New Swedish Books, Autumn 2017 1
59 Autumn 2017 Frankie and Vegan Åsa Asptjärn has
previously charmed her teenage readers with her amusing books about the antihero Emmanuel Kent (Konsten att ha sjukt låga förväntningar, Manifest för hopplösa, och Rimligt lyckade ögonblick). Now for the first time she writes for a slightly younger audience, and this time the main character is a girl. Her name is Bodil, but everybody calls her Wurst. It’s the summer holidays after finishing sixth grade and it’s obvious to everyone that Wurst and her best friend aren’t friends anymore. Veronika would rather be with Emmy, and Emmy seems to hate Wurst, so… the only thing left for Wurst to do is to start hanging out with the strange vegan Diana who’s just moved in a couple a streets away. And before Wurst knows it, she’s being dragged into her very first political protest, on the trail of a polecat in the woods. It’s unpredictable, exciting and fun, but with a serious backdrop. Asptjärn has succeeded in depicting that difficult moment when the line between childish play and grownup gravity is blurred, in both an entertaining and believable way. Åsa Asptjärn (b. 1972) Frankie and Vegan Publisher Bonnier Carlsen www.bonniercarlsen.se Rights Bonnier Rights mathilde.coffy@bonnierrights.se Selected Works Konsten att ha sjukt låga förväntningar 2014 Young adult novel Manifest för hopplösa 2015 Young adult novel Rimligt lyckade ögonblick 2016 Young adult novel Photo: Emil Malmborg