Kjell Ola Dahl made his debut in 1993 and has published a series of crime novels about the police investigators Gunnarstranda and Frølich. He won the Riverton Prize for The Last Fix in 2000 and the Brage Prize for his last crime novel, The Courier, in 2015. His crime novels have been published in 14 countries.

CRIME // ORIGINAL TITLE: KUREREN // 400 PAGES FOREIGN SALES // DENMARK

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FICTION CRIME

Monopoly Helle Stensbak The evening after a concert for an enthusiastic full house at Rockefeller, the vocalist Sally Hov is brutally knifed to death close to Tøyenbadet swimming baths. The hunt for her killer is led by Chief Inspector Rigmor Stark and her colleagues, and it takes them to shady sides of Oslo’s music scene, where some people are clearly willing to go far to acquire power and status for themselves. Rigmor is a PhD drop-out who uses mathematics and economic analyses as a method of investigation. She is spontaneous, unorthodox and a little too prone to take foolhardy risks. But most of all she is someone who thinks. Round the clock. And her methods give results: her investigations take her on from the music scene to organised crime and something that looks like corruption within the police’s own ranks. But the closer Rigmor gets to a solution, the more obvious it becomes that someone is following her every step very closely.

“Monopoly stands out as a thorough, well written debut, filled with energy and the joy of story telling. The black and white photos by May-Irene Aasen give a nice addition to the story. I demand a follow-up to this book.”  VG

“…. this book is written with tons of energy and a twinkle in the eye … It is impossible to resist the charm of this book.”

DAGBLADET

About the author Helle Stensbak has a degree in social economics from the University of Oslo, works as chief economist at the Confederation of Vocational Unions and writes about economics in Norway’s largest morning paper. She was a musician for fifteen years and has played with a number of recognised bands in Oslo’s underground music scene.

CRIME // ORIGINAL TITLE: MONOPOL // 504 PAGES

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FICTION NOVELS AND SHORT STORIES

True Enough Kristin Bjørn

A multitude of distinct stories, of every­day people with their odd lives. Miranda July meets Lydia Davis.

A profusion of life stories, temperaments and characters.

A young mother decides to go for the money to get the map and terrain to match.

An amateur astrophysicist refuses to let go of Fred Hoyle and his discredited Steady State theory.

A seventeen-year-old girl has sex with her teacher and wonders if she has a talent for becoming a high-class prostitute.

An eight-year-old reads about the Black Death every evening.

A theatre diva struggles with the follow-up to the success performance about the world’s first IT girl, Audrey Munson.

And a grandfather ends up where nothing makes sense.

About the author Kristin Bjørn attended The Writers’ Studio in Tromsø, and has wide experience from her work with dramatic manuscripts. At present, she is the leader of Stiftelsen Ferske Scener (The Fresh Stages Foundation). True Enough is her literary debut.

SHORT STORIES // ORIGINAL TITLE: SANT NOK // 160 PAGES

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FICTION NOVELS AND SHORT STORIES

The Shanty Empire Hanna Dahl SHORTLISTED FOR THE BRAGE PRIZE 2015 In her debut collection, Hanna Dahl writes about how language at some point or other started to distort reality and the people contained in it. About attempting to control her temperament, but not knowing how a disciplined temperament behaves.

About wanting to get to the bottom of sadness, or at any rate a little deeper down into the matter. About being afraid of the x-ray view that irradiates everything you see. About being almost overcome by longing and fighting a fairly disappointing struggle against the clock. About being reduced to a religion. And about the legionnaires who want to revive the empire mentality – while a column of slow nuclear ice-breakers plough thunder through the ice. For the empire is a boundary-breaking force.

