Hokus Pokus Alfons Åberg

While my mom was here we went to the cinema to see the Alfons Åberg movie with the girls. And we liked it - all of us. I truly love the old Alfons Åberg animations with the wonderful voice of Thomas Winding in Danish from my own childhood, and so does Frida Viola, so I was a little anxious to be dissapointed. But I loved it. I love the small updates with the dad's smartphone, his 85% dark chocolate, the fact that Alfons is a little older, but still a dreaming, fantasizing kid with his own wishes and desires. I love the style of the animation - warm & filled with little daily life details and objects, yet still also filled with magic, even for grown ups (despite what some reviewers write). The girls loved all the cute dogs, the magician, the switching between magic and reality, and all the very-very exciting moments where the kids do things not at all approved by the adults.

We didn't like all the noisy trailers before the movie, though...

If you didn't see it already (I know we are late), then hurry up and go see it - it's perfect for the younger kids.

in the jungle

this little book caught my eye in the thrift store some while ago due to its happy cover. its written and illustrated by 7-years old Ileana Holmboe in 1944. she won a competition for children by the Danish publisher Rosendahl & Jørgensen and had her contribution published. her colourful, naïve drawings make us smile, and i love that the book is printed with her fantastic 1944-7-years-old-handwriting. the story is a jungle adventure, and the tiger is just as cruel as the drawing shows but everything has a happy ending.

Ileana Holmboe: "Urskov-Æventyr", Rosendahl & Jørgensen, 1944.

Rop van Mierlo - Wild Animals

Molly had this wonderful book as a Christmas present. It's perfect for her age, and I love the simple act of a few drips of paint on wet paper that lies behind these soft and tactile animals. I am impressed on how fast Molly's language is developing at the moment. She puts words together in simple sentences and she has developed quite a temper. I love this age where she is more a kid than a baby but still enjoys cuddling and lying close in bed.

finelittleday has Rop van Mierlo's beautiful book

East of the Sun & West of the Moon

Ever since I was a little girl I have adored Kamma Svensson's fantastic illustrations of Peter Christen Asbjørnsen's Norwegian folktale "East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon". The book is old, it used to belong to my mum, and I guess she kept it for the same reasons as I. Kamma Svensson's illustrations are filled with the same mystic, folklorism and dense ambivalence as the tale itself - very beautiful and a little scary all at the same time. Look at the colours and patterns - she's so good.

More Kamma Svensson.
P. Chr. Asbjørnsen, "Østen for Sol og Vesten for Måne", Gyldendal 1959, with illustrations by Kamma Svensson.

just a piece of paper

This little book is a thrift store find from the other day with simple and fine inspiration for paper cuts - maybe for dark December afternoons. The author, Elizabeth Brozowska, has done quite many children's books with cute illustrations - but this one is the only I have stumbled across with paper cuts. The book is structured around a narrative, a story about a grandmom who makes Polish paper cuts for her 3 grandchildren, and the kids get inspired to make some themselves. We don't need the story to get inspired but it's a sympathetic way to present little DIY projects.

Originally "Just A Piece of Paper" ["Leg med saks og papir"] by Elisabeth Brozowska, 1969.

Eva Lindström

Today, just a short note with a big recommendation: Go and see Eva Lindström's beautiful-beautiful animated film "Dyrevennerne" ["Animal Friends"] that plays in Cinemateket at the moment - with or without kids!

Frida Viola and I went to see it today - and it was wonderful, poetic, aesthetic, dreamlike and whimsical.
"Dyrevennerne" is a collection of three short narratives for small kids - all with animals as main characters. Swedish author and illustrator Eva Lindström's illustrations and colours are delicate, soft, offbeat and hard not to love, and the soundtrack in the animations just completes the universe. We both liked it very much, and some of Lindström's books are now on our wishlist.

You can see "Dyrevennerne" in Cinemateket next Saturday, via the children's film festival Buster - free of admission!
See a teaser here.

Charley Harper

A really nice book find from this summer's treasure hunting is "Biologiens Eventyr" ["The Giant Golden Book of Biology"] from 1963/1961 with wonderful illustrations by one of our favourites, Charley Harper.

