Māori-Lule Sámi-English picture book confronts the plastic in our oceans

He Ata te Raru ki Tai?

What’s the Matter with the Sea?

Mij le ábijin dáhpáduvvamin?

 

Rita Sørly

Illustrated by Malgorzata Piotrowska

Māori translation by Kanapu Rangitauira

Lule Sámi translation by Are Tjihkkom

English translation by Maria Nayr de Pinho Correia Ibrahim and Charlotta Maria Langejan

Alerted to the unusual appearance of a rare whale in the north of Norway, Māori marine biologists Aihe and Whina set out from Otago to track its path and find out what is going wrong with the world’s oceans. 

 

In a world first, this unique picture book is trilingual in Māori, the endangered Lule Sámi language, and English (which acts like subtitles, secondary to the indigenous languages). 

It centres the connection between the Sámi peoples of Norway and Māori, while telling a thoughtful story that highlights the need to care for our marine environment.

 

The international coedition with Sámi publisher Davvi Girji was launched at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair on 13 April 2026, as reported in the prestigious Publishing Perspectives magazine. 

The launch included a recorded reading by te reo translator Kanapu Rangitauira and his whānau.

 

Alongside promotion by Davvi Girji, Nord University in Norway and the Norwegian book agency NORLA, Oratia Books is delighted to preview the book’s release on UN World Oceans Day, 8 June.

He Aha te Raru ki Tai? What's the Matter with the Sea? Mij le ábijn dáhpáduvvamin? is on sale at good booksellers from 11 June.

The author, illustrator and translators 

Rita Sørly is a professor in social work, and director of the Arctic Nord blog Youth Research Center at The Arctic University of Norway. She lives Tromsø, northern Norway.

Malgorzata Piotrowska is a Polish-Norwegian illustrator and author of children’s and adults’ books.

Kanapu Rangitauira (Te Arawa, Ngāti Porou, Te Whakatōhea) is a translator and teacher of te reo Māori who has translated a number of children's books for Oratia.

Lule Sámi translation by Are Tjihkkom; English translation by Maria Nayr Correia Ibrahim & Charlotta Maria Langejan.

Some of the team behind the book at the Bologna Children's Book Fair, April 2026

Publication Date: 11 June 2026  |  ISBN: 9781991353016  |  RRP $29.00

Hardback, 230 x 230 mm, 48 pages, colour

Interview: Johanna Venho and Sanna Pelliccioni talk about Thank you, Forest

Sanna Pelliccioni

Johanna Venho 

Thank you, Forest

An interview with Finnish author-illustrator team, Johanna Venho and Sanna Pelliccioni

The gorgeous picture book Thank you, Forest reached the bookshelves of Oceania in November, with the hardback printing of the book by Five Oceans. Originally published in Finland, Thank you, Forest brings to children a story about care for trees and the mysteries inside forests, in an English translation by Jennifer Pulju Porter.

Author Johanna Venho and illustrator Sanna Pelliccioni talk about the creation of this book that is now reaching children in New Zealand, Australia and the South Pacific. 

Sanna, Johanna, thank you for joining us. How does it feel to have your book published in English?

Sanna: Thank you for publishing this book on the other side of the planet, it's wonderful! I feel especially honoured knowing that some indigenous people might also read our story of protecting trees. The nature there must be so different, but around the world we share nowadays the same problems of deforestation and destroying the nature, but also people waking up to what's happening and what we can do. Writing poems to trees is such a wonderful idea. And also listening to what a tree answers. 

Johanna: It’s amazing. It’s like a fairy tale itself, a traveling book. Sometimes I ask myself: is this really true? I am truly happy about it. 

What inspired you to write this magical book about a girl’s relationship to the forest? 

Sanna: We started the book during the pandemic, so we met outside, walking in parks or swimming in the Baltic Sea. Our co-operation is wonderful, we are in deep dialogue, and we both share a deep connection to nature and also the subconscious nature in ourselves. Our co-operation goes on, and the third book project of this series is just starting. 

