The Tiny Friend

Thomas Tidholm & Anna-Clara Tidholm

Sofia has a little friend called Alo. He is green, about seventeen centimeters tall, and lives somewhere in the grass beyond the fence. His world is buzzing with life. There are insects, worms, lizards, and other small creatures that crawl, wriggle, and dig deep tunnels in the ground. Alo takes care of them, he’s friends with everyone.

But Sofia is too big for Alo’s world, and she feels left out. One day, she lifts Alo off the ground and carries him home with her. She wants him to live there, in the cage where her bird used to live – and just be hers!

With a child’s gaze and tenderness, Thomas Tidholm and Anna-Clara Tidholm explore big questions as human relationship with nature, characterized by both loving and owning. The story about Sofia and Alo is a multifaceted and beautiful tale to read many times over.

Thomas Tidholm is an author, poet and playwright. He has written a large number of books for both children and adults. Together with his wife Anna-Clara Tidholm, he has created around thirty children’s books, many of them beloved classics. Anna-Clara Tidholm is an illustrator and author, and one of Sweden’s most appreciated picture book makers. In addition to her long collaboration with her husband Thomas Tidholm, she has created several award-winning books, not least for the youngest readers.

 

Press voices

“Finally! That’s how you could sum up the fact that the praised duo Thomas Tidholm and Anna-Clara Tidholm return with their first newly written picture book since 2020 /…/a thought-provoking tale about man’s relationship with nature.” Dagens Nyheter

“spot on, poetic”/…/ A picture book gem worth thinking about.” BTJ