“Every word seems to be meticulously weighted and carefully chosen, and Dahl writes with an authority even established writers should envy her.”  STAVANGER AFTENBLAD

“A refreshing debut.”  DAGBLADET

“The author makes her debut in a uniquely strong voice … one of this autumn’s best and most intelligent books.”  ADRESSEAVISEN

About the author Hanna Dahl has a degree in language and literature, with the main emphasis on Russia and the former Yugoslavia. The Shanty Empire is her literary debut.

SHORT STORIES // ORIGINAL TITLE: RØNNEIMPERIET // 160 PAGES

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CHILDREN PICTURE BOOKS

Ulla and Bendik Build a Town Åshild Kanstad Johnsen Here comes a new teeming and super-detailed picture book universe from the creator of Block.

“A gift for reading children ... Once again she displays her unique talent”  DAGBLADET

Bendik used to live in New York, a city that has everything! But now Bendik has moved. To a drab suburb. Ulla has lived here all her life. She finds it restricted and grey and flat and square. Ulla meets Bendik in the playground. None of them can fathom why this place is so dull. So they decide to do something about it.

In Åshild Kanstad Johnsen’s universe “minor beings” are given the power to accomplish great deeds. A small piece of wood creates its own museum, and in Ulla and Bendik Build a Town a couple of children are allowed to voice their thoughts on how an ideal town ought to be. And what a town it turns out to be!

About the author Åshild Kanstad Johnsen has a degree in visual communication and works as a freelance illustrator. In her spare time she collects all sorts of strange things.

Her books about Block has been sold to 16 languages.

PICTURE BOOKS // ORIGINAL TITLE: ULLA OG BENDIK BYGGER BY // 40 PAGES FOREIGN SALES // NETHERLANDS

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CHILDREN PICTURE BOOKS

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CHILDREN PICTURE BOOKS

It’s Tambar’s Birthday Tor Åge Bringsværd Tambar goes on new adventures!

It’s the world’s sweetest troll kid’s birthday! And of course it will be celebrated up in the mountains with troll family from all over the country. But – what’s the Mischief Maker doing here, inside the mountain? Has it plans to ruin the whole cele­ bration? Tambar has to fix things – and it is lucky that he knows how to speak animal language!

“A particularly successful collaboration between Tor Åge Bringsværd and Lisa Aisato.”

This is the ninth book about the little troll Tambar.

AFTENPOSTEN

“An enchanting troll.”

FORELDRE OG BARN

About the author and illustrator Tor Åge Bringsværd is an award-winning playwright and author who writes for all ages. His works have been translated into 23 languages, and his plays have been staged in 11 different nations.

Lisa Aisato is a writer, illustrator and artist. She is shortlisted for the international Hans C. Andersen Award 2016.

PICTURE BOOKS // ILLUSTRATED BY LISA AISATO ORIGINAL TITLE: TAMBAR HAR BURSDAG // 32 PAGES

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CHILDREN PICTURE BOOKS

Three Cars and a Dead Cat Gry Moursund An exciting cat murder tale that unravels in a fantastic seventies universe.

There are only three cars on the island. That is still one too many when one of them runs over the ­nicest cat in the world. Who can the murderer be? The shop owner, who swears on the life of his ­parents, although they are already dead? Karsten Oppihaugen, who knows more curse words than anyone else on the island? Or could it be Laila, the taxi driver no one really knows, and who has a slightly scary dog called Alex?

About the author Gry Moursund has an education in illustration and graphic design from Oslo National Academy of the Arts. She has received a number of prizes for her books.

PICTURE BOOKS // ORIGINAL TITLE: TRE BILER OG EN DØD KATT // 48 PAGES

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CHILDREN READ ALOUD

Brown Håkon Øvreås and Øyvind Torseter (ill.)

Winner of the Dutch Zilveren Griffel (Silver Pen) 2015 Selected as Top 10 Teacher’s Choice by China Education Newspaper 2015 Nordic Council Literature Prize 2014 Ministry of Culture’s Children’s Book Prize 2013 Trollkrittet Debut Prize 2013 Shortlisted for the Brage Prize 2013 “In this enourmously charming book we meet three little superheroes, each equipped with a bucket of paint …

Torseter’s beautiful drawings show us what it’s like to feel small and out of place in a big world. They also evoke the warmth of the friendship between the children … Warmly recommended!”