Johanna: I love fairy tales and folk tales, and they have for a long time inspired my poetry, but also my books for children. I wanted to tell a story that shows the power of imagination. Also, I have studied biology, and nature, particularly forests, are close to my heart. We discussed for a long time with Sanna that we’d like to do together a book about trees and forests, to protect them, to value them, to remind readers of their importance.

What techniques did you use capture nature to make the pages feel like a notebook that a child has put together?

Sanna: I graduated first as a biologist and studied illustration after that. Many of my books talk about nature and the environment. For a long time, I wanted to use my old dried plant samples in illustration and eventually, in this book, I did. I love notebooks, collecting samples, and taking notes. It was wonderful to bring this variable style inside this book.

How did you imagine the characters Spruce and Gale, who are totally believable but also otherworldly and inspiring?

Johanna: The best thing in writing is imagining things. My head is full of characters looking for stories! And I go around looking for stories. I walked a lot in the forest and imagined about what kind of characters I’s like to write about.  

  

Johanna, you are a poet also. Is the writing process very different between poetry and a picture book like Thank you, Forest?

Johanna: Yes, they are very different processes. Prose for adults takes a lot of time and energy and sitting by the computer and libraries. Poetry on the other hand is a work of endless editing. In writing picture books, it’s important to play and have fun, let the imagination fly. I see both poetry and stories in my picture books quite visually. After the story is born, I write it many times and change and edit again and again, until I am happy with the text. 

You collaborate closely on all aspects of the book, it seems.

Sanna: This book is our mutual co-operation from the beginning. Initially, I asked Johanna if she is interested in writing a book about a child protecting trees and forests, because our forests are being cut down at an enormous rate. I wish the illustrator would be noted like the author.

Johanna: As I write mostly by myself, I truly enjoy co-operation with illustrators. It’s amazing to follow how the world of words turns into images and colours. 

Are you working on any books at the moment – if you are ready to talk about them?

Johanna: Sanna and I are now onto the third book of this "series” of notebooks about Spruce and Gale. It is called School Notebook and will be published in 2027. The second was Travel Notebook (as Thank you, Forest is Forest Notebook in Finnish). I am also writing a historical novel, which I have been working on already for quite a while. 

A grant from the Finnish Literature Exchange supported this book to be published in New Zealand, Australia and the South Pacific.

The authors

Johanna Venho is a leading author and poet based in Finland who has written for both adults and children. Among the many awards for her books, she received the prestigious Arvid Lydecken Prize for Children’s Literature in 2003. 

Sanna Pelliccioni is an award-winning illustrator and children’s author whose work has been widely translated. She featured in the IBBY honour list 2022. Sanna lives in Helsinki, Finland.

Jen Pulju Porter is a Finnish-American translator who has worked across a range of genres in her career. She currently lives in Colorado, USA.

Publication: 7 November 2025  |  ISBN: 978-1-99-004294-2 |  RRP $25.99

Hardback, 240 x 175 mm portrait, 32 pages, colour

From the forests of Finland, a thank you to nature for young readers in Oceania

Thank you, Forest

Johanna Venho

Illustrated by Sanna Pelliccioni

Translated by Jennifer Pulju Porter

Travelling all the way from the forests of Finland to the ngāhere of New Zealand, Thank you, Forest is a unique book for children — a story in the form of a child's notebook. 

Finnish author and poet Johanna Venho conjures up the world of Spruce, a young girl whose sanctuary is the forest near her house.

She writes and collects from the nature around her to fill her notebook with items that enrich her life.

Then her parents and brother Zach start to look glum and talk about the forest being 'zoned'. 

‘What does “zoned” mean?’ I ask.

‘It means they’re going to build apartment blocks here,’ Zach says.

