Category Archives: German Youth Literature

The Bear Who Wasn’t There: And The Fabulous Forest

Leave a reply

A very positive bear, who is nice and handsome, too, sets out on a journey to find himself. With the help of Turtle Taxi, he travels through the Fabulous Forest that has eight directions – north, south, east, west, breakfast, lunch, right, and wrong. He meets Convenience Cow, Lazy Lizard, and Penultimate Penguin. In the end, he finds that he himself is just what he has been looking for all along. The musical wordplay and unusual illustrations in this absurd, clever, and philosophical story will remind readers of Winnie the Pooh, Alice in Wonderland, and The Wizard of Oz. mjw

Title: The Bear Who Wasn’t There: And The Fabulous Forest Author: Oren Lavie Illustrator: Wolf Erlbruch Publisher: Black Sheep/Akashic Books Copyright: 2016 Original Language: German Original Title: Der Bar Der Nicht da War Original Publisher: Verlag Antje Kunstmann GmbH Original Copyright: 2014 ISBN: 978-1-61775-490-6 Hardcover pages: 48 Age range: 4-10 Genre: Picture Book Author’s ethnicity: Born in Tel Aviv Author’s residence: Tel Aviv Illustrator’s ethnicity: German Illustrator’s residence: Germany Awards: Illustrator has won the German Children’s Book Prize,  the Hans Christian Andersen Medal, and the 2017 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award Subjects: Bears, Identity, Nature

The New Teacher

Leave a reply

Miss Charlotte, the new teacher, is not like the others. She talks to a rock, has the class measure the room with cooked spaghetti, and tells captivating stories about a gorilla. Her students are convinced that she is crazy, but she makes learning fun and inspires them to think. However, not everyone approves of her methods. This modern-day Mary Poppins story is illustrated with quirky line drawings by Tony Ross. This is the first book in the Mademoiselle Charlotte series, which recounts the misadventures of the eccentric Mademoiselle in a variety of professions. mjw

Title: The New Teacher Author: Dominique Demers Illustrator: Tony Ross Publisher: Alma Books, Ltd. Copyright: 2016 Original Language: French Translator: Sander Berg Original Title: La Nouvelle Maitress Original Publisher: Editiones Quebec Amérique Original Copyright: 1994 ISBN: 978-1-84688-399-6 Paperback pages: 78 Age range: 7-9 Genre: Fiction Author’s ethnicity: French Canadian Author’s residence: Montreal Illustrator’s ethnicity: British Illustrator’s residence: England Awards: Illustrator was a 2004 Hans Christian Andersen nominee, 1968 Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis Subjects: Schools, Teachers

Hound And Hare

Leave a reply

Hounds and hares don’t get along in the town of Great Bone because of an old feud. Teens Hugo Hound and Harley Hare both want to participate in the Big Race, but their parents don’t approve. They do enter the race and are both in the lead when a terrible thunderstorm breaks out. Hugo is terrified of the storm and Harley panics when he discovers that they are lost. By working together, they find their way home, share the first prize, and become the heroes of the day. Funny, colored pencil and ink cartoon style drawings complement the lively text in this picture book/early chapter book. The endpapers feature a map of the town. mjw

Title: Hound And Hare Author: Rotraut Susanne Berner Illustrator: Rotraut Susanne Berner Publisher: Groundwood Books, House of Anansi Press Copyright: 2011 Original Language: German Translator: Shelley Tanaka Original Title: Hund & Hase Original Publisher: Jacoby and Stuart Original Copyright: 22009 ISBN: 978-0-88899-987-0 Hardcover pages: 80 Age range: 6-9 Genre: Picture Book/ Early Chapter Book Author’s ethnicity: German Author’s residence: Germany Illustrator’s ethnicity: German Illustrator’s residence: Germany Awards: 2016 Hans Christian Andersen Award, 2006 German Youth Literature Prize for her work as a whole Subjects: Community, Conflict resolution, Cooperation, Dogs, Hares, Hounds, Rabbits, Running races, Racing, Thunderstorms

You Can’t See The Elephants

Leave a reply

Thirteen-year-old Mascha is bored living with her grandparents for the summer in their quiet, small town. She meets siblings, Max, 7, and Julia, 9, who are withdrawn and shy and covered with bruises. Mascha suspects that their father is physically abusing them and when the adults don’t listen, she takes matters into her own hands. She makes some unusual choices, kidnaps the children, and locks them in an abandoned farmhouse in a nearby field. Mascha is brave, helpless, and desperate, and she wants to do the right thing, but her actions bring unintended consequences for everyone. This disturbing, heartbreaking, and straightforward novel about child abuse is discussion provoking  mjw

