If there are any books in the library that get completely worn out, it is the picture books. Perhaps most of all the books with a target group of 0–3 years. There are a lot of worn spines, ragged corners, pages with tears a little on the snow. Good, I think when I see it. Good that someone still reads to their children. There are several solid book series for the little ones that deal with the first years of life. From Gunilla Wolde’s Emma and Thomas from the 1960s and 70s to Tor Åge Bringsværd’s series “Når to skal…” from the early 2000s. And a number of others. Lina Raknes’ series about Åse is, in a sense, an heir to Wolde’s smart children’s universe where the children manage most things themselves. HILL AND BISCUIT: Have each other. Photo: Lina Raknes / Aschehoug Not only do the bespectacled Åse look like Emma with the same brown, straight hair – they are also determined little beings who are curious about the world. At Raknes, play can be just as important as it is in a child’s life, which can make this series a classic for young children. So far, two books have been published: “Åse og Kjeks” and “Åse becomes big sister”. May there be many, many more. Hear the discussion about the book in the children’s book edition of “Apen bok: Kritikerne”: Hverdagene The opening image in “Åse og Kjeks” immediately sets the heart of Lina Raknes’ project: It says a lot about Åse when the text expresses that the dog is lucky to have her. It goes straight to the heart of a young reader. Furthermore, the book is about Åse’s everyday life with Kjeks. They go for walks, they play. But then the story takes a lively turn – Åse also wants to be a dog. It involves entering the new identity with one’s whole being: eating food from a bowl on the floor as Kjeks. Sniff, scratch and make noise. Soon Åse is a dog, because when you play, you create your own reality. SAY YOURSELF ENOUGH: Åse moves on after being a dog. It is important to test new things! Photo: Line Raknes / Aschehoug It’s fun being a dog, Åse thinks, but it becomes more difficult when she eventually gets the urge to draw. By letting the game play out completely, without brakes, and where the parents recognize that right now, in the game, Åse is a dog, Åse discovers something new about herself. That it’s nice to be a dog, but even nicer to be Åse. She wouldn’t have found that out if she hadn’t tried. This is how Raknes conveys the child’s joy in what he is and what he can do, and in everything that is possible to play with. The vital game When she is to become a big sister in book two, Åse ends up in a situation she in no way asked for. Of course, she is both skeptical about and excited about sharing the whole world she knows with a new person. A LITTLE HUMAN: Åse has to get used to his little brother. Swipe right! Åse realizes that she is no longer small, she can do so many things herself. And exactly that becomes difficult for her. Here the game becomes the rescue. Through the game, she becomes small, so small that she needs help with the smallest thing. And here dad realizes that this toy is necessary for Åse. He carries and helps with things that Åse manages perfectly well himself. In the end, it is he who comes up with the redemptive words: “Little, big Åse”. The nice thing is that the author allows Åse to stay in the game until she is finished. Then she shows that playing does not necessarily change the world, but it becomes easier to enter. Because when something is played, it is real. BIG GIRL: In a little book that understands. From the floor Lina Raknes uses this in both text and illustrations in the series about Åse. It has been a small, playful debut as a writer. Take the perspective in the pictures: The reader is sitting on the floor with Åse, and if there is an adult with them, there is not always room for the whole adult body. When Åse plays dog, she crawls on the floor and takes a bite out of dad’s sock. Then there won’t be room for the whole dad in the picture as long as the most important thing is included, namely the foot and the sock. The section is the child’s world. The adult has to bend down to get a place in it. Raknes draws clean lines, clear surfaces and clear contrasts in a colorful and comfortable palette. The spreads use complementary colors that concentrate your attention in the images, and Raknes works a lot with diagonally mirroring selected color elements and details. When Åse as a dog knocks over a potted plant, the soil ends up spilling out. When she bites dad’s toe at the same time, he splashes so that a penny of coffee sloshes out of the cup. The two spots have the same color, move in the direction of each other and tie the story together. Read to me! The text is mostly well placed on the pages. The calm color surfaces make it easy to find the words, and the short texts are easy to read – even for those who find reading boring. The older sibling can read this book to the younger one. Parents can read it together with children, grandmothers together with grandchildren. The reading is easy to master here. It is unfortunately the case that one in three parents of young children in Norway does not read with their children. At the same time, they state that the children want to be read to. The closeness around joint concentration, laughter and wonder over a book encompasses many aspects of life: It does something about the relationship between the reader and the child, it trains language and the ability to reflect and promotes empathy. In addition, the adult has a lot to learn from the child’s perspective. And here children and adults have made a new friend in imaginative, playful Åse. news reviewer Photo: Aschehoug Title: “Åse og kekks” / “Åse becomes big sister” Age: 0-3 Pages: 39 / 32 Published: 29 August / 14 October 2024 Format: Hardcover Language: Bokmål Category: Play, siblings, picture books Published 02.12.2024, at 10.21
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“Åse and Kjeks” and “Åse becomes a big sister” by Lina Raknes – Reviews and recommendations