Spruce returns to the forest and ties notes to the trees as a type of protest. The notes are seen by a mysterious boy with green eyes and twigs in his hair, who introduces himself as Gale. 

Gale takes Spruce to see an underground lake deep in  forest. Could this be secret they need to save the trees from destruction? 

Thank you, Forest conjures up a sense of belonging in nature that is perfectly reflected in Sanna Pelliccioni’s notebook-style illustrations.

Noted Finnish-American translator Jennifer Pulju Porter crafted the English text. 

A grant from the Finnish Literature Exchange supported this book to be published in New Zealand, Australia and the South Pacific.

The authors

Johanna Venho is a leading author and poet based in Finland who has written for both adults and children. Among the many awards for her books, she received the prestigious Arvid Lydecken Prize for Children’s Literature in 2003. 

Sanna Pelliccioni is an award-winning illustrator and children’s author whose work has been widely translated. She featured in the IBBY honour list 2022. Sanna lives in Helsinki, Finland.

Jen Pulju Porter is a Finnish-American translator who has worked across a range of genres in her career. She currently lives in Colorado, USA.

Publication: 7 November 2025  |  ISBN: 978-1-99-004294-2 |  RRP $25.99

Hardback, 240 x 175 mm portrait, 32 pages, colour

Bestselling author Toprak Işık makes English debut with The Ant Rebellion

The Ant Rebellion

Toprak Işık

Illustrated by Sedat Girgin     

Translated by Alvin Parmar

Tomorrow marks publication of the first in a series of new books from Five Oceans — Oratia Book's venture to bring books in translation to readers across Oceania. 

In the first Five Oceans book, renowned Turkish author Toprak Işık makes his English debut with The Ant Rebellion.

Set in the insect world, where farmer ants rebel against their warrior cousins, this junior novel has sold over 30,000 copies in Turkey. 

 

The Ant Rebellion is a superb read for 8–12 year-olds touching on themes of freedom and resistance, with drawings by prominent artist Sedat Girgin and translator Alvin Parmar.

‘US and UK authors gain translations worldwide, while great authors from other cultures aren’t available in English,’ commented Oratia publisher Peter Dowling. 

‘Five Oceans aims to help redress that imbalance. We are delighted to be publishing Toprak's work, and providing a home for more translations along with Oratia's previous international acquisitions.' 

The Ant Rebellion was published by Tudem Publishing Group, an independent publisher based in Izmir, Turkey. Rights for the Oceania edition were negotiated by the Black Cat Agency (Goksun Bayraktar and Nazlı Gürkaş).

The publishers were helped support from by Translation and Publication Grant Program of Turkey to publish the book in New Zealand, Australia and the South Pacific.

An interview with Toprak Işık about The Ant Rebellion will appear on this blog on the weekend.

The authors

Toprak Işık is a prolific, award-winning writer of books for children (fiction and non-fiction) as well as for theatre and academic audiences. An engineer by profession, Toprak lives in Istanbul, Turkey; see https://toprakisik.com.

Sedat Girgin is an artist who has illustrated more than 90 books and received numerous awards including a nomination for the Hans Christian Andersen Award. He lives and works in Istanbul; see https://sedatgirgin.com.

Alvin Parmar is a UK-based translator/editor working in Turkish, English, French, German and Georgian. He has translated 15 books from Turkish to English. 

Publication: 15 October 2025  |  ISBN: 978-1-99-004293-5 |  RRP $25.99

Paperback, 210 x 148 mm portrait, 98 pages, b&w

Oratia Media marks 25 years with launch of Five Oceans imprint

 

Oratia Media is celebrating its 25^th birthday, having been founded on 31 August 2000 by Peter Dowling and Alessandra Zecchini in Oratia, West Auckland. 

 

Initially a publishing services business for clients in New Zealand, Japan and Europe, Oratia Media later broadened its scope, while Peter maintained a full-time role at Reed Publishing (NZ).

