“With the cat in tow, Pettson plodded up the hillside behind the tool shed. Here and there he cut some fir branches and laid them on the sled. When it was full they turned to go back down again. But all of a sudden, Pettson slipped on a stone: the sled flew forward and hit the old man in the back of his knees so that he fell back on the branches. Gathering speed down the slope, the sled hurtled straight into the stone wall and tipped over. “The cat was thrilled and whooped, ‘Again!’ “But the old man didn’t find it quite so amusing. Moaning and groaning, he struggled up out of the snow. ‘Oh, oo, ow!’ he cried. ‘I’m hurt. I can’t stand on my foot.’ “The cat was dumbfounded. ‘You mustn’t swear the day before Christmas Eve,’ was all he could think of saying.” (from the book) It is the day before Christmas Eve and there is lots to do but disaster strikes when Pettson sprains his ankle. How can they celebrate Christmas now—with no tree, ham, meatballs or gingerbread? For all their resourcefulness, Findus and Pettson are close to giving up, when suddenly there is a knock on the door... A wonderful tale of kindness and sharing, about how Christmas can bring out the best in people—and in cats, naturally! (Ages 3–7) Sven Nordqvist (b. April 30, 1946) is a Swedish writer and illustrator of children's books and is known best for his series Pettson and Findus, about old farmer Pettson and Findus, his talented cat. Nordqvist was born in Helsingborg and grew up in Halmstad, Sweden. He originally wanted to be an illustrator but was rejected by several art schools, so he studied architecture at Lund Institute of Technology and worked for a while there, lecturing on architecture. Meanwhile, he continued to look for work as an illustrator of advertisements, posters, and picture books. In 1983, he won first prize in a children's book competition and since then has worked exclusively as an author and illustrator of children's books. During his career, Nordqvist has received awards in Sweden and Germany. His Pettson and Findus books are especially popular in Germany, where the characters are known as Pettersson and Findus. In Danish they are named Peddersen and Findus. In Finnish they are Pesonen and Viiru, and in a few English translations, Festus and Mercury. In 2007, Sven Nordqvist won the Augustpriset literary award in the children's books category, for his book Var är min syster? (Where is my sister?). In 1992, he won the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis (German Youth Literature Prize). He is married and has two adult sons.
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