Sandman and the midnight sun

Minna Kurttila 2018: Nukkumatti ja yötön yö
illustration: Carolina Morera.


Sandman is very frustrated, the sun is shining the whole night through and people do not sleep. He doesn't have time to put every one to sleep. What to do? Luckily there is an elderly gentleman in Lapland who gives Sandman magical powder (unihiekka in Finnish) to make people sleep. Can you guess who the gentleman could be? Santa.




Sun shining through the night can make people just as nutty as the sun not rising at all in the winter.

The next sunset in Utsjoki (the most northern part of Finland) in in July 28th at 00.50 am and the next sun rise is July 28th at 1.48 am.

Special dog Affe

Paola and Pirjo Suhonen 2015: Erikoiskoira Affe - Talviseikkailu Lapissa

Paola ja Pirjo Suhonen 2016: Erikoiskoira Affe -kevätretki kaupungilla

Affe is a huge dog with nerves of steel.  He likes Manchego cheese, swimming, being photographed and walks in the rain. He does not like taking baths, dog food, dog pars and scary looking dogs.

Affe's best friends are twins Arttu and Kerttu, who are four years old. Affe is the dog of their aunt, Pirkko.

Winter adventure in Lapland

Winter adventure in Lapland

Affe, Kerttu, Arttu and Pirkko are taking the over night train to Lapland.  It is very exciting to sleep in the train.

In Lapland they are staying in a grey loghome and immediatly they go skiing. All that snow! They ski to a wilderness hut and Aunt Pirkko gets the fire going, even though the wood is wet. 

Affe smells reindeer and chases after them and others get worried. It is getting dark and the others have to leave. Back at the log home, the kids want to stay outdoors to wait for Affe.Then they decide to make an missing dog announcement.  The local reindeer men help to look after them  In the morning Affe is found sleeping under a tree. A vet cheks Affe and he is fine.  Happy end.

Visiting the City in spring time

Kerttu and Arttu visit their Aunt Pirkko and Affe in Helsinki. (The name of the city is not mentioned, but according to the illustrations it is Helsinki. As if there were no other cities in Finland)

Pirkko lives in house that has an thrilling attic and a wodd burning sauna in the basement. Cute detail, Aunt Pirkko drinks something that reminds the kids of octopuss. (I had to really think about this, but luckily the bottle in the picture reads "Lonkero", which means tentacle as well as a brand of long drink in Finland)

Special dog Affe in Kaivopuisto, Helsinki

The next morning they go to the out door flee market, which is open for the first time this spring. Aunt Pirkko buys two bags of vintage dresses, and old faux-fur, two hats and a table cloth.

Then is lunch time. They go to Aunt Pirkko's favourite place (I assume it is Cafe Carusel in Kaivopuisto based of the illustration). On their way they still see ice fishers on the ice.  Affe can't come in adn suddenly a strange woman takes him. Aunt Pirkko rushes out side and catches them. Affe is safe and the police takes the woman away

On their way back to Aunt Pirkko's home they notice that the piles of snow are getting smaller, soon they can take their bikes and tennis shoes out.  As a last note Aunt Pirkko tells the children that the woman, who took  Affe has mental health problems.

Cute books with lots of different patterns. Paola Suhonen is one of the most famous fashion designers in Finland, so the clothing in the illustrations I assume are fashionable (I know nothing about fashion).  I also assume two more books are coming: one for the fall and one for the summer fashion season.

Cheerful Journey

Susanna Huikari 2010: Hauska Matka
Illustrated by Mika Kolehmainen

Markus and Pekka are planning a trip to Lapland and they ask Granpa and Petra to join them.  After packing a car full of necessary supplies they head north.

Once they get to Lapland they are very busy, they hire a skis and a sled for Markus, since he is in a wheel chair. They take a sleyride with a reindeer, bathe in sauna, try some snowmobile and admire norhtern lights.  After their visit they decide to come back.




The book is also written in bliss symbols, which is really interesting.


At the middle of April, the spring is in the air in southern parts of Finland, but winter has its grip on Lapland. Many southerners travel north to ski at the end of April, which is kind of funny, since everyone complains about the lenght of the winter and cannot wait for summer.  You can't see the northern lights any more, though, since it is getting lighter and lighter in Lapland, getting ready for the nightless night.

Golden merganser

Annukka ja Samuli Aikio 1982: Tyttö, joka muuttui kultaiseksi koskeloksi : vanhan saamelaisen kansansadun mukaan
Illustrated by Mika Launis
Based on an old Sami folk tale: a girl that turned into a golden merganser.

Naavisemo and Luhtakka are neighbors. Naavisemo has a beautiful daughter, but Luhtakka’s daughter is ugly and vicious. Prince wants to see Naavisemo’s daughter and as soon as he does, he wants to marry her.

Prince sees the beautiful Naavisemo's daughter

Naavisemo’s son and daughter travel to the prince. Naavisemo’s son asks his sister to dress in the most beautiful dress. His sister does not hear him and Luhtakka’s daughter whispers that Naavisemo’s daughter should get dressed and jump in the sea as a golden merganser. She does and Luhtakkas nasty daughter takes her place.

