Hattie and Olaf (Hattie)

by Frida Nilsson

Stina Wirsen (Illustrator), Stina Wirsén (Illustrator), and Julia Marshall (Translator)

The warm-hearted follow-up story of audacious and captivating six-year-old Hattie, a modern-day Pippi Longstocking.

Hattie and best friend Linda navigate the social politics of their first school years in this funny illustrated chapter book for early readers. With all the humor, anarchy and energy of Pippi Longstocking, this is a perfect story of friendship and resilience for young independent readers.

Hattie wants a horse more than anything. Her friend Ellen has three ponies. When Hattie’s father finally comes home with a horse trailer, Hattie is ecstatic. But instead of a horse, out stomps Olaf—a donkey. Now Hattie not only has horse fever, she suddenly catches lying sickness as well.

Inclined to emotional storms and exaggeration—always with the best intentions—Hattie is the very true picture of the rebellious, overenthusiastic six-year-old in all of us.

“A sparkling story that honors the sensibilities and world of young schoolchildren.”—Kirkus Reviews

Hattie was selected as The Times Children’s Book of the Week.

Frida Nilsson is a leading Swedish author who has won numerous awards including the Astrid Lindgren Prize in 2014. Nilsson’s writing is characterized by humor and sincerity. She writes about the big questions in life—friendship, death and love—and has been compared to Roald Dahl and Astrid Lindgren.

Stina Wirsén is one of Sweden’s most popular and prolific children’s book illustrators.

Other books by Frida Nilsson:
Hattie
The Ice Sea Pirates

Praise for Hattie and Olaf
“Wirsén’s black-and-white illustrations are full of spark and life, complementing the story’s quirky aspect. A sparkling story that honors the sensibilities and world of young schoolchildren.”—Kirkus Reviews

"Hattie and Olaf is a heartwarming and hilarious addition to a series I love. I can’t wait to see what Frida Nilsson does next!"—Readings Bookshops

Praise for Hattie
“Hattie is from the Pippi Longstocking school of clever, anti-establishment little girls who have the capacity for misrule until their conscience kicks in, their hearts turn to fondant and they return to the path of righteousness (while avoiding piety) … This is really a collection of the funniest dispatches from her first school year … it’s told with elegant precision and Nilsson has a peculiar power to make you remember exactly what it was like to be small, fierce, disempowered and six”—The Times, Children’s Book of the Week

• ISBN10: 177657317X
• ISBN13: 9781776573172
• Publish Date: 1 August 2021
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: NZ
• Imprint: Gecko Press
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 176
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Hattie + Olaf is an endearingly and warmly written tale of an 8 year old girl and an irascible donkey she gets instead of the horse she's been dreaming of. Originally published in Swedish in 2006, this English language translation was released 5th Oct 2021. It's 182 pages and is available in hardcover, paperback, and ebook formats.

This is the second English language translation book featuring Frida Nilsson's mischievous and rebellious 8 year old, Hattie. She begs for a horse and winds up with grumpy Olaf, a broken down maltreated donkey with a fearful and angry attitude instead. She finds it impossible to tell the truth to her classmates and her fabrications become more and more fantastic as the days pass. Inevitably, it all comes crashing down and Hattie has to try to clean up the mess.

The book deals with quite a number of somber issues and has central plot themes revolving around bullying, friendship, family, death, relationships, trust, and the meaning of home. The book is set in Sweden and the relationships and settings in the book are very much Scandinavian in flavor. English language readers will probably find it curious that catechism is taught in secular schools, leading up to confirmation around age 15. This is normal for Scandinavia and is still the standard, however now the focus is comparative religion and students learn about other faiths and beliefs, not just Lutheranism (and not just with the intention to lead to confirmation at age 15). There's also mention of snuff use which was rampant among young people of both sexes in Scandinavia.

The simple pen and ink drawings by Stina Wirsén are whimsical and fluid, and add a lot to the story. The book is generously illustrated and there are numerous small drawings throughout. Despite being very simply rendered, many of them are full of small subtle details which invite a closer look.

Four stars. This is a well done young reader chapter book and would make a good choice for public or school library acquisition, gift giving, school reading circle, or home library use.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.