This book is a warm and sensitive story about the unusual friendship between a homeless dog named Cat and a homeless man named Žebenkšti. The story teaches young readers and their parents to accept different people, to see the world without prejudices and inspires to talk about tolerance, loneliness and the importance of strong friendship.
As soon as the first book of the series was published (translated into Lithuanian by Viltarė Urbaitė, published by the publishing house “Nieko rimto”), it won international recognition from readers and literary critics. Elina’s illustrations were nominated for the IBBY Honor List, the book was included in the Nordic Council Children’s Literature List, translated into Bulgarian, Estonian, Hungarian, Romanian, Serbian, Slovak, Turkish, Spanish, Swedish and other languages.
Tomi Kontio and Elina Warsta are welcome guests at the Children’s Literature Industry Days “Creators’ Island” events, which will be held on November 13-15 in Vilnius, the UNESCO City of Literature. On November 16-17, the creators will also participate in the “Children’s Book Island” literary festival for the whole family, where they will not only get to know young readers who have fallen in love with their book, but will also conduct creative workshops.
We talk with the artists about the creative process, character creation, favorite childhood books and words that children would like to hear more often to live in a happier world.
– The book series “A Dog Named Cat” created by the two of them became very popular. Little readers and literary critics do not lack praise for her. Tell us about the beginning of this creative friendship and what your collaborative process looks like.
Elina. It all started with our publisher Silja Hiidenheima, who had the idea to turn Tommy’s story into a picture book, and she offered me to illustrate it. I loved this text so much! The story told by Tommy is extremely sensitive, melancholy, full of wisdom and beauty. I am glad that they chose me to illustrate the book, so I immediately agreed.
Then we all met in Helsinki, the publishing house where it all started. The working process between the two of us is very simple: Tomio writes the text, and I draw the illustrations for him and do some layout work for the book. We live far from each other, so we are responsible for our share of the work. Our cooperation is based on mutual trust.
Tomi: When my publisher Silja Hiidenheimo read this text many years ago and decided to publish it in book form, we thought for a long time about which illustrator’s style would best suit it. We both really liked Elina’s work so we inquired and she agreed!
The whole process goes like this: I write the text, and Elina not only draws illustrations for it, but also creates completely new, incredible worlds, like tiny stories within stories. Elina’s illustrations give life, brightness and versatility to the characters.
– As a reader, I was intrigued by the fun and memorable opposition expressed in the title of the book. How did this name come about? I don’t think it’s just a plot reference, right?
Tomi: Such examples abound in literature, myths, fairy tales and legends. Children themselves often pretend to be other characters when they play, so perhaps it all stems from the philosophical idea that giving a name has a very powerful effect.
Sometimes a name transcends the boundaries of the thing or being it describes. In particular, the hero of our book, the puppy Cat, was named so by a mother who wanted to give her offspring the characteristics of a cat: independence, intelligence, and the ability to take care of itself. Ironically, in abandoning her newborn, she herself acted like a cuckoo…
– The first book of your series was recently published in Lithuanian. In it, you tell the story of two lonely souls who do not obey the norms of society – a dog named Katė, abandoned by her mother immediately after birth, and an old wanderer who introduces himself as Žebenkštima. A true friendship develops between the characters who unexpectedly discover each other. Do you think your characters take on different characteristics with each new book in the series?
Tomi: The main things – love, friendship, caring for others – remained the same. But there is something new in each part. Here, in the second book of the series, the dog Cat meets a real cat. Then he begins to understand that the cat does not have to become an enemy of the dog – it can just as well be accepted into the circle of friends. In the third part, the Cat and the Weasel have to decide whether to remain homeless or rather to look for a long-term shelter.
Elina. It seems to me that the dog Cat feels safe with the Weasel. In each book, he relaxes more and more, becomes braver, more curious, more loving, and at the same time, he accepts the love shown to him by others more easily.
What has changed since the first book is that the “family” of the main characters has grown, with more friends, such as a cat named Dog and a girl called Tiger. The weasel also feels safe and loved. Today he lives in a shipping container, where he settled with Kate and the Dog. Together, the friends experienced all kinds of trials and learned important things that had nothing to do with wealth or money.
– Tomi, you have published more than thirty books not only for children, but also for adults, and you also write poetry. However, in an interview you admitted that writing for children is a more important activity for you. Why?