Admittedly, I have no intention of reading it since I'm quite sure that both facts and methods are outdated by now, but we bought the book for the illustrations' sake. I have caught Frida Viola with the book late at night more than once, studying cells, microorganisms and strange species while she should be sleeping.

Charley Harper's Ladybug Giant Floor puzzle is also nice.

geometry

Here is another little book we found at the flea market during our vacation. This one is in Danish, "Tryl med figurer" ["Magic with shapes"], with illustrations by Richard Fowler from 1975. Originally it had transparent coloured flip pages to reveal or hide some of the shapes/figures - but these are missing now, after many years of use, I guess. I like the illustrations nevertheless with their faded colours, overlapping effects and simple geometrical patterns.

Jockum Nordström: Sailor och Pekka

One thing I really enjoy when we are on vacation is using plenty of time searching for new books for the kids (and myself, of course). I browse through the bookshelves at flea markets and thrift stores and in local book shops. This summer I found several really nice ones - one pile is left in the house, another is brought with us home. I picked out some of them to show you and recommend throughout the nearest time.

This is one of Jockum Nordström's wonderful Sailor and Pekka books. I have been dying to get my hands on these books for so long - and was really happy (- and somewhat surprised) to find a couple of them in the local book shop nearby our Swedish house. It was no disapointment. The illustrations really are something special, and Frida Viola loves the cartoon like parts. I love the colours, the collages and the wonderful expressions of the characters. The first three photos depict Sailor's hallucinatory dreams while having a fever.

Jockum Nordström: "Sailor blir Sjuk", rabén&sjögren.
Sailor & Pekka at fine little day shop.

Madlenka by Peter Sís

Madlenka by Czech-born American illustrator Peter Sís is a beautiful book I came across a while ago. I wasn't familiar with the author but the very fine and delicate illustrations captured me, and the book has already become a favourite among us. The story is quite simple - the little girl Madlenka lives in New York ("In the universe, on a planet, on a continent, in a country, in a city, on a block, in a house...", as the story begins). One day she discovers she has a rocking tooth. Madlenka wants to tell all her friends about it and runs down the stairways out on the street. Her walk around the block brings us all around the world - we meet Monsieur Gaston from the French patisserie, Mr. Singh from the kiosk, Signor Ciao from the Italian ice cream van, Eduardo from the Latin American greengrocer etc...Every place we visit has a little cut out window we can enter and get a peek into other worlds. There are so many fine little details in the book and I regret my photos didn't turn out better - but I hope they do give you an impression anyway.

Madlenka Soccer Star - do see the little book trailer!

Signe Kjær

Last week it was A's birthday. We did celebrate him a little but not far as much as I would have liked since our days have been quite filled up lately. He did have some gifts though - and even some quite good ones :)
Frida Viola helped me choose one of Signe Kjær's beautiful little paintings for him. She picked out the girl you see above - and it's really such a fine little work that we are all so happy with. Signe Kjær makes wonderful, poetic, fine and delicate illustrations and works and I am looking so much forward to follow her and see more.

Once the package with the girl had arrived Frida Viola also wanted to paint some girls so that A had 3 girls for his birthday - one for each of us. She did the two below. Needless to say that he was very happy.

The Ladder

"The Ladder" ["Stigen"] is a children's book from 1969 by famous Danish writer Halfdan Rasmussen, and this title may not be so welknown as many of his other titles. Unlike most of his publications that are wonderfully illustrated by Ib Spang Olsen, "The Ladder" comes with equally wonderful illustrations by Kai Matthiessen, which is both a little strange but also refreshing, since Halfdan Rasmussen and Ib Spang Olsen have grown almost inseparable in our inner register. Halfdan Rasmussen is not new to anyone who has grown up in Denmark; I just wanted to show you this book, since it was a little different and really fun. The illustrations are quite simple and played down in beautiful and bright colours and leave a lot of space to your own imagination.

Sorry, I couldn't find anything on the illustrator, Kai Matthiessen - but maybe some of you know about him...?