Title: You Can’t See The Elephants Author: Susan Kreller Publisher: G.P.Putnam’s Sons, an imprint of Penguin Young Readers Group, USA Copyright: 2015 Original Language: German Translator: Elizabeth Gaffney Original Title: Elefanten sieht man nicht Original Publisher: Carlsen Verlag Gmb H Original Copyright: 2012 ISBN: 978-0-399-17209-0 Hardcover pages: 192 Age range: 10 up Genre: Fiction Book setting: The translator set the book in the USA Author’s ethnicity: German Author’s residence: Germany Awards: Author has been nominated for the German Youth Literature prize twice and has won the Kranichsteiner Literary Prize Subjects: Abuse, Brothers and sisters, Child abuse, Dysfunctional relationships, Grandparents, Siblings

Anton and Piranha

Leave a reply

Anton is looking forward to his summer vacation with his grandparents, until they reach the campsite and discover there is no pool. There is just a dark, murky lake filled with disgusting sludge. He is deeply disappointed and cannot understand why the other kids are happy to dive bomb (Caramba!) and swim in it all day long. He goes fishing with his grandfather and discovers a friend – a fish he names Piranha. The humor in this funny, quirky tale about eccentric and witty Anton is universal. Amusing black and white illustrations supplement the text. There is a frog on the corners of the pages, which appears animated if you flick through them quickly. mjw

Title: Anton and Piranha Author: Milena Baisch Illustrator: Elle Kusche Publisher: Andersen Press, London Copyright: 2013 Original Language: German Translator: Chantal Wright Original Title: Anton Taucht Ab Original Publisher: Beltz and Celberg Original Copyright: 2010 ISBN: 978-184-939-6196 Paperback pages: 99 Age range: 9-12 Genre: Fiction Author’s ethnicity: German Author’s residence: Germany Translator’s ethnicity: English Translator’s residence: England Awards: 2011 German Youth Literature Prize, 2015 Marsh Award for Translation shortlist Subjects: Camping, Fish, Grandparents, Piranhas, Vacations

Deep Sea

Leave a reply

Almost four years ago, Stephie, now nearly sixteen, and her eleven-year-old sister Nellie, were sent from Nazi-occupied Vienna to Sweden by their parents. She lives in the city on the mainland and attends school. Nellie lives on a remote island in the Goteborg archipelago with her foster parents. Stephie worries about her education, her sister, her faith, and her parents, who are in a concentration camp in Austria. Smoothly integrated into this delicate coming of age story are details about how neutral Sweden was affected by the war. The present tense, third-person narration gives the novel an unusual impact. This is the third installment in a quartet of books about Stephie’s experiences as a Jewish refugee in Sweden during World War II. The first, Faraway Island, won the 2010 Batchelder Award. The second, The Lily Pond, was a Batchelder Honor Book in 2012. mjw

Title: Deep Sea Author: Annika Thor Publisher: Random House Children’s Books, Delacorte Press, New York Copyright: 2015 Original Language: Swedish Translator: Linda Schenk Original Title: Havets djup Original Publisher: Bonnier Carlsen, Stockholm Original Copyright: 1998 ISBN: 978-0-385-74385-3 Hardcover pages: 229 Age range: 12-16 Genre: Historical fiction Book setting: Sweden Author’s ethnicity: Swedish Author’s residence: Stockholm, Sweden Awards: Author has won the Deutsche Jugendliteraturpries Subjects: Jews, Refugees, Sisters, Sweden, World War II

Why We Took The Car

Leave a reply

German eighth grader, Mike Klingenberg, is a boring kid with no friends.  He is left alone for two weeks while his mother is in rehab and his father is away on a “business trip” with his attractive secretary.  Andrej Tschichatschow, aka Tschick, is a Russian immigrant, the new kid in school, and also not popular. When Tschick shows up in a stolen beat-up Soviet-era car, the boys head out of Berlin on a road trip adventure across Germany.  They have no map, no cell phone, and no plan. They meet some bizarre characters, dodge the police, and travel the autobahn.  This is an insightful, exuberant, and highly engaging coming of age novel. mjw

Title: Why We Took The Car Author: Wolfgang Herrndorf Illustrator: Wolfgang Herrndorf Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic, Inc., New York Copyright: 2014 Original language: German Translator: Tim Mohr Original title: Tschick Original publisher: Rowohlt Verlag Original copyright: 2010 ISBN: 978-0-545-48180-9 Hardcover pages: 256 Age range: 14-17 Genre: Contemporary realistic fiction Book setting: Germany Author’s residence: Germany Awards: German Youth Literature Prize Subjects: Adventure, Automobile theft, Berlin, Cars, Friends, Germany, Russians, Western Europe