Tomi: Literacy levels are declining, as is the ability to acquire the mother tongue. Language skills are needed not only to develop critical thinking, but also creativity and imagination. Stories give us a sense of joy and security, they help express various emotions, empathy, and pleasant excitement.
– Love for art and literature does not appear by itself – it is important to nurture it from an early age. What was your childhood like? What books did you read? What characters attracted you?
Elina. My mother always read to me before bed. It did this even after I reached my teenage years. I thoroughly enjoyed it and believe that it was this experience that sparked my passion for books. Now my husband and I read to our children (one is nine and the other is thirteen) in the evenings by ourselves.
As a child, I often read illustrated books. I have always admired the work of the Finnish writer Mauris Kunnas, Tove Jansson’s “Troll Mummy” series, the stories of Christina Björk and Lena Andersson. And where else are the novels of A. Lindgren, JR Tolkien, LM Montgomery, picture books by C. Mickwitz or Janosz, CS Lewis’ “Chronicles of Narnia”, adventure novels by R. Adams.
Tomi: I learned to read at the age of four and loved all kinds of books as a child. Astrid Lindgren’s books occupy a particularly important place in my life. The writer gave voice to different characters and explored complex topics in her work. Roald Dahl’s books are characterized by the same warmth and vitality.
– Elina, you are an illustrator, graphic designer, creator of interdisciplinary art. Your range of activities is extremely wide: book and graphic design, branding and visual identity development, magazine illustration and art projects. Not all of your work is for children. What criteria do you follow when creating specifically for a young audience?
Elina. With my illustrations, I always try to convey the feeling that the writer expressed in the text. I think about what a child will experience when listening to a story, so my drawings have small details that young readers can discover and return to many times.
I also like that the layout of the book is surprising and that each page turned gives a different reading experience, but at the same time is part of a whole work. I try to reflect a certain feeling in the faces, movements, and posture of the characters.
I also think about how and in what environment today’s children live, what variety of people and situations they see. I try to convey all this with illustrations.
– Elina mentioned that she gets inspiration not by lying in a hammock, but by watching the people around her, reading an interesting script, watching a movie, listening to music or just walking on the streets. How about you, Tommy? Does writing require discipline? What does your working day look like?
Tomi: Every day is different, depending on the stage of the piece I’m writing. Walking (hiking) and jogging help me a lot. I feel like I write more when I’m on the move, and the best place for creativity to flow is where there’s no internet access, like in Lapland. Of course, I also often sit at the computer in some cafe, listening to classical music through noise-cancelling headphones.
– It is said that books are first read to children by their parents. Do you agree with this idea? I suspect that the reaction of adults to the addicted Žebenkšti may have been not only positive, but also quite skeptical? Your book series “A Dog Named Cat” has been translated into more than ten languages and is read by a wide audience. Have you received criticism from older readers? How do you react to that?
Elina: I’m not sure if parents actually read the book first, unless they give it as a gift. Every city and town in Finland has a wonderful library where the child can discover various books on his own. In fact, I sometimes wonder: do illustrators and writers create for children or their parents?
As for criticism, I personally rarely get feedback, and when I do, it’s always very positive. I have only read one critical article that discussed whether the subject is too difficult for children.
The Bulgarian publisher also spoke about a buyer who bought the book and later returned it, who did not like the work. But in all other cases, the readers receive the book very warmly, and I think this is due to Tommy’s gentle and understanding story of the Weasel.
In our books, the theme of the diversity of people and different life situations is more prominent than addiction. A person is not just his addiction, so in our books we try to show that we are all equal.
Tomi: I have received feedback from parents who are convinced that because of his addiction, Žebenkštis is not a suitable character for a children’s book. But there were not many such opinions. Perhaps this is because Žebenkštis adheres to exemplary values, so no one wants to throw the “first stone” at him.
Weasel has an incredibly big heart, so if anyone is offended by the fact that this character is a drunkard, I think they just missed the point of the book. In these challenging times, it is more important than ever to hear the message of dedication and care from this “man who appreciates love and wine.”
– This year you are coming to the children’s literature festival “Children’s Book Island”, where there will be a lot of talk about censorship. Have you encountered this phenomenon yourself when creating for children?
Tomi: I encountered surprisingly little censorship while writing children’s books. Although it is theoretically possible to write about any topic, I feel a responsibility to speak sensitively about difficult subjects. There are topics I don’t want to touch on, but that doesn’t mean other children’s writers can’t talk about them in their books.
