Two Icelandic authors—Ævar Þór Benediktsson and Kristín Ragna Gunnarsdóttir—have been nominated for the 2018 In Other Words shortlist, mbl.is reports. The list, which is put together by the UK-based children’s reading charity Book Trust, “showcases outstanding books for children age 6-12 picked by our judges for their literary merit as well as commercial potential.”
Ævar Þór was nominated for his book Dinosaurs in Reykjavík and Kristín Ragna was nominated for Wolf and Edda and the Stolen Relic. The two Icelandic books—along with six other titles translated from Catalan, Dutch, Italian, Finnish, and Spanish—were chosen from among nearly 200 submissions from around the world.
The judges called Dinosaurs in Reykjavík “a romp of a story,” and commended its “free-wheeling style” and “great humor.” They also enjoyed the “beautifully written as well as exquisitely illustrated” Wolf and Edda with its “immersive storytelling.”
Book Trust will name three of the shortlisted books as “Honour Titles” at the London Book Fair on April 11. Translated excerpts of all of the shortlisted titles, including the two Icelandic nominees, are available on the In Other Words website, here.
