News

Every foreign rights deal is a small celebration at the agency, but the modern classics sales are something we are especially happy about and proud of: it is a privilege to introduce for the first time some of the biggest names in the Finnish literary scene to the foreign readers.

Croatian publisher Hangar 7 will now publish two titles of Leena Krohn: the iconic novel Tainaron (1985 | 2006) and just as big success, novel Hotel Sapiens (2013).

Hangar 7 was founded in 2011, and is a publisher of some of the most legendary sci-fi and speculative fiction titles from all over the world. Among its authors are Stanislaw Lem, The Strugacki Brothers, Fonda Lee and others.

Leena Krohn’s (b. 1947) writing forms an impressive body of work. She has developed her ideas from the visible and the invisible, from consciousness and self, death and life, reality and illusion, good and evil. Her sly humor and lucid language speak of our existence in very strange realms with courage and intelligence. One of the greatest visionaries in Finnish literature, Krohn’s works have been translated to over 20 languages.

Congratulations to the author!

In turbulent times like ours, few things can offer consolation – literature, of course, being one of them.

Minna Eväsoja’s 2018 nonfiction Shoshin – The Mind of a Novice conveys the true beauty and calmness of Japanese philosophy, which the Thai publisher Nava deemed perfect for the age we live in: the Thai deal was closed in the end of April.

Nava Publishing has previously acquired a few titles from Finland, including illustrated children’s fiction by Salla Savolainen and Aino Havukainen & Sami Toivonen.

Congratulations to the author!

We are so thrilled to announce that one of the most internationally successful Finnish titles, Selja Ahava’s 2015 novel Things that Fall From the Sky, has now been sold to the Dutch publisher Alfabet.

Alfabet is a brand new house founded in 2020, joining editors from various established houses with years of experience. Their aim is to publish fiction and nonfiction “written by true story-tellers”.

This is the 27th foreign rights deal for the novel, making it one of the best internationally sold titles from Finland. It was awarded the European Union Prize for Literature in 2015, as well as nominated for various prestigious awards, including Warwick Prize and DUBLIN Award.

Congratulations to the author!

More exciting sales news! One of the most exciting debuts last autumn, E. L. Karhu’s novel To My Brother, has now been sold to Metropolis Media in Hungary. This is the second foreign rights sale for this title, as World French rights were sold in February.

Metropolis Media’s list consists of various collections, such as Nobel Prize winners, EU Prize for literature nominees and winners and other high quality fiction. They have previously published Juhani Karila’s novel Fishing for the Little Pike.

To My Brother is an absurd, dark-humoured bildungsroman which germinates from internalized self-hatred and prompts thoughts about lust, sexual capital and hierarchies, as well as ways disgust is used as a means of control, especially against women. 

The novel was nominated for the Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize, given to the best debut of the year. E.L. Karhu’s play with the same title, To My Brother, premiered this month in Schauspiel Leipzig in Germany.

Congratulations to the author!

One of the loveliest prizes in the Finnish literary scene has been awarded to one of the loveliest authors: Anneli Kanto’s sensational novel The Rat Saint has been honoured with the Thank You for the Book Prize.

The prize is given out yearly since 1966, for a book that is considered to have caused the biggest intellectual and/or emotional stimulus to the readers during the past year. The winner is decided upon jointly by The Booksellers’ Association in Finland, Association Libro ry and Finnish Library Association.

The jury has stated about the novel:

“The Rat Saint is a combination of a masterfully weaved plot and psychologically credible portrayal of individual’s development as well as artistry as both a concrete and spiritual process. Anneli Kanto has done an incredible job researching and weaving together the historical threads and bringing to life the Medieval Häme region, which was mainly unknown to an average reader. (…) What mostly brings joy to the reader – up to the point of bursting out laughing – is the vivid language, with all its medieval expressions and insults.”

And indeed, the readers have loved the novel since its publication: The Rat Saint has sold close to 20,000 copies in Finland, and has recently been awarded the Blogistania Finlandia Prize.

Congratulations to the author!