Do you remember Pippi Longstocking _ that feisty little girl who lived by herself because her father, a sea captain, was lost at sea? Pippi's favourite companion was a pet monkey called Mr Nilsson, and she was so strong she could lift a horse with one hand.
The adventures of Pippi, and her friends Tommy and Annika, which were written by Astrid Lindgren, first appeared in 1945 and have delighted children world-wide ever since.
In 2002 the Swedish government established the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award for Literature, an international award promoting the importance of imagination, especially through children's and young people's literature.
The prize of SEK 5 million (NZ$1 million), given to one or more recipients, is offered annually to authors and illustrators for their entire literary output, and to people or organisations working to encourage reading among children and young people.
The winners will be announced in Sweden tomorrow and presented with the awards at a ceremony at the Skansen open-air museum in Stockholm on May 26.
New Zealand's nomination is the Children's Literature Foundation's Storylines Festival of New Zealand Children's Writers and Illustrators 2003.
Information can be found at www.alma.se
- Frances Plumpton
Bookcase
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