Sven Nordqvist

Festus and Mercury Go Camping, 1993 American translation of Pettson tältar.

One of three English-language versions of this classic Swedish picture-book available - they include this (uncredited) American translation published in 1993, one year after the release of the original; Pettson Goes Camping, a 2008 edition translated by Martin Peterson for the original publisher, Bokförlaget Opal; and a recent British version, Findus Goes Camping, done in 2010 - Festus and Mercury Go Camping is Sven show more Nordqvist's sixth story featuring that delightful farmer/feline pair whose comic adventures always prove so entertaining. In this installment, Festus and Mercury (Pettson and Findus in the original) find themselves embarking on a camping expedition that (perhaps not surprisingly) doesn't get them very far...

It's a funny thing, but when I read the American editions of these stories by themselves (as I did with Merry Christmas, Festus and Mercury and Festus and Mercury: Wishing to Go Fishing), I am invariably delighted, but when I read them together with the fuller English translations available from Bokförlaget Opal, the original Swedish publisher (as I did here, and with Pancake Pie/The Birthday Cake and The Fox Hunt/The Fox Hunt), I always find myself disappointed. It's not that these American editions have no appeal, because they do - the same winsome illustrations, the same amusing stories (generally speaking) - but so many of the expressive little details end up being elided, as the text is shortened, that some of 'bite' of the original is lost.

In this case, for instance, there is this hilarious scene in which Festus and Mercury find that they cannot go very far in their camping trip after all, because they are being trailed by all the hens. Turning back, Festus tries to convince them to return to the hen-house, but with no luck. In the American version, the text reads: "There was just no getting those stubborn hens into the henhouse." Compare this to the Opal edition, which reads: "The message was plain and that was the way it had to be. You can't decide over the heads of ten hens just like that." This latter has a completely different flavor to it, with a rather pointed social observation, about being democratic in decision-making, and possibly even about gender dynamics, since both Pettson/Festus and Findus/Mercury are males, and the hens are all females. It also just feels sharper, more distinct, more idiosyncratic, than the American, which seems bland by comparison.

I don't want to overstate the case, of course: Festus and Mercury Go Camping is still an entertaining tale! If it's all the reader can obtain, then I recommend it. But if one can possibly get the Opal edition, then I advise choosing that one instead! It's more complete, more faithful - just more everything! show less

This is original, funny, sad and made in such an exquisite way, both gently and with a huge amount of humor, that any reader is rendered helpless to its charm and the author's ingenuity.

I can't remember when I last read a book that's as much for young kids as for old ones.

Pettsson, an old man who lives in the countryside, is in need of a friend. He thought about getting himself an old lady, but then again, naw, that'd be too much trouble. Something smaller, perhaps? Well, a dog! No...it'd show more require too much attention? But how about a little cat? his friend asked. Well...

The day after his friend had brought along a box which read "Findus green peas" [Findus being a household brand in Sweden]; as he opened the box, Findus stood on all fours, tiny as a button.

They instantly became best friends, and one day, as Pettsson was reading the paper about a clown, Findus' first words were "I want pants like that!".

This marks the start of the tale which is only a bunch of pages long, and is utterly remarkable because of several things. Nordqvist is an absolutely fantastic and remarkable writer as well as an extremely meticulous and funny illustrator. Findus comes alive with every stroke of his pens, and what goes on in the background - constantly! - makes for great re-reads.

I'm 34 years old and really nearly wept upon seeing Findus crying while hiding from a "monster". Art moves me, I guess. I realise the author hasn't really created any monsters or black-and-white imagery which feels great to me; I hate it when people try to present two diametrical versions of good and bad, without anything in-between - which so often is the case.

All in all, this is an absolutely brilliant tale and I'm very glad to see that it's available in other languages as well. Long live Pettson & Findus, as well as Sven Nordqvist! show less

Pancake Pie - 1985 American translation of Pannkakstårtan.

One of three English translations of this classic Swedish picture-book - which include this American version, published the same year (1985) as the original; a 1999 translation (The Birthday Cake) done by Michael Rollerson for Bokförlaget Opal, the original Swedish publisher; and a British edition (Pancakes for Findus) released in 2007 - Pancake Pie is, judged on its own merits, and in isolation from any other version of the tale, show more an engaging enough book for younger readers. Detailing the madcap adventures of farmer Festus and his cat Mercury (Pettson and Findus in the original, and in the other translations), and their efforts to overcome numerous obstacles in the making of a cake for Mercury's birthday, it boasts both an amusing text and appealing illustrations.

