New Swedish Books, spring 2017 1
New Swedish Books 44 The Night What does the wind
do? Wind blows. How does the wind blow? Wind blows shhh. Where does the wind blow? Outside where it’s dark and cold. Outside where it’s night. When night arrives it brings a different feeling. Maybe it’s the darkness that contributes most to the mood. Or the sound of the wind, or the owl hooting. Sara Villius and Mari Kanstad Johnsen’s picture book is not frightening, but loaded with that special quality that makes you almost want to whisper the text as you read it. What does the moon get up to in the middle of the night? What’s the fox up to in the forest? And what about the girl who’s awake even though the hour is late? These are sights to which the reader is usually denied access – the night is secretive and mysterious. But the all-seeing narrator guides and asks questions, and allows the reader to take a nocturnal walk through the pages. It’s both evocative and exciting. Sara Villius (text) b. 1976 Mari Kanstad Johnsen (ill) b. 1981 The Night Publisher Rabén & Sjögren info@rabensjogren.se www.rabensjogren.se Rights Rabén & Sjögren agency asa.bergman@rabensjogren.se Sara Villius Selected Works Battle (Norstedt 2003) Prose texts Sex (Norstedt 2008) Novel Miss Kollo (Mix 2011) Short story Mari Kanstad Johnsen Norwegian illustrator and author Works Livrädd på playan (Rabén & Sjögren 2015) Picture book Photo: Private Photo: Göran Segeholm