Norway

IBBY Norway was founded in 1956 as an independent organisation to promote information about literature for children and young people. IBBY Norway has approximately 350 members who are interested in literature for children and young people: librarians, teachers, booksellers, editor, organisations and colleges. The board comprises 8 members who work voluntarily. The Section is financially dependent on grants from the Norwegian Department of Culturen and the annual grants enable us to pay our IBBY membership fee and the annual IBBY Norway seminars.

IBBY Norway arranges annual seminars on literature for children and young people in more than 25 cities all over the country. These seminars offer an overview of previous year’s books published in Norwegian and are mainly attended by librarians, teachers and book shop employees. In conjunction with the seminars there are book exhibitions and occasionally speeches by local authors.

Our membership magazine Barnebokforum is published quarterly with information about these seminars, reviews of current books and other news. We also have a website at www.ibby.no

IBBY Norway cooperates with the four other Nordic sections; Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Sweden. Every year we have a Nordic meeting and the Nordic group publishes the journal Nordisk Blad (Nordic Magazine), edited by the sections in turns.

IBBY Norway has its own prize, called Askeladden, which was first awarded in 1981 on the occasion of the 25 year jubilee. This prize can be awarded to authors, illustrators, critics, scholars or institutions, for efforts in promoting literature for children. The prize is an original drawing by a Norwegian illustrator.