För finlandssvenska unga läsare, på deras språk

Abstract

For Finland-Swedish Young Readers, in Their Language: The Evaluation of Literary Multilingualism in Reviews of Finland-Swedish Young Adult Novels from the Early 2000s The article is a study of the evaluation of literary multilingualism in reviews of Finland-Swedish YA novels from the early 2000s. It investigates the evaluation of multilingualism in the literary field and, furthermore, contributes to the field of research into children’s literature reviews. The material consists of reviews of Annika Luther’s Ivoria (2005) and Brev till världens ände (Letters to the end of the world, 2008), as well as of Marianne Backlén’s Kopparorm (Copper snake, 2008), in Finland-Swedish newspapers and periodicals. The novels all feature literary multilingualism, for example instances of Finnish, specific Finland-Swedish linguistic traits, and/or multilingual slang, and these features are discussed in the majority of the reviews. With a theoretical background in literary multilingualism studies, children’s literature research, and studies of literary reviews, and by using textual analysis, the article shows that classic questions regarding literary multilingualism, authenticity, and comprehensibility, as well as different readerships, feature heavily in the material. There are also new elements to the discussion regarding the temporal durability of literary multilingualism and the age gap between author and readers. The reviewers’ evaluation of literary multilingualism is mixed; however, literary multilingualism is recognized as a valuable and multifaceted literary device in Finland-Swedish YA literature of the early 2000s.

Keywords

• literary multilingualism
• Finland-Swedish children’s literature
• literary criticism
• reviews
• Marianne Backlén
• Annika Luther