[REVIEW] My Happy Life

Title: My Happy Life
Original Title: Mitt lyckliga liv
Author: Rose Lagercrantz
Illustrator: Eva Eriksson
Publisher: Gecko Press
ISBN-10: 1877579351
ISBN-13: 9781877579356
Age Range: 6-12
Number of Pages: 134
Release Date: January 2013

Blurb: Dani is probably the happiest person she knows.
She’s happy because she’s going to start school. She's been waiting to go to school her whole life.

Then things get even better—she meets Ella. Dani and Ella stick together through wet and dry, sun and rain, thick and thin. They do everything together.

But then things start to happen that Dani isn’t prepared for…

Review: Being Swedish, I have grown up reading books Eva Eriksson has illustrated. I have always liked her work, and was happy to see an English translation of a book she had worked on. Rose Lagercrantz is a new acquaintance, and I need to check out her work in the original Swedish.

That said, I really liked this chapter book. It tackles subjects such as loss, making friends and growing up in a very good way. The main character Dani (named Dunne in the original, so I can understand why it was changed) is very likable, and you can't help wondering what will happen next. The minor characters are very likable as well. Eva Eriksson's illustrations do not disappoint - they are nicely done and fits the style of the book.

Julia Marshall's translation works really well. Even though I still need to read the Swedish original, I'm sure she has done a good job with it.

All in all, this is a good book. I just wanted it to be longer.... For the intended age group, though, I think it is just the right length.

Rating: 4 bookshelves out of 5.

Disclaimer: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by Gecko Press for the purpose of a review.