Pettson and Findus

Covers of Pannkakstårtan, Rävjakten, Stackars Pettson,
Pettson får julbesök and Kackel i Grönsakslandet.

Facebook reminded me that I met Swedish children's author Sven Nordqvist at the Göteborg Book Fair this day in 2009. Therefore I thought I would write about his books about Pettson and Findus. I absolutely love those books! Yes, I still love them as an adult. There is nothing wrong with enjoying good children's books as adult and the books about Pettson and Findus belong to the best.

"Du ska inte vara rädd för hönsen Pettson. De är inte så farliga som de ser ut." (Pettson, you don't have to be scared of the hens. They aren't as dangerous as they look.)

~ Gumman Andersson, Pettson tältar

The books (generally picture books, but there are some exceptions) tell shorter tales about Pettson. He lives alone with his cat Findus and a couple of hens. There are also some mucklor that live underneath the floor and only Findus can see, but they steal things from Pettson.

Covers of Tomtemaskinen, Pettson tältar, Tuppens minut,
När Findus var liten och försvann and Findus flyttar ut.

The books are beautifully illustrated and there are so much details in every picture that you can look at them all the time and still find new things you have never seen before. The first book Pannkakstårtan (Translated as Birthday Cake in English apparently.) was published in 1984 and the latest picture book, Findus flyttar ut (Findus moves out) in 2012. There have been some other picture books for younger children published later: Känner du Pettson och Findus? (Do you know Pettson and Findus?) from 2014 and Var är Pettson? (Where is Pettson?) from 2015. In later years, there has also been some cartoons made of the stories. This might be a little because I do not belong to the intended audience (being an adult when they were made), but I do not think they are as good. Not least since the drawings are not as detailed as the ones in the books. The only screen adaptation of any of the books I do like is the Christmas calender, Tomtemaskinen (The mechanical Santa) from 1993 made by SVT.

"Pettson, du säger så konstiga saker. Har du inte fått i dig något kaffe idag?" (Pettson, you say such weird things. Haven't you drank any coffee today?)

~ Findus, Tomtemaskinen

Ingvar Hirdwall played Pettson and Ika Nord played Findus. I thought I should save talking about my favourite Christmas calenders until December, but I might as well tell you about it now. I think it is one of the more underrated and forgotten about SVT:s christmas calenders I think. Mostly since Mysteriet på Greveholm was shown only a couple of years later (1996). That calender is generally the one people remember from "the era", but there were some other great ones made during the 1990's.

Tomtemaskinen tells the story of how Pettson promises Findus that Santa Claus will come to them this year, so he starts building a mechanical Santa in secret.

The book was published at about the same time as the christmas calender was shown on TV and is the only multi-chapter books in the series. There is no real action in it, but it is still very funny and imaginative and both Hirdwall and Nord are doing a really good job. I still think it holds up, over twenty years later.

Sven Nordqvist's signature in one of my books

Pictures were borrowed from Opal Bokförlag and from here.