Siobhán Parkinson is the Publisher and Commissioning Editor of New Island’s new imprint for children and young people, Little Island, which was launched on Thursday, 18 March, at Pearse Street library. Impressed by their ambition and execution we invited Siobhán to write a guest column.
Yeah, we heard there’s a recession on, and we don’t like that. It scares us. We’re only Little, after all. But remember all those books you used to read when you were small that taught you to Face your Fears? Well, we took them seriously. That’s the thing. We take kids’ books seriously, and we are full of hope and enthusiasm, in spite of The Current Situation.
Children need books. Good ones. They always need books. In wartime and in peace, in boom times and in recession. It’s part of growing up human.
And the economy needs to get growing too. If we all sit on our hands and wait for the recession to be over, the recession won’t ever be over. We have to keep going and keep buying things (OK, not multimillion-euro hotels, we don’t need any more of those, thanks, but little things, cups of coffee and heads of broccoli and pairs of runners and books). We owe it to each other. And we need to imagine a future for ourselves.
The cultural life of the country has to go on too. It’s all we’ve got. Even the Taoiseach is (sort of half-) convinced – he’s cottoned onto the Farmleigh Effect.
So, it’s all hands on deck at Little Island, and we’re launching six wonderful children’s titles this week, along with the imprint. Two of them are for teens, the other four are for ‘older’ children, and they’re all great reads, and stunningly beautiful to look at.
Two of them come from Germany – but it’s OK, they’re in English, I made sure of that myself. There’s always a bit of askance-looking about translations, but remember all those super books you read when you were a child: Pinocchio, Heidi, Pippi Longstocking, the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, the stories of Hans Christian Andersen. Anyone remember Lottie and Lisa (on which The Parent Trap is based)? You didn’t go, ooh-er translations, I don’t think so. You didn’t even know they were translations. You just read them and loved them. Right? That’s the idea. Anyway, it’s getting fashionable – look at The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. (Well, not at her, at the book.) Translated from Swedish, like the Henning Mankell crime novels. (We’ve just signed a contract for a fantastic teen novel from Sweden. Yay! Watch this space.)
The rest are by Irish authors, two of them Totally New and Previously Unread Irish authors. And later in the year we will be bringing out another fistful of books by new Irish discoveries. I mean, authors.
Meanwhile, check out these websites:
www.littleisland.ie
www.irishfables.com (website – well, sort of – of Tom O’Neill’s book Old Friends)
www.jeanflitcroft.com (waaah, it gets you in the EYE!!)
www.maevefriel.com
www.renateahrens.de
Little Island’s catch of books this spring
For older children:
The Cryptid Files: Loch Ness by Jean Flitcroft
The Great Rabbit Revenge Plan by Burkard Spinnen, translated by Siobhán Parkinson
The Lantern Moon by Maeve Friel
Over the Wall by Renate Ahrens, translated by Siobhán Parkinson
For teenagers:
Old Friends: The Lost Tales of Fionn Mac Cumhaill by Tom O’Neill
White Lies by Mark O’Sullivan
Little Island is happy to acknowledge the support of the Arts Council.
Current Poolbeg Press Non-Fiction Editor, Brian Langan is to join Transworld Ireland as Assistant Editor effective 25th March 2010. He joins Eoin McHugh who has headed up the Irish operation of Transworld since its creation in 2007.
News
Guest Column: Little Island Sets Sail
Yeah, we heard there’s a recession on, and we don’t like that. It scares us. We’re only Little, after all. But remember all those books you used to read when you were small that taught you to Face your Fears? Well, we took them seriously. That’s the thing. We take kids’ books seriously, and we are full of hope and enthusiasm, in spite of The Current Situation.
Children need books. Good ones. They always need books. In wartime and in peace, in boom times and in recession. It’s part of growing up human.
And the economy needs to get growing too. If we all sit on our hands and wait for the recession to be over, the recession won’t ever be over. We have to keep going and keep buying things (OK, not multimillion-euro hotels, we don’t need any more of those, thanks, but little things, cups of coffee and heads of broccoli and pairs of runners and books). We owe it to each other. And we need to imagine a future for ourselves.
The cultural life of the country has to go on too. It’s all we’ve got. Even the Taoiseach is (sort of half-) convinced – he’s cottoned onto the Farmleigh Effect.
So, it’s all hands on deck at Little Island, and we’re launching six wonderful children’s titles this week, along with the imprint. Two of them are for teens, the other four are for ‘older’ children, and they’re all great reads, and stunningly beautiful to look at.
Two of them come from Germany – but it’s OK, they’re in English, I made sure of that myself. There’s always a bit of askance-looking about translations, but remember all those super books you read when you were a child: Pinocchio, Heidi, Pippi Longstocking, the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, the stories of Hans Christian Andersen. Anyone remember Lottie and Lisa (on which The Parent Trap is based)? You didn’t go, ooh-er translations, I don’t think so. You didn’t even know they were translations. You just read them and loved them. Right? That’s the idea. Anyway, it’s getting fashionable – look at The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. (Well, not at her, at the book.) Translated from Swedish, like the Henning Mankell crime novels. (We’ve just signed a contract for a fantastic teen novel from Sweden. Yay! Watch this space.)
The rest are by Irish authors, two of them Totally New and Previously Unread Irish authors. And later in the year we will be bringing out another fistful of books by new Irish discoveries. I mean, authors.
Meanwhile, check out these websites:
www.littleisland.ie
www.irishfables.com (website – well, sort of – of Tom O’Neill’s book Old Friends)
www.jeanflitcroft.com (waaah, it gets you in the EYE!!)
www.maevefriel.com
www.renateahrens.de
Little Island’s catch of books this spring
For older children:
For teenagers:
Little Island is happy to acknowledge the support of the Arts Council.