Have You Met Farmer Pettson and His Cat Findus?

If not, let me introduce you!

Pettson and Findus is a series of children's books written and illustrated by Swedish author Sven Nordqvist. The humorous books feature a quiet old farmer and his lively cat who live in a small ramshackle farmhouse in the countryside.

Bearded Farmer Pettson may have neighbors who think he is a bit odd, but luckily he has the companionship of a cat named "Findus".

Pettson presumably is a widower - in Pettson Goes Camping he tells of a planned camping trip with his wife in his youth. 

Findus the cat is very child-like:  dressed in green-striped overalls and sometimes wearing a cap, he can stand on his two hind legs - and he can be tricky.

Happily, Pettson and Findus can converse with each other.  But, Findus, unlike Pettson, is aware of other "small creatures" living in the house, who play havoc with Pettson's belongings.

Each humorous story focuses on simple events, such as making pancakes, gardening, going fishing, getting ready for Christmas, and so on.  Because of the antics and humor, these books are especially fun to read-aloud!

The exhibit, aimed at children 5-9, is at Kulturen through September 3, 2017

I was able to hunt down Pettson and Findus at "Kulturen" in Lund, Sweden.  This cultural center is made up of open air museums, with gardens and historic buildings and lots of great exhibitions.

As you enter the historic building that houses the Pettson and Findus exhibit, to the left you'll find a fun interactive play area that the author and illustrator of the books, Sven Nordqvist, helped design.

I saw kids climbing, sliding, exploring, and pretending in all the settings from the books!  There was the boat on a lake, the kitchen, henhouse, and barn...

The other half of the building houses exhibits where kids can see old farm equipment, home furnishings, and things used in past times for everyday country living.

I hope you liked my little blog tour today.  Please go and find some Pettson and Findus books at your local library, if you haven't already.

And please come back - I'm doing a Swedish picture book giveaway bundle in my next post!