Cina Friedner’s The Worst Thing That Could Happen is Everything has been shortlisted for this year’s Children’s Novel Prize in Karlstad. Sixth-grade students in Karlstad will read and work with the nominated books during the upcoming semester, after which they will vote for their favorite.

In December, more than 800 students from 17 different schools will choose the best book.

SVT’s Smärtpunkten, depicting the controversy surrounding Lars Norén’s infamous play 7:3, received Kristallen’s prestigious ‘Best Drama Series Award.’

Smärtpunkten is directed by Sanna Lenken and stars Martin Nick Alexandersson, David Dencik, Maria Sid, Einar-Hugo Strömberg and Linus Gustafsson.

The Kickstarter campaign for Simon Stålenhag’s upcoming project, Swedish Machines, has recently concluded with tremendous success. The original goal of SEK 250 000 was achieved in just 25 minutes. In total, the campaign attracted over 5000 backers and raised more than SEK 3.1 million.

 

Stålenhag’s most personal work yet, Swedish Machines, explores masculinity, friendship, and sexuality in a queer science fiction tale about two young men stuck in the past – and in each other’s orbit. Their story spans decades, as fleeting moments become defining memories, and they set out to explore a mysterious forbidden zone together.

 

Set in his native Sweden and based in an alternate version of Mälaröarna outside of Stockholm, the place where he grew up, and still lives to this day, Swedish Machines juxtaposes giant futuristic machines and vehicles against the inner turmoil of the characters facing a social dystopia.

Anja Gatu is shortlisted for the 2024 Crimetime Award in the “Children’s Crime Fiction of the Year” category for The Cat Who Loved Me, the sixth book in The Cat Spies of Rosengard series. The jury had the following motivation:

“A children’s detective series of the highest quality that raises both topical and scary issues, but in a disarming and entertaining way. We love that it takes place in the suburbs and is so richly and colorfully illustrated. A returning favorite, but we can’t get enough of the cat spies of Rosengård!”.

The winner will be announced during the Crimetime Awards ceremony at the Gothenburg Book Fair on September 28.

Click the “Read more” button below to vote before September 19.

Lisa Ridzén’s debut When The Cranes Fly South has been chosen as an American Booksellers Association’s Indies Introduce title in the US. Indies Introduce is a program created to promote debut authors at independent bookstores in America. Panels of booksellers from across the country gather to select ten adult and ten children’s Indies Introduce titles, aiming to highlight the very best debuts of the upcoming season; When the Cranes Fly South features on their Winter/Spring 2025 list. Below is a blurb by a panel member.

“Such a moving look at one man’s life as he reaches the end. It is about reconciliation, power to maintain control over one’s life, regrets, how we see ourselves in the end and how others see us. So touching, so emotional in subtle and profound ways.” —Kim Brock, Joseph-Beth Booksellers, Cincinnati, OH

Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nocturnal Animals, Bullet Train, Kraven) is set to star in crime thriller Blood on Snow, based on Jo Nesbø’s best-selling novel of the same name. Cary Joji Fukunaga (No Time to Die, Masters of the Air, True Detective) will direct from a screenplay by Nesbø, with revisions by Ben Power.

Tom Hardy (The Bikeriders, The Revenant, Venom), who is set to play a supporting role as “Fisherman,” and Dean Baker will produce the project under their Hardy Son & Baker banner, alongside Fukunaga, Nesbø, Niclas Salomonsson, and Hayden Lautenbach.

The buzzy story unfolds in 1970’s Oslo, where two rival gang leaders—Hoffman and the Fisherman (Hardy) —vie for control. Hoffman’s trusted hitman, Olav (Johnson), is a cold, efficient killer, perfect for the job. But beneath his ruthless exterior lies an unexpected intelligence and an unwavering moral code shaped by a complicated childhood.

When Hoffman orders his own wife to be murdered, Olav’s principles clash with his loyalties. Instead of pulling the trigger, he hatches a scheme that makes him Hoffman’s next target and with nowhere safe to turn, Olav forms an uneasy alliance that places him at the heart of Oslo’s deadly gang war. Once a violent enforcer, Olav’s choice makes him an unlikely hero in a world where no good deed goes unpunished.

Filming is due to take place later this year.

To read the full article in Deadline, click ’Read more’ below.