When creating, I am guided by the values that are important to me. Some of them reflect my worldview (I don’t want to be a “directional” writer), others are aesthetic, for example, I don’t use swear words, etc. Children deserve to read well-written books – that’s what I try to create.
Elina. I am very happy to be able to participate in this festival! I can’t wait to meet other picture book creators, hear about their experiences, see their work. I’ve hardly experienced censorship and that’s why I’m having a lot of fun.
In Finland, we have a deep tradition of freedom of speech and expression of opinion, and our publishing house also adheres to these values. However, before the book was published in Turkey, we had to replace the liquor bottle in the illustrations with water.
I have experienced several unpleasant situations when, defending my values, I refused to make changes requested by the customer. It was sad and angry because the client’s demands had a discriminatory tone. However, such a situation had to be faced only once in eight years.
– Elina, during the festival you will conduct an exclusive creative workshop “My little picture book” for visitors aged 6-15. You will create miniature wordless books with your children. And what words do you think today’s children and teenagers should hear more often to make the world more beautiful?
Elina. I think it would be the words “sorry”, “you are loved and appreciated”, “don’t take life too seriously”, “just imagine!”. And for girls, I would add “you don’t always have to be good”.
Tomi: “We are each special, we deserve to be loved and safe.”
From English translated by Audronė Kvietkutė
The literature festival “Children’s Book Island” is organized by the “Children’s Land” literature awareness program established by the “School Improvement Center” University. The festival is financed by the Lithuanian Culture Council and Vilnius City Municipality.
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Importance of empathy in child development
Shaped my resolve to stay true to my artistic vision. I believe in the power of stories to address difficult subjects with sensitivity and to encourage empathy in young readers. It’s important for children to encounter diverse characters and situations in literature, as this reflects the world they live in and fosters understanding and compassion.
**- It sounds like you both have strong convictions about your work and the messages you want to convey. How do you think the themes of love, friendship, and resilience resonate with children today, especially in your stories?**
**Tomi:** I think these themes are timeless and universal. Children today face various challenges, from social pressures to issues of identity and belonging. By exploring friendship and love in my stories, I hope to provide them with comfort and a sense of connection. For example, when Katė the dog learns to accept others, including a cat, it mirrors the process of accepting diversity in our society—something that is crucial for children growing up in an increasingly interconnected world.
**Elina:** Absolutely! The illustrations play a significant role in enhancing these messages as well. I try to portray warmth and emotional depth in the characters’ expressions and interactions. When children see that love and friendship can come in many forms, they might reflect on their relationships with family and peers. Furthermore, showing characters who face adversity but still find joy and bond with others instills hope and resilience in young readers.
**- With such rich themes and characters, what are your aspirations for the future of the “A Dog Named Cat” series? What can readers look forward to?**
**Tomi:** We plan to delve deeper into the adventures of Katė, Žebenkštis, and their expanding family of friends. Each new installment will present fresh challenges—not just physical ones, but emotional and moral dilemmas that resonate with children’s experiences. I envision them embarking on journeys that lead to understanding different cultures and communities, highlighting the importance of empathy and cooperation.
**Elina:** Visually, I’m excited about the creative possibilities ahead! I aim to experiment further with layout and illustrations that invite readers to immerse themselves in the story. I want to create an experience that feels dynamic and engaging, where each turn of the page offers something unique and meaningful, while still anchoring the overarching themes of love and friendship.
**- It seems like you both have a clear vision for your characters and the world they inhabit. Is there a particular message or takeaway you hope to leave with children who read your books?**
**Tomi:** I hope to instill a sense of belonging and the understanding that everyone has worth, regardless of their circumstances. Life can be tough, but through love and friendship, we can lift each other up. I believe the world needs more kindness, and I want readers to feel inspired to be that kindness.
**Elina:** For me, I want children to appreciate the beauty of differences and learn that true friendship transcends boundaries. Through the nuanced expressions in my illustrations, I aim for children to see the story’s emotions clearly; I want them to connect with characters and find bits of themselves reflected in their journeys. Ultimately, I wish for my art to spark curiosity and discussions about empathy in their everyday lives.
Together, we hope to foster a new generation of readers who value love, friendship, and resilience in a complex world.