AFTENPOSTEN

As long as the sun is up, Rune is merely Rune, but come night he transforms himself into Brown - a totally fearless super hero. Armed to the hilt with brushes and brown paint he sneaks out of the house. Rune can hardly be blamed if Brown chooses to paint the big bullies’ bikes brown, can he?

Brown is a book about friendship, courage and retaliation. It is also a book about missing one’s grandfather and just how wrong things can go when your super hero powers run out.

Brown is the first book of a trilogy.

About the author Håkon Øvreås had published three books of poetry before publishing his first children’s book, Brown, in 2013, for which he has received numerous prizes, among them the Nordic Council Literature Prize for Children and Young Adults.

READ ALOUD 6-9 YEARS // ORIGINAL TITLE: BRUNE // 136 PAGES FOREIGN SALES // BRAZIL, CHINA, DENMARK, FAROE ISLANDS, FRANCE, GERMANY, GREECE, ICELAND, KOREA, NETHERLANDS, PALESTINA, SLOVENIA, SPAIN, SWEDEN, SWITZERLAND, TURKEY, USA

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CHILDREN READ ALOUD

Black Håkon Øvreås and Øyvind Torseter (ill.)

A new girl has moved into the old bakery. Atle finds her exciting. He thinks that if only he borrows the chairman’s prize-winning hen and then pretends that he has found it, he is sure to get into the newspaper, and the new girl will be impressed and like him.

It is worth a try.

But when the attempt does not go completely according to plan, everything suddenly becomes a bit tricky. Atle needs help from the super hero Black, and his faithful companions Brown and Blue.

Brown and Blue do not completely understand what has happened, or what they are involved in, but neither does Atle, really. Get ready for action and all sorts of complications.

Black is the second book of a trilogy. The third and final book, Blåse, will be published in 2017.

“The dynamics between the verbal and visual story is good ... The prose is practically unblemished. And it is more open, more boldly unresolved.”

About the illustrator Øyvind Torseter made his debut as an illustrator in 1999 and illustrates his own texts as well as other authors’ texts. He has received The Ministry of Education’s Prize several times and has also been awarded the international children’s book prize Bologna Ragazzi.

READ ALOUD 6-9 YEARS // ORIGINAL TITLE: SVARTLE // 200 PAGES FOREIGN SALES // CHINA, DENMARK, GERMANY, GREECE, KOREA, NETHERLANDS, SWEDEN, TURKEY

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DAGBLADET

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CHILDREN READ ALONE

WORD-FREE BOOKS Magical stories without words

In 2016 we are adding a new genre to the book palette! WORD-FREE books.

These are books that can be read by proficient and poor readers alike, but that give those less proficient in the 6-9 target group that special feeling of finally having read a whole book. On their own!

The word-free books do not contain a single word, but are read by ­following the illustrations, discovering details, patterns, feelings, action – solely by concentrating on the visual aspect. A skill our youngest readers often ­possess.

The word-free books aim for the target group that ought to be able to read, but needs a reading experience that motivates and inspires them – and does not exclude them from the literary universe. Of course it’s ­possible to read a whole book without having the traditional understanding of reading completely under one’s belt!

To tell a story without using words is an extremely demanding exercise.

We have therefore asked some of the best visual story-tellers in Norway to do it.

About the author Kristoffer Kjølberg is a prize-winning illustrator and graphic designer. He is a member of the creative community Dongery.

WORD-FREE BOOKS // ORIGINAL TITLE: POKALEN // 32 PAGES

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CHILDREN READ ALONE

The Cup Kristoffer Kjølberg It sure isn’t nice when your dad would rather display the trophy from his last golf tournament on the mantel piece instead of the nice photograph you took of the two of you together last year.