Luhtakka’s daughter arrives in the castle and is taken to the softest bed ever. In the morning when Luhtakka’s daughter is asked, how she slept, she says poorly, because the bed was hard as a rock. The next night more mattresses are put in Luhtakka’s daughter’s bed, but she still thinks it’s too soft. People at the castle realize that all is not right. The old woman of Kentänpää realizes that it is Luhtakka’s daughter and advises to set tree trunks and roots as bed for her. In the morning Luhtakka’s daughter is happy. When she is sent to milk cows, the udders bleed.

The prince gets mad and wants to kill the girl and her brother. Naavisemo’s son tells him about the switch and tells the prince that he should catch the merganser and hold tight. When se shifts into a spindle, he should break it in two and through the other have into the sea and hold on to the other. The prince dresses up as the brother and goes to the shore. The golden merganser rises as Naavisemo’s wonderful daughter. The price grabs her and does as the brother told him. At the end the other half of the spindle becomes a merganser and the Naavisemo’s daughter. She refuses to come to the castle as long as Luhtakka’s daughter is there. The prince burns Luhtakka’s daughter and weds Naavisemo’s daughter.

I particularly like the illustrations of this book. To me they are some what exotic. This book has been published in five different Sami language, Finnish and Swedish. My ignorance shows no limits: I thought there is only one Sami language, but there actually is nine of them (Few are spoken by less than 10 people). I wonder about the names. The daughters' names are not told, only the mothers'. This story has been told in different versions and at the beginning of the book is told that Naavisemo and Luhtakka are mythical characters, from whom the real people and nasty hags stem.

Reindeer with silver antlers

Leena Laulajainen: Hopeasarvinen poro, satuja Lapista 2014
Illustrated by Virpi Penna
Previously published in Taikarumpu (1980), Vesilinnun sydän (1983) and Aurinkolintu ja Kaamoksen korppi (2000)

The magic of Lapland wrapped in fairytales. The stories tell about the fight of darkness and light, the way people live side by side with nature.

 How the blue throat brought daylight to Lapland The blue throat has nested in Lapland but then it starts to get dark and she has to get food. The bird asks Couvgan, the spirit of day, to push aside the wing of the polar night (kaamos) ja warm the eggs. Couvgan sends sparks to Kaamos’s cape. Kaamos runs away but comes back again. Ever since Couvgan and Kaamos figth with eatch other.

Ulda and Ailigas meet

Avvil and Aanar 
Aanar is Avvil’s baby girl. Avvil has many chores and she leaves Aanar crying many times. A friendly gnome Udda picks the girl and takes her away. Avvil is desperate and promises to do anything to find her. Aanar grows up and returns. But she doesn’t know her mother. She gets thirsty and her mother turns into a spring so her daughter can drink. Aanar drinks and drinks and turns into Lake Inari. Avvil is river Ivalo.

Neljän tuulen lakki (The four wind hat) 
The warm southern wind melts the snow and gets the leafs to peak out of their shells. Then the northern wind blows ice cold and covers the land with snow and ice. Then mean east wind tears the flows up just when they have opened up and then the mild west wind only finds hey shivering in the cold. The worst is when all four come up the mountain and cause a storm. The animals and people start to move away.

 The witch Calaoaivi sees this and gets mad. He climbs up the hill with his drum and sings an invitation to the winds, which can’t resist. The winds arrives and Calaoaivi continues to sing. The winds fall asleep. The witch collects the winds into his cap and takes them home. When the winds wake up they start stroming in the cap. But the cap is so strong, it won’t break. It only shapes into four different peaks so from above it resembles a star. Calaoaivi promises to let the winds out, if they do not fight any more. Each wind will blow from their own cardinal points.

The other stories in the book:
Hopeasarvinen poro (Reindeer with silver antlers)
Sininen Hirvi (The blue moose)
Sateenkaari (Rainbow)
Aletta ja vedenhaltijan (Aletta and the water sprite)
Skadja
Riekonmarjat (Willow grouse berries)
Auringon peura (The deer of the sun)
Tunturin tuuli (the wind in the Lapland mountain)
Tuulisolmut (Wind knots)
Sarringin kosijat (the suitors of Sarring
Avza Sadesilmä (Avza the Rain eye)
Skipagurran kuu (The moon of Skipagurra)
Ulda ja Ailigas( Ulda and Ailigas)
Vesilinnun sydän (The heart of the Waterbird)
Aurinkolintu ja Kaamoksen korppi (The sunbird and the crow of Polar nights)

The saami culture is not that familiar to me and therefore it was fascinating to read stories of the saami culture. When I was in comprehensive school (back in the 1980s) the Lapplander culture was mentioned maybe once. Nowadays there are news and one children's program on TV. I aslo heard that they are trying to get a saami school in Helsinki, so those who move south from Lapland won't forget their hertage. At one point saami wasn't taught in school. It is sad that we talk and talk about the rights of the swedish speaking people in Finland and how Swedish must be taught in schools. Nobody is demanding saami to be an obligatory language in schools. One reason given for Swedish language education is the business possibilites in the Nordic countries. Money talks. What would the business opportunites with the saami people?