Quest : Stories of Journeys From Around Europe by the Aarhus 39

Quest, a volume of seventeen stories aimed at children, will whisk you away from dark bedrooms to new dimensions and fantasy realms, via the Russian countryside and modern Rome. You’ll encounter talking field mice, invisible friends, flying kraiks, white elephants, runaway books and wardrobes that act as magic portals. Hopping across all sorts of genres and showcasing authors from all over Europe – from the Basque country and Cyprus to Iceland and the Czech Republic – this book is certain to broaden horizons and engage the reader in all kinds of fun.

Hay Festival is delighted to present Aarhus 39, a two-volume collection of the best emerging writers for young readers from across wider Europe. Three of among Europe’s best loved children’s authors – Matt Haig (UK), Kim Fupz Aakeson (Denmark) and Ana Cristina Herreros (Spain) – have selected thirty-nine writers under the age of forty, and invited them to write an original story on the theme of “journey”. These new stories, together with the specially commissioned illustrations that accompany them, are a celebration of great new writing for young people and reflect issues facing them in contemporary Europe. Reading stories of other people’s lives and journeys extends understanding and empathy to new generations.