And it isn’t nice when you suggest that your dog can guard the house, and your dad only laughs and hires a Schäfer dog to do the job. But what are you to do when the Schäfer turns out to be a part of a scary gang of trophy-thieves?

I’m Out of Here Mari Kanstad Johnsen When you’ve moved to a new place, far away from your friends and your old school class, then it’s not so unusual to feel a little lonely. Maybe the new class will become friendlier after a while? Or maybe not. Maybe one needs a clever trick to make new friends – how about a luminescent rabbit?

About the author Mari Kanstad Johnsen works as an illustrator and artist. She made her debut as a children book’s illustrator with Barbiedoll Nils and the Pistol Problem in 2011.

WORD-FREE BOOKS // ORIGINAL TITLE: JEG RØMMER // 32 PAGES

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CHILDREN READ ALONE

Wild Animals in Town Jan Chr. Næss

A factual story about fun animals for new ­readers.

Jan Christopher Næss, father of five, takes the reader on a stroll through town and tells about the animals they meet.

Why do wild animals choose to live close to human beings? What habits do they acquire in a town environment?

Along the way they meet predators and birds of prey, rodents, martens, insect-eaters and opportunists such as foxes and gulls, flying mammals, trout and mink – just for starters.

This explanatory factual book opens children’s eyes to the wild and fun animals around us, even in the most densely populated town.

About the author Jan Christopher Næss has written a number of fiction books for adults and children. This is his first factual book.

READ ALONE 6-9 YEARS // ORIGINAL TITLE: VILLE DYR I BYEN // 40 PAGES

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CHILDREN READ ALONE

Thundering Tor Anneli Klepp

Tor gets thunderously angry.

Tor and his father are building a cabin. Mia is having a party. All their friends are going to Mia’s. Tor wants to go too. He also wants to eat cake! But why hasn’t he been invited?

In the eighth book in the Mia and Tor series Tor gets so disappointed that he feels thunderously ­angry all over. But then something unexpected happens...

About the author and the illustrator Since her debut in 2006, Anneli Klepp has written a number of books for children and adolescents. Her writing is always suffused with warmth and humour. For more information, visit www.anneliklepp.no Camilla Billett has studied graphic design and advertising, and she runs her own design company. She has illustrated all the Mia and Tor books.

READ ALONE 6-9 YEARS // ILLUSTRATED BY CAMILLA BILLETT ORIGINAL TITLE: TOR MED HAMMEREN // 32 PAGES

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CHILDREN READ ALONE 8 YEARS

Svingen’s Dark World: The Treasure Map Arne Svingen A secret treasure map conceals a grim discovery.

Grandpa is the strangest man Markus knows.

When he moves away to a home for old people, Markus comes across a homemade map. What if it’s true that he has buried all of his money?

Markus and his friend Håkon follow the map into the forest. Soon they reach the first mark on the map and start to dig. ‘Fantastic,’ Markus says when his spade strikes something hard, ’I think we’ve found the treasure.’ They continue to remove soil with their bare hands. Then they stop and stare at what they have just unearthed. – But...but...it’s a skull.

This is book 14 in Svingen’s Dark World.

About the author and the illustrator Arne Svingen is one of our most popular writers and has written a number of books, ranging from easy-read books for children to YA novels. His books have received several awards and been translated into ten languages.

Torstein Nordstrand is an illustrator and concept artist. He has provided original artwork for print and the screen world-wide since 2002.

READ ALONE FROM 8 YEARS // ILLUSTRATED BY TORSTEIN NORDSTRAND ORIGINAL TITLE: SKATTEKARTET // 56 PAGES FOREIGN SALES // DENMARK

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CHILDREN READ ALONE 8 YEARS

Benny-Bob’s Banana Burger Arne Svingen and Flu Hartberg (ill.)

