The Night Raven by Johan Rundberg translated by Annie Prime

"Everyone in the city has heard of the Night Raven. The murderer was on the loose for four years. The first victim was a girl a couple of years older than Mika, then two men murdered in the same way. The nickname came from the way the criminal seemed to flutter aimlessly through the night, swooping down on innocent unfortunates ... In the end the killer was caught red-handed, a vagrant named John Almgren."

Mika has lived in the orphanage her whole life. It is not unusual for babies to be deposited on the doorstep but the arrival of this baby after midnight seems very strange - almost sinister. Mika can have no idea that the arrival of this baby girl will set off an amazing chain of events that will see her working with a local, rather eccentric police detective, to solve an infamous series of murders in Stockholm. 

The terrified boy who hands Mika the baby stays long enough to say "The Dark Angel knows I am the one who took her." 

Mika has amazing powers of observation. She sees a figure lingering in the shadows. She notices the baby has a braided leather band decorated with tiny red flowers tied around her ankle. Neither of these mysteries, however, are solved in this first installment. And this mystery deepens when the band disappears and Amelia, who is in charge at the orphanage, seems to be holding an even deeper secret.

Mika works in a bar pouring beer for men who can become violent as they become more inebriated. She overhears some men talking about the city murders and the criminal named The Night Raven. He is supposed to now be dead - having been captured and executed - but note my word 'supposed'. Mika is interviewed by a police man and then a detective arrives with more questions before he takes her away in his carriage to a graveyard where he shows her a dead body in a crypt. Is this the man who gave her the newly born baby? No. Then the detective comes again and this time he takes her to visit the gaol.

Here are a few text quotes:

"And sometimes you have to laugh at the thing that scares you most. Life will be what it will be, regardless,"

"I thought you said he was alive when you arrived? ... Barely. We came just in time to hear his last words. He said ... that the Night Raven had come for him."

"I have to pay attention to detail all the time because my life depends on it."

Here is a great description of Detective Valdemar Hoff:

"The first thing she sees is a scarred face half hidden behind a scruffy beard. Bush eyebrows and a nose as bumpy and brown as a seed potato. His body is thickset and reminds Mika of the unfortunate bears she saw once at Norrbro Bazaar. Hands stick out of his coat sleeves are as big as toilet lids. His knuckles are dented with poorly healed cuts and scabs. The ring finger and pinky on his left hand appear to have been severed at the knuckle."

Bookseller blurb: Mika is not your average twelve-year-old-and she's about to prove it. It's 1880, and in the frigid city of Stockholm, death lurks around every corner. Twelve-year-old Mika knows that everyone in her orphanage will struggle to survive this winter. But at least the notorious serial killer the Night Raven is finally off the streets...or is he? Mika is shocked when a newborn baby is left at the orphanage in the middle of the night, by a boy with a cryptic message. Who is he? And who is this "Dark Angel" he speaks of? When a detective shows up, Mika senses something even more sinister is going on. Drawn in by Mika's unique ability to notice small details-a skill Mika has always used to survive-the gruff Detective Hoff unwittingly recruits her to help him with his investigation into a gruesome murder. Mika knows she should stay far, far away, and yet...with such little hope for her future, could this be an opportunity? Maybe, just maybe, this is Mika's chance to be someone who matters.

A thrilling and thoughtful period murder mystery. Kirkus Star review

Over the past decades, dark Scandinavian mysteries, both historical and contemporary, have become popular, and The Night Raven brings the genre to a younger readership. Despite the gruesome deaths, the violence and threats, and the Dickensian urban setting, the descriptions and events are age appropriate, (keeping) most of the violence off the page. Historical Novel Society

The Night Raven is a smart page-turner that’s a bit dark and full of mystery. Rundberg’s pacing is spot-on, and translator A.A. Prime has done a fantastic job making the book accessible to and English-speaking audience. It’s a smooth translation that doesn’t read like one. Cracking the Cover

Johan Rundberg is an award-winning author of children’s books who lives in Stockholm. He has written picture books, early readers, and middle grade, including Kärlekspizzan, Knockad Romeo, and the series Häxknuten. In 2021, he was awarded Sweden’s most prestigious literary prize, the August Prize, in the children’s and YA category for Nattkorpen, the original edition of The Night Raven, which was first written in Swedish. Nattkorpen was also the winner of a Swedish Crimetime Award in the children’s and YA category. There are now four books in this series published in Sweden.

All the books have a stand-alone mystery that is solved in the end. But there is also a storyline that runs throughout the series, so reading the books in order really gives the reader a bigger experience. For example, Mika’s journey to find out about her past is one such storyline, that is revealed bit by bit. Also, both Mika’s character as well as her relationship with Constable Hoff develops during the series, and that is another reason to read the books in order, I think. But it’s all up to the reader. The Night Raven works really well as a stand-alone, but I hope it will make the reader curious to continue.

