Jørn Lier Horst & Thomas Enger’s Unhinged makes its debut on the Norwegian paperback list this week, claiming the No. 2 spot. Unhinged is the third novel in the Blix & Ramm series.
Photo: Kiefer Lee
Daniel Sawka is a writer/director with international experience, working on projects in both the US and in Sweden.
Sawka graduated with an MFA in film directing at the AFI Conservatory in Los Angeles, where he received the school’s Franklin J. Schaffner Fellow Award for ‘Best Film’ upon graduating in 2016. Sawka’s thesis short film, Icebox, went on to become shortlisted (final 10) for the 2018 Academy Awards in the short film category and won the Grand Jury Award at AFI Fest.
Sawka then started working with multiple Academy Award winner James L. Brooks (Terms of Endearment, As Good As It Gets, The Simpsons) and his production company Gracie Films. This collaboration resulted in the adaptation of Icebox into a feature film, written and directed by Sawka. The film, distributed by HBO, premiered in December 2018, receiving critical acclaim. Icebox was nominated for a Critics’ Choice Award, won the Cinema Without Borders Award and the NAMIC Vision Award. The collaboration with James L. Brooks and Gracie Films continued in 2019 with the development of another project, soon to be announced.
Currently, Sawka is collaborating with Anagram on his first Swedish feature film, and writing a TV-series for Blackpills Entertainment, which he is also attached to direct.
I May Be Wrong, Björn Natthiko Lindeblad’s moving non-fiction work and the most sold non-fiction title of 2020, is once again No. 1 in Sweden, topping week five’s bestseller list.
Jørn Lier Horst & Hans Jørgen Sandnes’ latest Detective Agency No. 2 title, Operation Cover-up, debuts on the Norwegian hardcover list at No. 3. The paperback list sees Anders de la Motte place at No. 4 with Rites of Spring.
Photo: Toni Härkönen
Innocence is a large-scale symphonic opera with an international wide-ranging cast, composed by Kaija Saariaho and libretto written by Sofi Oksanen. It is scheduled to have its world premiere at the 2021 Festival d’Aix-en-Provence in July.
Although the premiere still lies ahead, the opera has already been shortlisted for the prestigious 2021 Fedora Opera Prize.
The Fedora Opera Prize is awarded by Fedora – a European platform that supports innovation in opera and ballet – and is bestowed on promising artists and teams of co-producing cultural institutions who collaborate on the creation of new opera or ballet productions to reach out to new and wider audiences. This prize celebrates new talents and ideas in opera and ballet that will shape the future of these art forms.
To vote, click the “Read more” button below.
Photo: Carla Orrego Veliz
Philomène Grandin (b. 1974) is a Swedish actress, scriptwriter and TV host who has starred in a variety of movies, TV series and theater productions at the Stockholm and Gothenburg City Theaters. She debuts as an author with her autofictional novel Don’t Forget Me – a raw and deeply touching portrait of life with her father, the iconic folk music expert Izzy Young. Don’t Forget Me is the story of a father and a daughter who refuse to let go of life, and of each other.
Stina Jackson’s debut, The Silver Road, is No. 1 in Fiction on Taiwan’s largest e-book platform, Readmoo. The novel is also the overall No. 2 across all genres, fiction and non-fiction alike.
Yrsa Sigurdardóttir’s stand-alone thriller The Prey is the No. 3 most sold title of 2020 in Iceland, across all genres.
Photo: Stefan Tell
David Sundin (b. 1976) is a Swedish comedian, screenwriter, actor and television show host, not to mention a silver medalist in the Swedish Championship in Puns. Having thoroughly charmed the grown populace of Sweden, Sundin finally set out to entertain the pickiest audience of all: kids. In 2020, he made his children’s books debut with The Book That Did Not Want To Be Read. This unruly, mischievous and utterly entertaining book became the most sold children’s title of 2020.
Anders de la Motte’s Rites of Spring is the No. 1 most sold paperback of January 2021 in Sweden. The novel also claims the No. 1 spot on week 4’s paperback list.
Türkiye, Dogan Egmont
Closed by Emma Granberg
Ukraine, Stone Publishing
Closed by Emma Granberg
Latvia, Zvaigzne
Two-book deal closed by Emma Granberg
India, Chaaya
Three-book deal closed by Emma Granberg
Greece, Patakis
Closed by Emma Granberg
Finland, Bazar
Closed by Julia Angelin
[Herngren] is an expert at portraying relationships and everyday situations, and like in her previous books we get to follow the different characters’ perspectives, which makes you sympathize with both of them. High time for a book club discussion!
– Allas
Peshang Rad, brings out the vulnerability of his combative youth leader in a way that really resonates.
– Upsala Nya Tidning
Their strong bond is beautifully and carefully developed. Rad and Socdal are outstanding. Rad conveys so much with just his eyes.
– Aftonbladet
Peshang Rad delivers a compelling portrayal of Nic. He skillfully brings the character to life as a deeply human figure, full of empathy but also restrained pain.
– Dagens Arena
The Waste Land is a suspenseful novel with good tempo, and its menacing atmosphere is heightened by the setting descriptions and Sakka’s bipolar disorder.
– BTJ
Recently divorced and disillusioned by life, freelance journalist Desiree Swahn is handed a job by her new boss: to write a portrait of legendary star chef, Pierre Bernard. It’s an assignment far from the prestigious one she’d been promised. But Desiree and Pierre’s meeting will come to be more transformative than she could have ever imagined. Pierre Bernard’s life hasn’t only been filled with culinary accomplishments, but also passionate love and heart-rending sorrow. He takes Desiree on a journey through time, from the Grand Hotel in Stockholm in the 1920s, to Paris and a war-torn London, to a Budapest in upheaval, and the most iconic wedding of the century.