There are times Benny-Bob thinks it’s a bit stupid to be a teacher if you don’t like children. Especially when you’re made solely responsible for organising the school camp trip with the whole class.

But even if he doesn’t like children all that much, it can be quite smart to get to know them better.

As adults, some of them can become dictators, billionaires or hairdressers, and suddenly they will remember the nice teacher who took them to a school camp. If Benny-Bob is to become rich or get a free haircut, that’s the way it’s got to happen.

A wild, hilarious new series from Arne Svingen and Flu Hartberg!

About the authors Arne Svingen is one of our most popular writers and has written a number of books, ranging from easyread books for children to YA novels. His books have received several awards and been translated into ten languages.

Flu Hartberg is a cartoonist and illustrator. He is a member of the creative community Dongery.

READ ALONE 6-9 YEARS // ORIGINAL TITLE: BENNY-BOBS BIFFBANAN // 128 PAGES FOREIGN SALES // DENMARK

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CHILDREN MIDDLE GRADE

Pym Petterson’s Disastrous Summer Holiday Heidi Linde The last book in the immensely popular series about the anti-heroine Pym Petterson.

Pym has just finished 7th grade, and the menacing middle school awaits! And as if that is not bad enough, her parents decide that the whole family is to go off on summer holiday. Gross!

The author masters the art of combining firstclass humour with wise thoughts about life and a subtly graded picture of the everyday life of Pym, her family and her neighbourhood. It is quite evident that the author knows her main character and her readers extremely well.

About the author Heidi Linde studied creative writing at Telemark University College and has a degree in script writing. She made her literary debut with the children’s book Mosquito Bite in 1998 and published her first adult novel, Under the Table, in 2002. She has since then written several novels for both adults and children in addition to award winning radio plays.

MIDDLE GRADE // ORIGINAL TITLE: PYM PETTERSONS MISLYKKA SOMMERFERIE // 215 PAGES

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CHILDREN MIDDLE GRADE

Never a boring day with Pym and her disastrous life! Even her name is a giant misunderstanding.

“A warm welcome to this really funny girl hero”

VG

“Fresh and wonderfully unproblematic ... deals with both the nastiest sibling quarrels, touches on serious themes – and maintains a humorous tone”

DAGBLADET

Pym Petterson’s Disastrous Family Pym Petterson’s Disastrous School Trip Pym Petterson’s Disastrous Pen Pal Pym Petterson’s Disastrous School Ball FOREIGN SALES // DENMARK, ESTONIA, GERMANY, SWEDEN

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CHILDREN MIDDLE GRADE

The World’s Worst Headmaster Marius Molaug and Kristoffer Kjølberg (ill.)

Laugh-out-loud-books for readers of Jeff Kinney and Andy Griffiths.

It is time for the annual swimming day at school, and this is Ruben’s final chance to earn his swimming achievement mark. There is only one problem: He can’t swim.

In order to earn the mark you must be able to swim 25 meters and dive down to the bottom of the pool. Oh, and you also have to save the headmaster, believe it or not. So, in addition to risking his own life, Ruben stands a fair chance of drowning his headmaster too. And although it doesn’t sound altogether bad to rid the world of the worst headmaster ever once and for all, it would be a lot better if Ruben himself didn’t have to die in the attempt.

In order to avoid that, he and his best friend Kent have to devise a plan. How to get out of swimming day – or preferably make sure the whole event is cancelled?

Ruben and Kent make some hair-raising and wild attempts, but the clock is ticking, and swimming day is approaching swiftly!

About the author Marius Molaug works as editor of the N ­ orwegian edition of Donald Duck.

He is a member of the creative community Dongery.

MIDDLE GRADE // ORIGINAL TITLE: VERDENS VERSTE REKTOR // 104 PAGES FOREIGN SALES // DENMARK, GERMANY, SWEDEN

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CHILDREN MIDDLE GRADE

The World’s Worst Holiday Ruben and Kent can’t wait for the summer holidays. Kent’s father has won three tickets to somewhere warm. But the trip does not go as planned.

