March 2 2019
Norway

Translated days in Oslo: When "Gleden med skjeden" became "The Wonder Down Under”

This small, feminist information project “Gleden med skjeden” by Nina Brochmann and Ellen Støkken Dahl has now become an international phenomenon, and the translation rights have been sold for more than 30 languages.

It can be difficult enough to talk about women’s genitalia in Norwegian. How does anyone do it in Russian or Polish? Where does the boundary lie between translation and adaptation? How can a book like this be distributed in countries where women have a totally different position than in Norway? How far do you really have to travel before Scandinavian directness begins to create problems for translators? And how do you say “discomus” in English?

As part of the Translated Days festival, at Oslo’s Litteraturhuset (the House of Literature), NORLA has invited three of the book’s translators, and one of the authors, for a panel discussion on Saturday, March 2nd.
Time: 12.00-12.45.
Venue: Amalie Skram, the House of Literature.

The participants are:
Anna Gusarova – translator into Russian
Lucy Moffatt – translator into English
Karolina Drozdowska – translator into Polish
Ellen Støkken Dahl – author

The discussion will be held in Norwegian and led by NORLA’s senior advisor Dina Roll-Hansen.

The Facebook event.

Read more

About Translated Days (in Norwegian), which takes place from February 28th to March 2nd
– The program is now available (in Norwegian only)!

More about The Wonder Down Under.

See the translations of the book, which have been supported by NORLA, here.

(The illustration shows the English, Russian and Polish book covers).

Upcoming activities

November 14-November 16
Shanghai, China

Norwegian Participation at the Shanghai Children’s Book Fair

NORLA is taking part in the Shanghai Children’s Book Fair with a stand designed for meetings and professional networking. The two illustrators/authors Øyvind Torseter and Marianne Gretteberg Engedal (Skinkeape) will participate in the fair’s professional program and panel discussions. Both also serve on the jury for the Norwegian illustration exhibition at Bologna 2026. In addition, several Norwegian publishers/agents will take part.

The initiative is carried out in collaboration with the Royal Norwegian Consulate in Shanghai.

Please have a closer look at presentations in Chinese of NORLA’s Selected Titles this autumn kinesiske presentasjoner av høstens fokustitler her
December 3-December 5
Rome, Italy

Networking Event and Launch of the Guest of Honour Program during the Rome Book Fair Più libri più liberi

The book fair Più libri più liberii is dedicated to small and medium-sized publishers, and NORLA is looking forward to participating for the second time – focusing on Norway’s Guest of Honour initiative at Bologna 2026 and on Norwegian children’s literature in general. And just like last year, we are hosting a networking event and gearing up for Bologna 2026 by launching the Guest of Honour concept and program. Also, Norwegian agents will take part in the fair’s fellowship and/or be present in the rights centre. The program is organized in collaboration with the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Rome.

In the lead-up to the book fair, we are organizing a full-day seminar for Italian translators and Norwegian language students from universities in Italy. The seminar will take place at Casa delle Traduzioni, and participants will have the opportunity to meet author and illustrator Malin Falch. The sessions will be led by established Italian translators of Norwegian literature.