Representing the best
Finnish authors abroad
Finnish authors abroad
A series for the children whose faces light up at the sight of a digger or other big machinery and yearn to learn more!
In this detailed picture book series, award-winning author–illustrator Salla Savolainen gives an instructive, fact-filled and fun tours of the work sites relating to construction industry. Each book combines a gently humourous story-driven narrative with accurate factual content. The books follow a working day on a specific site, while detailed illustrations and fact boxes provide clear information about machines, materials and industrial processes.
The humour grows naturally from everyday moments on site and from small character interactions, making complex subjects approachable without ever undermining factual accuracy. Created especially for inquisitive children, the books reflect how young readers engage with the world—through story, close observation and discovery. The layered structure makes the series accessible on a first read and richly rewarding on repeated readings, as new details and visual jokes emerge each time.
Each title focuses on one specific process that shapes children’s everyday surroundings, offering a transparent and engaging introduction to the built environment. The topics covered so far are road construction (Asphalt!), building a bridge (Concrete!), scrap metal recycling (Metal!) and the workings on at a stone quarry (Gravel!). The 2026 title Timber! looks into the processing of wood from the forest into the timber yard.
The series is available in two versions:
hardcover editions for 4+ readers
cardboard books with content modified for 2+ readers
Finnish editions
Czech: Host
Danish: Bogoo
Estonian: Helios
German: Carl Hanser
Norwegian: Bonnier Norsk Forlag
Polish: Czarna Owca
Russian: Albus Corvus
Slovenian: Pipinova Knjiga
Swedish: Rabén & Sjögren
Thai: NAVA
Asfalttia!, WSOY 2021, 48pp, 266x267mm, hardcover, 4+
Asfalttihommissa, WSOY 2023, 26pp, 200x201mm, cardboard, 2+
How is a road built?
This first title takes young readers onto a busy road construction site, following the complete process of building a new road from start to finish.
The road-building process unfolds as a continuous story of the crew at work. From excavators and dump trucks to graders, rollers and asphalt pavers, every machine is shown in action and placed in its proper role.
By combining narrative and visual humour with facts, Asphalt! explains the ins and outs of the very familiar urban sight: a road construction site.
Betonia!, WSOY 2022, 45pp, 268x268mm, hardcover, 4+
Betonihommissa, WSOY 2024, 26pp, 200x201mm, cardboard, 2+
How is concrete made and used?
The second book in the series moves to a concrete mixing plant and a major construction site, revealing how one of the world’s most widely used building materials is produced.
A story-driven visit to the concrete plant provides the narrative backbone, while factual explanations and humorous observational details support children’s understanding of materials, timing and machinery. Cement mixers, pump trucks, loaders and silos are depicted with precision, showing how concrete is mixed, transported and used before it sets.
The balance of storytelling, accurate information and light humour makes Concrete! both informative and enjoyable for repeated shared reading.
Romua!, WSOY 2023, 37pp, 267x268mm, hardcover, 4+
Romuhommissa, WSOY 2025, 28pp, 200x200mm, cardboard, 2+
What really happens to old metal once it is no longer needed?
This book takes readers through a working scrap metal yard, where a simple, humorous storyline guides the reader from one stage of the recycling process to the next. Scrap metal is collected, sorted, cleaned and processed, with powerful machines—handling excavators, wheel loaders and a large shredder system—shown in action.
Factual explanations are embedded throughout the visual narrative, answering children’s questions with clarity and precision, while small visual jokes and character moments keep the tone lively and approachable.
Kiveä!, WSOY 2024, 35pp, 267x267mm, hardcover, 4+
Kivihommissa, WSOY 6/2026, 12pp, cardboard, 2+
How is rock turned into building material?
The fourth instalment takes readers to a quarry, where solid rock is transformed into usable building material.
The process unfolds as a chronological story, from drilling and blasting to transporting and crushing stone into gravel and rubble. Drill rigs, loaders and a gigantic stone crusher are depicted in action, with careful attention to safety procedures and sequencing.
As in the previous titles, factual clarity is paired with gentle humour and rich visual detail, allowing children to understand a complex industrial process through story and observation.
Puuta!, WSOY 2026, 40pp, 267x267mm, hardcover, 4+
An action- and fact-packed picture book that explores the world of wood and timber.
An action-packed picture book that takes children right into the heart of modern forestry, and the process celebrating teamwork, skill, and those mighty machines at work.
The forest echoes with cracking and crashing as the harvester’s cutting head grips tree after tree and saws them cleanly at the base. Zzzzrrrr! Next the branches are cut off the trunk that gets placed alongside others by the forest track. Jimmy and Ziggy the dog are on their way, manoeuvring the timber lorry along the narrow forest track. It takes real skill—and a powerful engine—to keep the heavy vehicle from getting stuck in ground softened by autumn rain.
Salla Savolainen’s detailed illustrations of big forestry machinery, combined with her humorous storytelling, make a winning combination for young—and old—fans.