Already on the first day, Kent’s father drifts out to sea, asleep on an air bed.

The boys are taken care of by the children’s club mascots Ball and Beaver. Beneath their costumes two chain-smoking, poker-playing louts are concealed, and soon Ruben and Kent are waddling around in the costumes. How is this all going to end?

The World’s Worst Christmas Christmas is approaching, and with it the annual Christmas play. Ruben has been cast as Virgin Mary, while Kent will play baby Jesus. The headmaster has snatched the role as God. Outside snow is tumbling down, and when Fat Frank, playing the archangel Gabriel, is hoisted up towards the ceiling of the school gym, the inevitable happens: The snow-covered roof collapses.

The actors are trapped with the headmaster and a donkey Kent’s father won at a pub quiz. The stage is set for the world’s worst Christmas.

About the illustrator Kristoffer Kjølberg is a prize-winning illustrator and graphic designer.

He is a member of the creative community Dongery.

MIDDLE GRADE // ORIGINAL TITLES: VERDENS VERSTE FERIE / VERDENS VERSTE JUL 96 PAGES / 124 PAGES FOREIGN SALES // GERMANY, SWEDEN

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YOUNG ADULTS CONTEMPORARY

It’s Only Love Sverre Henmo Jonathan has just started middle school. He lives with his mother and his bully of a brother, Trym.

Jonathan’s best friend, Jesper, has long legs, a short body, a round belly and a master plan to get together with Sunniva – a plan that unfortunately involves Jonathan, as well as Sunniva’s friend, Liva.

So what do you do when you start dating the wrong girl just to be loyal to your best friend?

When you actually are in love with Alina – the girl who is so pretty that she once starred in a commercial for handbags.

Sverre Henmo has an almost unsurpassed ability to be present, as well as a keen sense of detail and emotional transitions. Falling in love is not just an empty phrase in Henmo’s writing – it becomes something genuine. In It’s Only Love he writes beautifully, soberly and superbly about when friendship and love get in a clinch.

About the author Sverre Henmo is a trained sociologist who writes smooth, engaging and tender books. His first book was published in 1999. He has written a number of books for both children and adults. Frognerbadet After Dark was awarded the Norwegian Ministry of Culture’s Literature Prize 2009 for best young adult novel.

CONTEMPORARY // ORIGINAL TITLE: DET ER BARE KJÆRLIGHET // 128 PAGES

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YOUNG ADULTS CONTEMPORARY

Your Father Bjørn Ingvaldsen Your father is a thief. That’s what everyone says to you. Everyone hates your father because he steals.

Everyone hates you because you have a father who is a thief. So what do you do? Fight? Hide? For you can’t deny it. Everyone is right. Your father is a thief.

‘I used to live here, everyone lived here, we lived here. Right here. Everything was normal. But now, right now, I knew that nothing was normal anymore. Everything was different now.’

About the author Bjørn Ingvaldsen made his debut in 1995 with a collection of short stories for adults. Since then he has written several books for children and adults. His books for children have been translated into Danish, French, German and Italian

CONTEMPORARY // ORIGINAL TITLE: FAR DIN // 200 PAGES

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YOUNG ADULTS CONTEMPORARY

Blinking Doesn’t Help Lene Ask A finely tuned young adult novel about everything that perhaps isn’t perfect, and what can lay hidden below the surface.

Lilly is ugly. She has a scar that divides her lip in two, and what’s more her nose is crooked. But that doesn’t worry her all that much – she doesn’t have to be pretty when she is so good at running. But then she falls in love with her best friend. And she can’t run away from that.

About the author Lene Ask made her literary debut in 2008 with the picture books about the Rotle Family. Blinking Doesn’t Help is her first young adult novel.

