Same procedure as every year. Time for documentation of the jury. Photographer Stefan Tell gives directions to the members of the jury. The results will be published on our web next week.

Today, the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award jury gathered after the summer. We took the opportunity to ask Chairman Larry Lempert some questions, during one of the breaks.

Hi Larry, how was your summer?
My summer has been absolutely fantastic. I´ve been sailing in the south of Sweden, and of course, done a lot of reading by both Swedish and international writers. Some detective stories slipped by as well.

You have just about returned from IBBY Congress in London. What are your impressions from that visit?
Well, firstly, we have met professionals that we´re working with at the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, that is authors, illustrators and reading promoters. The IBBY Congress is a very important meeting place which gives me inspiration for the fall. A very exciting seminar for me concerned the subject of storytelling. Among the participants were Sonia Nimr, Dashdongdog Jamba and Michael Harvey.

Congratulations to the Greta Renborg marketing award by the way. How do you feel about that?
I´m very happy, but everyone should market libraries. There are books of course, and so much more! The libraries function as a meeting spot for different people from different cultures. For me, libraries are about passion, curiosity and boundlessness.

Last year, the International Library, which you are in charge of, was appointed “The Library of the Year” in Sweden. What´s the key to these successes?
We who work in the library field see the amazing potential that libraries hold. The International Library is a real treasure, where diversity and languages opens up the world for the entire Swedish population. The work of the International Library is built on a base that reflects the diversity of society. That, along with passion, curiosity and boundlessness, are the reasons why we´ve got attention.