Angry bag of Cat Killi

Tuula Korolainen 2007: Kissa Killin kiukkupussi
illustrated by Christel Rönns

Cat Killi has a temter tantrum as soon as he gets out of bed. Breakdast sucks and everything is wrong. The house elf gives him a bag, where he can blow his bad temper into.  Kiukkupussi in Finnish means also a person that has a bad temper.

Killi goes out doors and meets dog brothers who are arguing and after they blow into the bag, play nicely with each other. A sheep is fighting with his car and Killi helps him to be in a better mood. Finally Killi goes into a soccer match, where every one are shouting at each other. Killi's bag gets really big and it is punctured by a crane.




The lesson here is that kids are always taught to control their temper, but in this book it is the adults that need the control more then the kids. And how are the kids supposed to learn, when adults are throwing temper tantrums?

It is ridigulous, how the tempers rise in trafic and in sports events. It is as if our generation were not taught enough to deal with our feelings and then they explode in sports events and traffic. Parents, take a note and pay attention to your own behavoiur.

Summer in the city

Kirsi Hutri, Tom Björklund 2002: Kaupungin kesä

Gray Cat is ready for an adventure in summer night. He/she/it meets strange creatures and the reader learns about the plant and animals that can be seen in the city. The cat wonders around, but returns home to sleep at dawn.

A hedgehog is a night animal

All plants and animals have an info box containing details of the subject.


The book includes birches, rabbits, jackdaws, crows,seagulls, pidgeons,bats and hawkmoths.

I guess all cities are beautiful in the summer. Helsinki is no exeption. Although you can see more tourists then natives in the summer, when the locals have their vacation somewhere else.

Linnanmäki lights at night

Messi and Mystery Everything will be all right

Ninka Reittu 2013: Messi ja mysteeri: kaikki järjestyy!

The Ylä-Kattinen family are going to visit Grandma by train. The middle kitten Messi is often in his/her (again we do not know if Messi is a boy or a girl, because of the pronoun "hän" that can be used for both. I'll use he for clarity) own thoughts and gets into the wrong train. At first he panics, but then he meets  Mystery, who promises to take Messi to Grandma's.

All of a sudden Messi hears two dogs talking about kidnapping and a lighthouse. A little detective in Messi wakes up and he peaks to see who is talking. The dogs notice him and start chasing him.



Messi and Mystery run and run until they reach market place, where a sales woman drops pies for them to eat. Both fall asleep on the pier. A seal wakes them up and tells them, he knows where the lighthouse is and takes them there.

At the lighthouse the dogs are guarding it. Messi and Mystery run the lighthouse stairs all the way to the top, where they meet a blue cat, who is cooking for the dogs.
The dogs laugh at the kidnapping story: the blue cat is their friend. The blue cat leaves with Messi and Mystery. The swallows take a message to Grandma that Messi is coming.

Messi's parents are waiting for him at the railway station. And everybody is happy to see him. Mystery is vanished and left Messi a message that they will see again.

This is a first book about Messi and Mystery.

Mandy and Andy

Mandy and Andy in daycare -cover

Teuvo "Teutori" Koskinen 1982-

Satukustannus, a publishing house wanted to publis a new ABC book and asked artist Teuvo "Teutori" Koskinen to illustrate it. As inspiration Teutori used his father in laws kittens named Miina and Manu (Mandy and Andy).

Mandy was a red kitten, who is witty and smart. Andy is a grey kitten that is a little bit clumsy. The kittens live in a 1950s style farm. They also have Uncle Sulo to guide them. Each book has a single theme. The theme can be something very ordinary, such as daycare, visiting a doctor or something imaginary: dragons den, fairytales and pirates. Mandy and Andy also travel a lot: they are in Lapland, China and Africa.

Each book also has a lesson to learn. Usually it is Andy that learns the lesson.  Some of the books are hyphenated so children can read the stories themselves.

Mandy and Andy in daycare

Teutori wrote 47 Mandy and Andy stories before he passed away in 2000. After that Mandy and Andy anu have been drawn by Jari Koivisto and Tuomas Mäkelä. The stories have been written by several writers.


Mandy and Andy are also stars of a CD-ROM game.

Mandy's and Andy's Christmas eve

This is not a complete list of Mandy's and Andy's books
Mandy and Andy enjoy nature
 Mandy and Andy in Fairytalelands
Mandy and Andy as detectives
Mandy’s and Andy’s adventure in Lapland
 Mandy and Andy –the story of a Mill
Mandy and Andy in China
Mandy’s and Andy’s Christmas eve
Mandy and Andy at the dentist
Mandy and Andy fishing
Mandy and Andy at theater 
Mandy and Andy at preschool
Mandy and Andy at Farm
Mandy’s and Andy’s hobbies
Mandy and Andy at Santa Park
Mandy and Andy timetravel
Mandy and Andy ABC
Mandy and Andy math
Mandy and Andy on vacation

Mandy, Andy and Finnish Christmas traditions

Mandy’s and Andy’s joyride
Mandy and Andy temper tantrums
Mandy and Andy travel
Mandy and Andy The secret of an old castle
Mandy’s and Andy’s summer
Mandy and Andy hot air balloon
Mandy and Andy at swimming school
Mandy and Andy at riding school
Mandy and Andy rhymes and jingles
Mandy and Andy at daycare
 Mandy and Andy at the market

Mandy and Andy rhymes

Mandy and Andy at a hospital
Mandy and Andy on a pirate ship
Mandy and Andy at the land of the gnomes
Mandy and Andy teach manners
Mandy and Andy learn to tell time
Mandy and Andy at the doctor’s
 Mandy and Andy get lost
Mandy and Andy in Africa
Mandy and Andy at a dragon’s den
Mandy and Andy as bakers
Mandy and Andy visit wild boars
Mandy and Andy at a zoo

Mandy and Andy rhymes