A. A. Prime (Annie Prime) is an award-winning translator of Swedish literature. She was born in London and traveled the world studying a number of languages before settling in the English coastal town of Hastings. She now works full-time as a translator, specializing in the weird, witty, and wonderful world of children’s and young adult fiction. She holds an MA in translation from University College London and has published more than twenty books in the UK and US. 

I loved this book from the Moonwind Mysteries series so now I plan to read all of them! There are three in the series in English but there are or will be two more in Swedish (Book 4 is published but Book 5 is still underway) - the most recent one was published this year in 2025. In Swedish the series is called Månvind & Hoff. Book one has the title Nattkorpen (2020).

I highly recommend this book for readers aged 11+ and even adults too. When my adult friends discuss the books they have been reading and enjoying I am often left out of the conversation. I dream of the day that an adult asks me to recommend a middle grade or young adult book that they also might like to read - this book The Night Raven is one I would most certainly rave about. I read this book on a Kindle in one sitting on a short flight to a nearby city. 

Here is an interview with Johan Rundberg where he talks about the first book The Night Raven.

I also found this site which expands the map of Stockholm which appears in this book. This could be a great starting point if you visit the city and want to follow Mika's journey across her city.  And here are some discussion questions. 

Here are the Swedish and Danish covers:

Broken Beaks by Nathaniel Lachenmeyer illustrated by Robert Ingpen

"Then, one morning the young sparrow awoke to discover that his beak had broken while he slept. It does not happen often, but sometime a sparrow's beak will break. No one knows how or why it happens. It just does."

Now it is so difficult for the young sparrow to pick up crumbs dropped by people at the cafe. Sadly, the other sparrow are either frightened of him, or suspicious of him while others are sure someone else will help the young sparrow. The people are no better. To their eyes this bird looks dirty and ugly. 

Luckily along comes a compassionate stranger - a homeless man. 

"He was thin and dirty. He had a bushy beard and long scraggly hair, and he talked to himself. The sparrow could tell from his voice that he was sad and lonely."

"Looking closely at the stranger, the young sparrow realised that they were alike. He somehow knew that the stranger also had a broken beak- only his beak was on the inside, where you couldn't see it. ... Like the sparrow, the stranger couldn't help that his beak was broken."

Now go back and think about the title - broken beaks. The bird has a broken beak and so does the man but readers should also think about the reactions of others (bird and human) - how we view others who are different, or who need compassion. 

The final scene in this book is sure to break your heart. This book has a personal connection with the author. 

Blurb: A beautiful story about a friendship between a small sparrow and a homeless man. Readers of all ages will be moved by this powerful narrative, which highlights the heroism and dignity of people with mental illness. Beautiful full colour illustrations drawn with depth and insight by former Hans Christian Andersen Medalist Robert Ingpen. 

Broken Beaks is long out of print and I think it might be very hard to find. IF you do have a copy it is now very valuable. I have seen copies listed between AU$90 and AU$150.

When I was a CBCA (Children's Book Council of Australia) judge we read Crumbs by Phil Cummings illustrated by Shane Deveries. One of the judges in my category (Picture book of the Year) linked Crumbs with Broken Beaks (2003 and out of print). I love making connections between texts, but I had no idea about Broken Beaks. I was so thrilled to find this book in the school library I visit each week. What an extraordinary wealth of books this library holds. I continue to be so amazed and excited by the books I discover. 

Shelter by Christie Matheson

"I told Abby about the shelter today. I wanted to tell her the truth. Is that okay?' 

"Of course it' okay,' Mama says. 'You can't keep all the hard things to yourself."

"My family. That's what home is to me."

When we classify books one category that is mentioned is contemporary realism.  Shelter by Christie Matheson is a perfect example of this genre. This book is filled with contemporary references - mobile phones, people texting in cars and causing terrible accidents, street libraries, and "mindful" school classes. 

The setting for this story is San Francisco but I don't think you need to know specifically about this city to understand that there are rich and poor areas; heritage homes; new constructions of apartment buildings; and rising real estate prices. This is also a city, like all cities, of rich and poor. People so poor they have become homeless - some who live on the street and others lucky enough to find, even if it is temporary, a place to say in a shelter.

"There are lots of different kinds of shelters, I've learned. Some are just for grown-ups, some are for men only, some are for kids who've run away from home, and some are only for families with kids. ... But even if you add up all the beds and all the rooms, there aren't enough shelters for the thousands of homeless people in San Francisco."