CONTEMPORARY // ORIGINAL TITLE: DET HJELPER IKKE Å BLUNKE // 184 PAGES

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YOUNG ADULTS CONTEMPORARY

I Am Not Martina Gaux Ryan is involved in a near-miss in New York, and suddenly she can’t remember who she is, or how and why she ended up there. The only clues are found in her jacket pocket: a set of keys and a crumpled letter addressed to her brother.

And then she meets Sam, who only increases the confusion: ‘I, Samuel Burns, had to solemnly swear that I would never ever talk about your brother, and I intend to keep this promise.’

What could be so secret that Ryan almost took her life?

An insightful and intense story about seeing, about gender identity, truth and lies.

About the author Martina Gaux was one of the first 14 students to graduate from the Norwegian Institute for Authors of Children’s Books. She has previously written a picture book and stage plays for children. I Am Not is her fourth young adult novel.

CONTEMPORARY // ORIGINAL TITLE: JEG ER IKKE // 300 PAGES

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YOUNG ADULTS CONTEMPORARY

Angel in the Snow Anders Totland

A powerful and beautiful young adult novel about the inevitable brutality of life.

‘It won’t be long now,’ Idun said.

‘You don’t have to arrange anything for me,’ I said.

Idun smiled.

‘Of course we do,’ Idun said.

‘No, it’s fine,’ I said.

‘Are you afraid it will be too much fuss?’

I gave a slight nod.

‘Are you in a lot of pain?’

Another nod.

‘But don’t tell dad anything,’ I said.

It’s winter, and it’s snowing, but not everyone is out playing in the snow. Someone can’t do anything but stand at the window looking out at the snow crystals. Someone doesn’t want dad to know that something hurts, even though dad knows that one’s ill, seriously ill. Someone is soon going to have a birthday. Someone is soon going to die.

About the author Anders Totland is a chef, organ player and journalist. Angel in the Snow is his literary debut.

CONTEMPORARY // ORIGINAL TITLE: ENGEL I SNØEN // 74 PAGES

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YOUNG ADULTS LONG POEM

It Might be the Heart Helene Guåker if nobody would notice us leaving for how long could we then stay gone Vilde is tensely and impatiently waiting for life to get going. Something needs to happen! Then middle school starts with plenty of possibilities – and with Susanne. From now on, the two of them will always be together!

But then Vilde falls in love with Lars. And then with Peder. And even though the relationship with Peder isn’t quite as fine as it perhaps ought to be, it puts Susanne at a distance – a distance that makes it difficult for Vilde to be there for her when she needs her the most.

Incisively about a young girl’s transition from completely young to fairly young, with all the nerves and quivering expectation that involves, in a finely portrayed balancing act between insecurity and over-confidence – all of this conveyed in a clear, suggestive language in which the form gives the material a distinctive force.

A clear-cut story about a young girl’s transition from very young to fairly young in a balancing act between insecurity and over-confidence.

About the author Helene Guåker has studied creative writing at Telemark University College as well as Nordic Literature at the University of Agder. She has written several books both for adults and young adults.

LONG POEM // ORIGINAL TITLE: KANSKJE DET ER HJERTET // 84 PAGES

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YOUNG ADULTS CONTEMPORARY

The Big Fame Arne Garvang What happens when ordinary teenagers suddenly become famous? What happens when they suddenly have more money in their bank accounts than they could ever dream of? Not to mention what happens to their parents?

By chance, Putte, Jacka, Roland and Bille get the opportunity to make commercials, real commercials, videos broadcasted on all the major channels. They can hardly believe their luck, but soon all the pressure leads to various things in the group and in their families, things they could never have predicted.

About the author Arne Garvang is an artist living in Oslo. He has written several books for children, young adults and adults. The Muffe books have been translated into many languages and have received numerous awards.

