The book is full of memories of 25 women in the military who fought in the "Anti-Terrorist Operation" as a part of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and volunteer units in 2014-2018.
On February 24, 2022, Ukrainians woke up in another reality: the sky was torned by the roar of Russian fighter jets, Russian missiles were flying at Ukrainian cities, subway stations have become the shelters. In this new reality, the concept of absolute security no longer existed. The first days of the war were very emotional and scary. You don't know what to do, you can't keep up with the news. You can't do anything because of these news... For not allowing anyone to rewrite our history, to put in it something that did not exist, like the Russians do when they swear black is white, we decided to collect people's memories of the first days of a full-scale invasion. To remember...
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It is a coming-of-age story for Generation Z. How to grow up or even live in a world where no steady jobs are available, you can’t pay your rent and can’t afford medical or living expenses. Moreover, it touches on how to be a socially engaged artist in such a world, and more so, a woman in a post-me too world? Dijana, a daughter of working-class immigrants, tells the story of her difficult childhood and adolescence, how should became a journalist and later a writer in a society full of prejudices, glass ceilings and obstacles. How she gradually became a stereotypical ‘success story’, even though she still struggles with writing, because she can’t afford a ‘room of her own’. Dijana is a daughter of working-class immigrants, who came to Slovenia in the eighties in search of a better future. The family is building a house but is made redundant from the local factory when Yugoslavia is in the midst of an economic crisis. When her parents get divorced, Dijana, her older sister and mother struggle with basic needs. She is ashamed of their poverty, her classmates bully her because of her immigrant status, but mostly because of her being ‘white trash’. In the local school she meets teachers with prejudices against immigrants, but is helped by a librarian who spots her talent. When Dijana goes to secondary school, she moves in with her older sister who lives in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. Her sister is into rave culture and Dijana starts to explore experimenting with drugs, music and dance. At the secondary school, she is again considered ‘the weird kid’, as she isn’t enough of a foreigner for other immigrant kids because she is from the country, yet she isn’t Slovenian enough for other native kids. She falls even deeper into drug addiction, fails the first year of school and has to move back to live with her mother. She takes on odd jobs to make ends meet. Whilst working as a waitress she encounters sexism and sexual violence from customers and abuse from the boss. She finishes night school and graduates. She meets many ‘lost’ people of her generation along the way, who tell her their stories about precarious, minimum wage jobs, lack of opportunities, expensive rent, etc. Dijana writes for numerous newspapers but loses or quits her job, because she isn’t allowed to write the stories she wants or because of the bad working conditions or the blatant sexual harassment. Due to the high rent in the capital, Dijana has to move to the countryside to live with her mother. She feels lonely there, struggles with anxiety and cannot write a second book, because she is constantly under pressure to make a living. She realises that she must persevere regardless of the obstacles, she must follow her inner truth and by writing about it, try to create a community of like-minded people, a community of people who support each other – all literature/art is social.
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JUST LIKE A FILMWritten by Vinko MöderndorferIllustrated by Damijan Stepančič Gašper’s parents are getting a divorce. His mother moves out, and his father takes Gašper to stay with Max. Gašper has never seen this old man before, but he and Max become friends, and this leads to a new astonishing revelation which turns Gašper’s world upside down. Winner of all the top awards for YA literature in Slovenia (Blue Bird Award, Desetnica,Večernica). Nominated for the Book Trust fund. Format: 14 x 20 cm340 pages | Age: 10+
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White Raven 2020. Winner of the Blue Bird Award 2020. One evening, Črt sees a mysterious shadow in the sky through the window of his room. Is what he sees really a dragon? He wants to share this unusual experience with his friend Vid, but there is no opportunity at all, since Vid wants to share the news of the exciting discovery with him as well. A mysterious map came into the hands of his two new friends, and this fires the imagination of the children. They immediately find themselves in the midst of a thrilling adventure which involves thieves, a dragon slayer, a scientist, a detective and lots of mums and dads. And a dragon... Simona Semenič, who until now was mostly known as an award-winning playwright, has created a suspenseful and multifaceted story, with extremely vivid characters, an interesting writer’s perspective, humour, and a wealth of literary references. A masterfully written story. The book is a true literary gem. Format: 14 x 20 cm, 312 pages | Age: 9+
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THE PESKY TRIO: GRANNY NO LONGER HAS A PHONEWritten by Andrej E. SkubicIllustrated by Tanja Komadina Liam has a new phone. Tomaž and Lija are surprised he was given such a present for noreason. When they visit his home, they wonder why, in addition to an old noo noo blanket and a stuffed lemur, there is also a plastic doll on his bed. They begin to tease him, but the doll is just something to remember his granny by. All this leads to an argument. How will they resolve it? Will the Pesky Trio survive? Format: 14 x 20 cm72 pages | Age: 6+
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RUNNING ON THE SPOT (Tek na mestu) is a collection of reflections on the problems of modern society and the individual within it. The texts reflect changes in the fields of ethics, medicine, parenthood, genetics, consumerism and poverty. She talks about the anxieties faced by people on a daily basis and the painful choices that do not guarantee a less difficult future. In spite of the constant talk about the need for progress, it seems that societies are more or less running on the spot. Individuals, meanwhile, are both at work and in their private lives constantly under pressure to run better and faster than others. They work ever more so that they can consume more and sooner or later begin to consume themselves. This appears as workaholism, dependence on drugs or alcohol, and in the new symptoms such as anorexia, bulimia and other forms of self-harm.
