Children’s Non-Fiction

Anne Thelle                                                                                                                                       Typisk japansk                                                                                              Published by Omnipax, 2017

Typically Japanese – sushi, Pokemon or animation films?

Yes, but there’s so many other things too! In this book we get to know more about Japan today as we travel throughout the long country.

We meet young Japanese people who talk about their Japan: a girl who finally dares to use her own Korean name, a young man who will take over his father’s Buddhist temple in Kyoto, someone who spends all their free time at revision classes so they can get into their dream school, a young Ainu man, who describes what it is like to be different in Japan. On our journey, we explore remnants of the Samurai culture, we hear about the lives of geishas, we learn about cosplay culture and are given a snapshot of Japan’s place in the history of the Second World War. And much, much more.

The book is illustrated with photographs. Suitable for readers over age 13.

Anne Thelle (b. 1969) grew up in Japan. She is a philologist and has a doctorate in Japanese literature. She has previously published three books about Japan: Japan –Origins of the Sun (2000), which was awarded the Ministry of Culture’s prize for the best YA and children’s non-fiction book, Anime – what is it? (2009), which was nominated for the same prize, and Bombs over Hiroshima and Nagasaki (2013), which won the prize for that year.

Heksejakt
Published by Samlaget, 2016

When witchcraft and sorcery were deadly serious.

From 1400 to around 1700, 100 000 women and men were tried and found guilty of witchcraft and sorcery in Europe. About 50 000 of them were sentenced to death. In Norway over 300 so-called witches were killed. They were ordinary women, married and unmarried, rich and poor, young and old.

These witches were hanged or beheaded, but most often burned. Fire was believed to have purifying powers.

The historian, Aina Basso, looks at the witch trials in Europe and Norway, and we learn more about witches such as Joan of Arc, the German Merga Bien, but also several Norwegian witches. We are told the story of the last and worst witch trial in Finnmark, the most northerly county in Norway, in 1662, when 31 women were found guilty of witchcraft. Six of them were young girls. Who were the witches? And how on earth could something like that happen? But witch hunts are not just a thing of the past. Witches are still burned today in Asia, South America and several places in Africa.

The book is illustrated by Christian Bloom.

                                                                                   NON-FICTION FOR CHILDREN

 

Anne-Linn & Anders Kumano-Ensby

Make it on your own outdoors. A junior woodchuck’s´ guide /                           Klar deg selv i naturen. En hakkespettbok

Published by Spartacus Forlag, 2017

Have you ever wondered what you would do if you had to make it on your own? If you were stranded on a deserted island or the family car broke down in the middle of nowhere. What if you got lost in the woods and could not find the way home?

This book will teach you how to stay warm, dry and healthy and keep your belly full when you are all alone in the great outdoors. You will also learn how to navigate by the sun and stars, signalling for help, forage for edible plants, filtering water, lighting a fire with a fire drill and much more. And what is the best way to build a snow cave, and how do you behave if you encounter a bear?

Hopefully you will never find yourself in a situation where your life depends on this knowledge, but knowing how to take care of yourself is both useful and fun. Pretending to be lost in the forest or the sole survivor of a shipwreck can make your next family outing a challenging game. On the bare mountain, the deep forest or in the tiny grove behind your house, bush crafting skills makes nature even more enjoyable.

Suitable for children from 8 – 12.

Anne Linn Kumano-Ensby (b. 1980) is an investigating reporter and editor at the documentary department of Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK).Andreas Kumano-Ensby (b. 1980) studied literature at the University of Oslo. He works in audiobook publishing as Head of sales and marketing at the audio book publisher Lydbokforlaget. Both have a lifelong fascination for survival and post-apocalyptic fiction, that pushed them into learning how to live in harmony with nature. In 2014 they wrote Postapokalypse nå! En håndbok i overlevelse / Postapocalypse now! A survival guide. Illustrations by Silje Ensby (b. 1984), an artist that specialises in portraying traditional crafts and techniques through drawings and film. She studied Fine Art at Bergen Academy of Art and Design (KHiB). This is her third book.

 

 

 

Erna Osland/Anna Fiske                                                                                                     AWAKE? A good-night story about animals that do not sleep at night /          VAKEN? Ei godnattbok om dyr som ikkje søv om natta                                                                                                                                        Published by Samlaget, 2017

Playful and informative story about animals that are awake at night. A brother and sister sneak out of the house when it becomes dark. Their mother is on night duty. The children use their flashlights to look for animals that crawl and creep, climb and run, swim and fly. Each chapter tells what the brother and sister find and about each individual nocturnal animal.

Why are these animals awake when others sleep? Are they unable to sleep or are they awake while they sleep? The nocturnal animals in the book are: foxes, toads, bats, spiders, ducks, night ravens, snails, ducks, otters, crabs, mosquitoes and others who are out at night.

A captivating book for inquisitive and curious children aged 6 to 10 years. Written and illustrated by the popular super duo: Erna Osland and Anna Fiske.

Erna Osland Erna Osland  (b. 1951) is a prize winning and much loved author of both fiction and wide range non-fiction books for children. Her inviting tone and ability to delight and surprise the reader transforms her non-fiction books into pleasurable safaris of laughter and learning. Osland has won a number of Norwegian and international prizes for her books. Some of the books are translated.

Anna Fiske (b. 1964) is a Swedish born illustrator, author and cartoonist. Fiske’s playful and distinctive style, both literary and pictorial, has earned her numerous awards and honours for her works. Several of her books has been published with great success in many countries.

 

Når det regner i Afrika
Ei bok om vêr og klimaendringar
Published by Samlaget, 2015

A fact book for children all about meteorology. What creates the weather? Where does the wind come from? Why does hail come down at the speed of a racing car and why does it even rain in the first place?

This is a book about weather, but also a book about Styrk, who lives in Norway but thinks a lot about Africa. When will the rain fall on his grandmother’s parched fields, he wonders. Because it must be due soon, surely, unless someone has stolen it? This is the story of Styrk, but also a fact book about meteorology. At the end of the book you can read about how the weather is in the process of changing here on Earth. Plus, you’ll find out where the rain in Africa went! More…