CONTEMPORARY // ORIGINAL TITLE: REKLAMESKATTEN // 250 PAGES

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YOUNG ADULTS THRILLER

Every Day You Die a Little Arne Svingen Aksel has just started high school and makes plans for a quiet weekend at home while his parents are out of town. However, when an elderly stranger suddenly appears in the kitchen and tries to kill him the weekend turns out to be anything but relaxing.

He just manages to escape and with the unknown man right on his heels he tries to figure out why on earth he is being hunted. Aksel goes to the one person he knows know something about the shady side of life, his best friend Steinar’s mother Ellen – a dismissed police investigator with her own distinctive past. And when they together discover that Aksel’s two best friends have apparently committed suicide over the past few days, the case takes a completely new turn.

Intensely gripping young adult thriller from Arne Svingen.

About the author Arne Svingen is one of our most popular writers and has written a number of books, ranging from easy-read books for children to YA novels. His books have received several awards and been translated into ten languages.

THRILLER // ORIGINAL TITLE: MAN DØR LITT HVER DAG // 224 PAGES

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YOUNG ADULTS SCI-FI/DYSTOPIA

The Victim – Beta 3 Amund Hestsveen and Torborg Igland

The story about Livni, Kodak and Jor comes to a captivating end in this third instalment of the Beta-trilogy.

The sixteen-year-olds Kodak and Jor, have fled to a desert island, along with a group of teenagers. They manage to hook up an illegal network and this enables them to send out information via Skandia’s surveillance network, Sys. What will happen when people discover the destiny of those who are not chosen?

When they learn that hundreds of teenagers are being terminated, just outside the city wall? When they see that the First Free Leader and the Benefactors live a life of luxury – while the population at large live under oppression?

Winter is approaching, and life on the island is getting increasingly taxing. Internal strife is going to break out on the island. Are they to fight with bullets and weapons? Or will the teenagers manage to use art to change people’s hearts before it’s too late?

About the authors Amund Hestsveen has a university degree in philology and English. He has worked as a newspaper journalist for fifteen years, but now works as a freelancer.

Torborg Igland has a university degree in social sciences. She has worked as a newspaper journalist for fifteen years, but now works as a freelancer.

SCI-FI/DYSTOPIA // ORIGINAL TITLE: OFFERET (BETA 3) 550 PAGES

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YOUNG ADULTS SCI-FI/DYSTOPIA

The Escape – Beta 1 In an alternative version of our world, in the decades following a military coup, the Nordic nations’ identities have been erased, and the totalitarian state Skandia has evolved. Pollution disasters have made nature toxic, and the sea is out of bounds.

Art, literature and music are banned. Very few have a concept of family life, most people grow up in dorms, in fierce competition to be chosen for officer training and a privileged life. Just before the dreaded Selection is about to take place, fifteen year old Kodak, Livni and Jor unearth a dreadful secret. Something has to happen. And they understand what they have to do …

The Island - Beta 2 Kodak and Jor have escaped from the dorm and Skandia, an ice-cold dictatorship where art, literature and music are forbidden. Along with 24 other 15-year-olds they have fled to an uninhabited island, where there are still remains of the old civilisation. At least if the map the archer left behind is correct.

Back in Skandia, Livni lies injured in the infirmary. She has to act the role of her life. No one must know what actually happened. No one must know what she actually did, or who she is helping.

Because they can’t give up now, can they?

SCI-FI/DYSTOPIA // ORIGINAL TITLE: FLUKTEN (BETA 1) // 488 PAGES ORIGINAL TITLE: ØYA (BETA 2) // 512 PAGES

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“This book is truly one of the best dystopian novels I have ever read. The way everything is constructed and written is brilliant. The authors have written a masterpiece of a book with no weaknesses. Two clever authors with one outstanding achievement.

I recommend both this and the first book to anybody and everybody. I give The Island six out of six stars.”

FOLKEBLADET

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Gyldendal Agency Foreign Rights Guide Spring 2016

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