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WHALE ON A BEACHWritten by Vinko Möderndorfer Whale on a Beach is a story about differentness, normality and about the many struggles involved in growing up for modern-day teenagers, caught between family and peers. Theatrical premiere in Ljubljana in September 2018. Nika, a lively, curious teenager, moves house with her parents. She goes to a new school now, in a new place with new classmates. All seems lovely and just as it should be. Nika is popular, she makes friends easily; she is outgoing and witty. But it turns out that she keeps a secret; a secret that quickly gets out of the bag and will now change the lives of everyone around her... This heartwarming story about accepting difference is bound to appeal to young adults and adults, too. Winner of the Desetnica Award 2017, IBBY Honour List 2018. Format: 14 x 20 cm224 pages | Age: 12+
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The graphic novel Adna by Samira Kentrić was recently published by Mladinska knjiga. Adna’s story is universal and timeless – each one of us must overcome our own obstacles along the path to adulthood and find the strength and courage for change and a search for the meaning of existence. All that differs are the circumstances. The idea for the book Adna came from the illustrated booklet Letter to Adna (Beletrina, 2016), in which a farewell letter and the circumstances in which it is written end Adna’s never very carefree childhood. The story, told by artist Samira Kentrić primarily through pictures, is continued and built on in this work through the adult Adna, who wants the girl to be given a chance and herself describes her attitude towards the circumstances and the people who surrounded her in the past, and still do. Adna, a girl in her early twenties, comes face to face with the memory of her refugee past. She wonders about the meaning of existence after the deaths of loved ones, but is unable to share her traumatic experience with anyone. Although she is quite fortunate that her guardian provides her with a materially and intellectually dignified life and she is seemingly well integrated into the society in which she finds herself, she remains alone. She has no problems making contacts, she does well in new circumstances, but she carefully hides who she really is from the outside world. She has control over her appearance and over her sexuality, but deep inside her there remains a locked-up pain, right up until the day her world unexpectedly starts to spin differently and forces her into opening up and stepping forward. The graphic novel Adna was created over the years from 2016 to 2020. During this period the author made over 130 illustrations. The pictures were the first to be created, and arranged into a story during the process of creation. Samira Kentrić’s powerful images are searingly direct, relevant, and uncompromising, remaining with us long after we put the book down. The countless references to current events and political realities as well as social and art history lend themselves to different and repeated readings. The author expresses her strong social conscience and engagement through these images, and at the very end, knits them together with an exceptional text that reveals the background to the images and tells the intimate story of a girl who, after a traumatic experience and a long period of numbness, lives a full life and finds meaning in it. Adna’s story is universal and timeless – each one of us must overcome our own obstacles along the path to adulthood and find the strength and courage for change and a search for the meaning of existence. All that differs are the circumstances.
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Golden Pear Mark of Quality! Cannibals, Insomnia, and Mad Cows, How a Surfer Won a Nobel Prize, and The Story of 2550 Litres of Powdered Urine are just three chapter titles that promise that the author’s continuation of his highly popular first book, a huge hit with readers of all ages, will teach us something new about our environment and ourselves through fascinating anecdotes from the world of science, and provide immense entertainment in the process. Continuing the exciting journey begun in FROM GENES TO STARS, this book brings amazing new stories from the world of science, in which you will learn, among other things, how scientists photographed an environment, how they observed the birth of a new language in real time, what they did with 2550 litres of powdered urine, and also that Nobel laureates know how to surf and they sometimes solve the most difficult problems while on holiday. Enriched with illustrations by Matija Medved, the stories also reveal how the internet and blockchain work and how cholera epidemics were contained in London using a ghost map; you will meet a man who counted to infinity, mysterious creatures from the depths of the sea, a pioneer of science in Slovenia and the combination of circumstances that allowed the Archimedes Codex to be preserved to this day. Year of publication: 2019 | Format: 13 x 23.5 cm, 168 pages Golden Pear Mark of Quality
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I AM ANDREJWritten by Vinko MöderndorferIllustrated by Jure Engelsberger Fifteen-year old Andrej has started a new school and has lots of problems. It starts with his name, then the fact that his parents are divorced, plus he’s supposed to be popular … But it is not all bad. He makes friends with the unique Sonja. Gradually, life gets better and better … Nominated for the Desetnica Award in 2019 Format: 14 x 20 cm184 pages | Age: 12+
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PIMPLES, LOVE, AND OTHER LIFE PROBLEMSWritten by Urška Kaloper During puberty, the body changes, and so does the way we experience ourselves and the world. We encounter our first loves, and the first disappointments that inevitably follow. How to cope? Ana, Nina, Miha, Luka, Nika, Eva, Maja and Tina also have a whole bunch of problems growing up, but they deal with them in a fun as well as instructive way. Pick up this book and join them! Their stories will certainly help you solve many problems. Format: 16,5 x 23,8 cm202 pages | Age: 11+
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THE MOST BEAUTIFUL STRANGER LIGHT (Najlepša neznanka svetloba) The novel’s starting point is six portraits on the desk of the main character. These photographs show the people closest to him, with whom his life to date, its determinants, longings, regrets, captivity, the possibility of liberation, has been connected. Through fragments of memory, their stories are woven into a common story about their past, torn between the seemingly carefree life in the late nineteenth century until the 1920s, when the looming shadows of world events reached Slovenia. In this novel about liberation achieved through the clearing of an individual’s past and his family’s, about everyday melancholy and the melancholy of everyday life, which nevertheless includes some of what makes life exciting and precious, the main character keeps wondering what distance to choose for the best photographic result, as well as how close to let someone come without letting them penetrate his isolation.