It is only when compared to another, seemingly** fuller translation, that done by Rollerson in 1999 (The Birthday Cake), that this book feels a little... wanting. Which isn't to say that I didn't enjoy it, or that it has no merit! But I couldn't help but feel, reading through Pancake Pie, and then comparing and contrasting it to this other version (sadly, I was not able to obtain the British edition, Pancakes for Findus, so I can only compare two of the three English translations), that many of the sharper moments - the moments of social observation, or of sly humor - have been elided, in favor of a smoother, altogether less interesting narrative.

At the beginning of the book, for instance, the Rollerson translation includes a paragraph about the local townspeople, and how they view Pettson, who "isn't quite like other people." This passage, and the sense that it gives of how perception can be distorted by expectation - that sometimes what seems 'crazy' is just something or someone who is different - is entirely missing from the American version, which also omits the accompanying illustration, showing the townspeople all laughing at Pettson and his ways. This is the most obtrusive change, I think, but many of the little details - the fact that the characters' names have been changed from Pettson and Findus to Festus and Mercury (why? why was this necessary?), or that the music played on the victrola goes from Viennese waltzes to the Star Spangled Banner (again, why? the original doesn't seem to have any patriotic connotations) - were also troubling. I won't say that these difference ruin Pancake Pie, but they do give it a very different flavor than The Birthday Cake - a far less appealing flavor, in my opinion. Good enough, if it's all you can get, but I recommend hunting down the fuller version!

**Not reading Swedish, I cannot definitively say that the Rollerson translation is more accurate, but it certainly contains quite a bit more text. The fact that it is published by the Swedish press which also published the original also lends credence to the idea that it is a closer, more accurate rendition. show less

The Fox Hunt, 1988 American translation of Rävjakten.

In this second picture-book chronicling their madcap adventures, Swedish children's author and artist Sven Nordqvist returns to the story of farmer Pettson, and his cat Findus (Festus and Mercury in this American translation), setting out the extraordinarily convoluted plot they hatch, when a thieving fox begins targeting hens in their area. Alerted by neighbor Hiram (Gustavsson in the original), to the presence of their vulpine show more adversary, the two decide that it is better to outwit a fox, than shoot him. So begins a campaign to frighten the fox away, complete with pepper-filled 'hen,' fireworks, and a flying ghost!

Engaging enough, when read on its own, this American version of Rävjakten pales in comparison to the fuller translation available in the version (also entitled The Fox Hunt) put out in 2000 by the original Swedish publisher, Bokförlaget Opal. (There was also a British translation released in 2009, Findus and the Fox, but I was unable to track down a copy of that version). Just as with the first Pettson and Findus title, I have discovered that the fuller English translation available from Opal is much to be preferred to the somewhat abridged American edition, which leaves out many of the pointed little social observations of the original, as well as a number of humorous exchanges between man and cat.

To wit: in the Rollerson translation (presumably closer to the original), Findus observes: "Old men with guns I don't trust an inch," which has Pettson laughing. In the (uncredited) American translation, the cat instead says: "I wouldn't trust that old man with a gun," limiting the nature of Findus' (Mercury here) objection to one individual. Similarly, in the Rollerson, Findus declares: "Foxes should not be shot. They should be tricked." whereas he claims in the American edition that "I never shoot a fox when I can trick him instead." This first statement is an argument for one course of action, rather than another, while the second is more conditional. Later in the story, after Pettson/Festus catches sight of the fox, and is moved by his emaciation, and obvious fright, he thinks (in Rollerson): "Perhaps that's why he steals hens... He hasn't the strength to catch up with a hare." - two sentences that are entirely missing from the American text! Another omission, in the American version, is the exchange in which Findus claims only to be thinking of the hens, and Pettson humors him (while clearly thinking otherwise).

The cumulative effect of these seemingly minor omissions and changes, is a narrative that has less bite, and less social commentary. I couldn't help but wonder, as I read through, whether the unnamed American translator was afraid of offending more conservative American readers, by offering too sharp a critique of things like hunting, and the use of guns. Even minor changes - the scene in which the fireworks explode has the phrase "bombs bursting in air" in the American edition (clearly a reference to the American national anthem), that is missing from the more accurate Rollerson; the warning shouted by Findus is changed from "You Must Not Steal Hens," to the more Biblical sounding "Thou Shalt Not Steal Hens - contributed to this impression. I think this is a shame, because part of the appeal of translated children's literature, at least for me, is the opportunity it affords to expose young readers to other cultures, and their way of thinking. Of course, all translation is both a cultural and linguistic negotiation, but I can't help but feel that the American editions of these books are too American in their leaning, and not enough Swedish. They're still worth reading - and when I didn't have the other translation to contrast and compare, as with Merry Christmas, Festus and Mercury and Festus and Mercury: Wishing to Go Fishing, I enjoyed them more - but I'd still recommend the Opal translations above them. Or, you could be obsessive-compulsive like me, and track as many different versions down as possible! show less