Ester Urbala’s new children’s novel imagines parents quitting work

Estonian author Ester Urbala’s new children’s novel, “Tööpõlgurid” (“Work Refusers”), follows parents who wonder what would happen if they stopped going to work, ERR reported. The book was published by Puänt, a publishing house, as a sequel to last year’s “Koolipõlgurid” (“School Refusers”).

Urbala said the first book was her debut children’s novel and that she had not expected much from it. She had hoped that classes of children would read it and discuss school-related topics together, and that it would be available in libraries near their homes.

“I can now say that both dreams came true,” Urbala said, adding that readers had told her the book made them laugh, including during difficult times. “I feel that we could laugh much more. Especially together. It brings people closer.” She also said “Koolipõlgurid” will be published in Italian next year.

Urbala said she had not decided to write a sequel when she finished “Koolipõlgurid”. However, the idea began to take shape at the book’s launch. If children wonder what it would be like not to go to school the next day, she said, parents may also ask themselves what would happen if they did not go to work and perhaps never returned.

“Tööpõlgurid” is intended primarily for children, from about age nine upwards, but Urbala said it is also suitable for families to read together. The book can prompt discussions about how families deal with work and not working, while working-age adults can also read it on their own.

According to Urbala, the new novel contains even more wild adventures than its predecessor, as well as more efforts to repair relationships, surprises and opportunities for the characters to grow closer. Unlike the earlier book’s freezing conditions, the new story takes place during a tropical summer holiday, when the parents are constantly present at home and exhausted by work and responsibility.

Urbala has not yet decided whether the two books will become a longer series. She said there was some expectation of a third instalment involving Laurits, a pair of 93-year-old twin island keepers who have not left their island for 70 years. Their final city adventure, she suggested, could provide material for another book.

“Tööpõlgurid” was illustrated by Ulla Saar, edited by Mari Klein and designed by Einike Soosaar.