Fishing for the Little Pike nominated for the Fantasy Literature Prize

This little pike is on fire! Just last weekend awarded the prestigious Jarkko Laine Literature Prize, Juhani Karila’s hilarious novel is now nominated for the Fantasy Literature Prize.

The award is given by the Finnish Tolkien Society to the best fantasy book of the year. Karila’s book is competing with four other nominees, and the winner will be announced on November 6th.

The fact that, during the past year, Fishing for the Little Pike has been nominated for four very different awards (so far winning three) proves just how versatile Karila’s novel is, as well as beloved among a wide range of readership. Earlier in the year, it also won Kalevi Jäntti’s Literary Prize as well as Tähtifantasia Prize.

The rights have so far been sold to Canada (World French), Denmark, Hungary, Poland and most recently, Germany.

Congratulations to the author and fingers crossed!

Juhani Karila wins Jarkko Laine Literature Prize

Juhani Karila’s hilarious novel Fishing for the Little Pike won the Jarkko Laine Literature Prize!

According to the jury, the novel, set in the Finnish Lapland, is “magic realism at its best” and “is exceptionally fresh in drawing its power from folk beliefs”.

The book, full of original characters, is as entertaining as a picaresque novel, with a masterfully entwined murder mystery. The hilarious storytelling only emphasises the serious topics instead of hiding them: a human relation with nature, searching for self, the feelings of guilt and love.

Jarkko Laine Literature Prize is given every second year to the most extraordinary and challenging fiction work published in the last three calendar years. The prize is 10,000 euros.

Karila’s novel has been so far sold to Canada (World French), Denmark, Germany, Hungary and Poland, and running the third print in Finland. It also won The Kalevi Jäntti’s Literature Prize and Tähtifantasia Literature Prize earlier this year.

Congratulations to the author!

Paavo Haavikko’s poetry to be published in Hebrew

Jerusalem-based Carmel Publishing House will be publishing a collection of poems by Paavo Haavikko, one of the great 20th century Finnish modernists!

As stated on the publisher’s website, Carmel is an “eclectic, multi-faceted and fresh publishing house. Since its founding in 1987, its goal has been to enrich the world of Hebrew literature and culture by publishing the best of translated literature, encouraging local fiction, publishing fascinating non-fiction books that appeal to a wide audience and raising the profile of original and translated poetry.”

Paavo Haavikko (1931–2008) is considered to be one of the most significant writers in Finland’s literary cannon, and his poems have been translated into 12 languages. Last year, HLA sold Estonian rights of Haavikko’s poem collection to Eksa.

The poems will be selected and translated by enthusiastic translator Rami Saari, who also helped to draw publisher’s attention to Haavikko’s works.

Fishing for the Little Pike sold to Germany

German rights of Juhani Karila’s hilarious and acclaimed novel Fishing for the Little Pike was sold to Homunculus!

Homunculus Verlag is an independent publishing house in Erlangen, Bavaria, “looking for exciting and above all unique contemporary literary voices”, as the publisher Laura Jacobi states.

The novelin a carnavalesque spirit of Rabelais and with Don Quijote type of characters, according to Lapin Kansa newspaper, and unequivocally dubbed by the critics as the best Finnish novel of 2019, raised an overwhelming interest among the foreign publishers and has been so far sold to Canada (World French), Denmark, Hungary and Poland, and running the third print in Finland. It also won The Kalevi Jäntti’s Literature Prize and Tähtifantasia Literature Prize earlier this year, and is now nominated for the Jarkko Laine Literature Prize.

German publication is scheduled for Autumn 2021 / Spring 2022.

Congratulations to the author and those lucky German readers!