Alessandra Zecchini

Business included cooking classes, food writing and styling, managing charity Te Potiki National Trust, business and travel journalism, teaching, translation and contract publishing. 

Hard work over those early years laid the foundation for the company’s own publishing under the Oratia Books brand. Since 2008 it has published more than 220 own and commissioned books. 

Peter Dowling

‘Sincere thanks to our team and all the authors, illustrators, clients, photographers, editors, designers, distributors, printers, booksellers, librarians, teachers, students, reviewers and readers who have been with us on this journey,’ the founders said today. 

 

Oratia Books’ philosophy is to publish and keep in print new and classic works, marketing across New Zealand with active distribution and rights deal worldwide. 

The Treaty of Waitangi, Margaret Mahy Book of the Year 2025 

That international approach led in 2021 to the BOP Bologna Prize for Best Children’s Publisher in Oceania. A further accolade came this month with Ross Calman’s The Treaty of Waitangi named Margaret Mahy Book of the Year in the New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults. 

 

To mark its 25^th anniversary, Oratia Books is launching a new international imprint, Five Oceans. This new list will bring literary non-fiction and children’s books to Oceania from cultures whose works are under-represented in English, let alone in Polynesian languages. 

 

First comes The Ant Rebellion, a bestselling junior novel from Turkey, in October, then Finnish picture book Thank you, Forest in November. Books from India and Norway are next up in 2026. 

‘We look forward to extending Oratia’s activities to all five oceans of our planet,’ said Peter, who is developing the imprint with Rome-based Maria Leonardi, international rights manager.

 

‘With Five Oceans, we aim to bring outstanding writing and illustration into our languages, while encouraging cultural exchange to and from Aotearoa.’

New team members bring wide experience to help grow Oratia Books

Halfway through the year and things are humming along at Oratia Books. 

Our aim is for brilliant people to work with Oratia and not for us. The company’s flat and dispersed structure reflects that, with a mix of fixed and freelance contributors, working from home in different parts of the country and world. 

 

This year we’re pleased to have formalised working relationships with several collaborators and friends. We welcome these four publishing professionals who are helping to grow Oratia Books:

 

Mike Bradstock has taken on the role of editor-at-large for Oratia Books, from his base in Raumati South, Wellington. A vastly experienced publisher and writer, Mike was for many years publisher of Canterbury University Press, and before then a managing editor with Bateman Books and Reed Publishing. Mike is making a valued contribution in commissioning, editing and proofing for Oratia. 

Sharon Whitaker has come on board to manage the printing, production and shipping of Oratia Books. Based in Papamoa in the Bay of Plenty, Sharon is a renowned production manager who contracts to select publishing clients. During a long career at Reed Publishing, she managed multiple projects across trade and educational titles, working closely with Carolyn and Peter.

 

Sam Hill keeps the Reed connection alive, having joined Oratia as a freelance editor. He worked in editorial and distribution over his time at the Reed offices in Rawene Road, Birkenhead. Now based up the road in Glenfield, Sam is engaged in both editorial and marketing work for Oratia (sam@oratia.co.nz). 

Internationally, Maria Leonardi is managing the acquisition of international books under our new Five Oceans imprint. Based in Rome, Italy, Maria is a dual Italian and New Zealand citizen who has many years of experience in international rights and editorial management with publishing houses including nottetempo, Nutrimenti and La Nuova Frontiera. 

Maria Leonardi with Peter Dowling at the Bologna Children's Book Fair

Maria managed the New Zealand stand at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in 2022, and has attended the fair with Peter in the past two years.

 

A warm welcome to Mike, Sharon, Sam and Maria. 

 

They join our key contributors Frances Chan, Hirini Tane, Ella Fischer, Cheryl Smith and Sarah Elworthy in assisting the mahi of our senior team – Belinda Cooke, Carolyn Lagahetau, Alessandra Zecchini and Peter Dowling.