Christie Matheson sets things up in this book so as a reader you just know dreadful things are going to happen to Maya and this is extra bad because she and her family have already endured so much. Dad has been in a terrible accident riding his bike. He was hit by a car driven by some one using a mobile phone.  Mum has no job because she needed to stay home with little sister Gabby. Gabby is one of those kids with extreme life-threatening food allergies. The family only just have enough money each week but now dad is in a coma in hospital, mum has no job and the owner of the home they rent has decided to sell. Maya, Gabby and their mother now find themselves living in a shelter. 

When they left their home, Maya could only take the things she could carry. In her school back pack she has a precious toy, some favourite books (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; Anne of Green Gables; Charlotte's Web; Ghost; and Wonder), a small amount of money ($17.32) and a precious letter from her dad written before the accident. Maya keeps her pack close at all times. She doesn't even use her school locker. At school Maya is regularly targeted by one girl - Sloane. In a scene that I am sure will linger with me, Sloane takes Maya's precious pack, she steals the contents and dumps the pack in a huge puddle. The writing of this scene is so powerful I just gasped in shock. Thank goodness for Maya's wonderful friend Abby and for wise teachers. Ms Sherman should win teacher of the year!

Here are a few text quotes:

"Because on that Friday afternoon he was hit by a car. Witnesses said that the driver of the car was looking at his phone and that he ran a red light and sped through an intersection. There's a reason why you're not supposed to text and drive. You could kill someone. Or almost kill someone."

"A golden birthday happens when the age you're turning matches the day of the month - turning eight on the eighth or twelve on the twelfth. ... My real golden birthday is coming up in March. I'll be eleven on March 11. ... More than anything I just wish I could have dinner with my whole family. And Abby too. At home."

"I know I'm not the only kid in this city who goes to school hungry. Maybe at my school most kids have plenty to eat."

My only tiny criticism of this book is the way Christie Matheson includes the usual cliche about bullies by explaining the utterly horrid behaviour of Sloane as an act of jealousy. For all her money, possessions and mansion-like house, Sloane is jealous that Maya has a family while hers is utterly dysfunctional. I was so angry with Sloane this 'easy' motivation felt too simplistic.

It's important to have representations of children who are housing insecure, both so that those who are in the same situation can feel seen, and so that those who aren't can gain some understanding of this complex situation. Ms Yingling Reads

Brings a pressing national crisis into clear focus for young readers; highly recommended. Kirkus

Companion reads:

Christie Matheson is the author of these picture books:

A Cardboard Palace by Allayne L Webster

 

Jorge has been trafficked as a very young child. He is now forced to work for a gang of thieves working the streets and popular tourist sites of Paris. His daily life is horrendous. He has to pickpockets and take money from tourists and then deliver his 'takings' to his minder named Bill. If he has not gathered enough money he is punished. He also rarely receives any money for food so he is constantly desperately hungry. Jorge and the other kids live in a makeshift camp on the edge of the city and his home is indeed made from cardboard. There were times when I was reading this book when I just had to stop and take a break. The terrible things that happen to Jorge and his young friends are, at times, very confronting.

Yes this does feel like a modern day Oliver Twist and perhaps it is no coincidence that Bill has the same name as Bill Sykes from the famous Dickens novel. 

Publisher Blurb: Jorge lives in a shanty town on the outskirts of Paris. Bill, a controller, has an army of child thieves at his command—and Jorge is one of them. But soon Jorge faces an even bigger threat. His home is to be bulldozed. Where will Jorge sleep? What will happen to his friends, Ada and Gino? Could a burgeoning friendship with Australian chef, Sticky-Ricky, help Jorge to stop Bill and save the army of child-thieves? And will he do it before he loses Ada forever? Jorge can’t keep fighting to live—now he must live to fight. A harrowing, humbling story about one boy’s desperation to escape a life of crippling poverty.

A Cardboard Palace is a Young Adult novel which in my view is suitable for ages 13+. In NSW this book is on the 7-9 Premiers Reading Challenge list BUT very oddly (and I think dangerously) this book was included on the CBCA 2018 Notable list for Younger Readers. Similarly, having said: the book also covers poverty, human trafficking, slavery, child marriage and death - Books and Publishing list this book for readers aged 10+.  This deeply worries me. Take a look at this review in Reading Time. Here is a set of teaching notes. Here is a detailed review with more plot details.

I picked up a Cardboard Palace from the Westmead Children's Hospital Book Bunker because I have just read another book from Midnightsun and I wanted to read a little more about this South Australian publisher. 

A Cardboard Palace reads like a modern Dickens story set in Paris, giving a voice to trafficked Romany children who are forced to labour illegally for a pittance. Lamont Books

Companion reads:

Trash

The Bridge Home