Eva Lindström has been awarded the 2022 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA). Lindström writes stories that shift between the everyday and the existential, combining shrewd humour with absurd mystery.
Welcome to a combobulation of articles from our favourite thinkers, stories from behind the scenes, lists of good books, Gecko Press news and things that amuse us from time to time.
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Book list: war and displacement
My hope is that for anyone struggling, these eight brilliant books will be a small support and help start important conversations about war and particularly its impact on people. I hope they show the positive impact that hope, kindness and empathy can have too.
Elephant Island: Q&A with Leo Timmers
As so often is the case, I was working on multiple stories about boats that weren’t really going anywhere, until Elephant appeared and ideas started to click. Once I figured out the storyline, I started pondering every beat of the story. What does it mean, what do I want to say? And how can I visualize this as clearly as possible?
The importance of books in hospitals
Over the last 2 years, COVID-19 infection prevention measures have meant that tamariki visiting the hospital have had heavily restricted access to toys
Ten years of Simon the Rabbit
I saw Simon the rabbit at my very first Bologna Book Fair, standing out in a sea of pigs and rabbits and dragons. Caҫa Boudin, was so arresting,
Book list: comeback for picture storybooks
Once the backbone of stories for younger children, picture storybooks have been superseded by the shorter picture books that are now more popular.
The Tale of the Tiny Man: Q&A with Barbro Lindgren
For me, humour is important. It allows you to write about sad things that otherwise would be hard to deal with. I have always felt deeply for people
Highlight reviews from around the world
As we look ahead with anticipation to the books we will be publishing next year, we’re also reflecting on what readers from around the world had to say about our books in 2021. Highlights include a New York Times gift guide selection, two Times Children’s Books of the Week in the UK, Kirkus Reviews starred… Read more »
The particularities of translating children’s books
A good translation is all in the detail; the result often reflects the amount of effort put in to giving every word its due and making the multitudes of small decisions that can make or break the book. A good translation will not be rushed.
Book list: Silent children’s books
In this month of noise, we’ve made a list of silent books.
We were very pleased to have three Gecko Press books selected for the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) 2021 silent book collection, with Aleph by Janik Coat chosen as an Honour Book.
