Arena Verlag

The Publishing Company and its History

Arena Verlag is one of the major publishing companies for children’s and young adult fiction in Germany. Founded in 1949 by Georg Popp, its place of business has been Würzburg ever since. Georg Popp had been the head of the company for thirty years. Since 1979, Arena Verlag has been a part of the Westermann Publishing Group situated in Braunschweig.

Ever since the company’s establishment, the name Arena has been standing for knowledge and entertainment, for sophisticated, informative, and simultaneously thrilling children’s and young adult fiction. As the first publisher in Germany, Arena launched a paperback series for children and young adults in 1958. In 1981, Arena pioneered in developing a pedagogically thought-out, multilevel concept for learning to read, which is today known as »Bookbear«. Since 1987, the children’s and young adult fiction program of Zurich publishing company Benziger belongs to Arena. In 2000, Arena took over Ensslin Verlag, a publisher founded in 1818 with a program steeped in tradition. Arena started the first own audiobook program in 2006 labeled »Arena audio«. With about 2,000 available titles, Arena Verlag nowadays keeps a diverse range for infants, children, and young adults on hand.

Neu im Frühjahr 2024: Mein Lotta-Leben. Immer dem Panda nach. Alles über Lotta unter https://www.arena-verlag.de/mein-lotta-leben

Alice Pantermüller, Daniela Kohl: Mein Lotta-Leben. Alles Tschaka mit Alpaka! ISBN 978-3-401-60686-6

Program

The world of Arena children’s and young adult books is colorful! From infant to young adult – there’s something to discover for everyone.

Already the youngest immerse in the imaginative world of the »Kiddilight« program, have fun with mandalas or love the stories of »Tilda Appleseed«, »Snöfrid«, »Hieronymus Frogg« or »Strawberry Fairy«. With the »Bookbear«, children make their first own reading advances. Later on, titles like »My life as LOTTA«, »Eulenzauber«, »Woodwalkers« or »Muffin-Club« allure to read for themselves.

In the young adult program, the Arena thrillers stand for goose bumps and suspense. Modern love stories touch the heart. Mystery thrillers as well as the autobiographical series ›Mein Leben‹ cast a spell over their young readers. With their controversial topics, ›Life‹ and ›Life Junior‹ are frequently discussed in class. In the Arena non-fiction section, the ›Library of Knowledge‹ as well as single volumes of high value give an exciting insight into a multitude of interesting topics for different age groups.

Since October 2017, our new arena imprint digi:tales is directed to the fans of mobile reading. Here, digital natives can find appealing eBooks in the four genres »Romance«, »Fantasy«, »Crime & Thriller« and »Science Fiction«, especially fit for reading on the go. Our program offers best entertainment at home, on trips or for the daily commute, with stories to devour or just to take a breather – eBooks in their best form. The new imprint has started with four titles in the genres »Romance«, »Fantasy« and »Crime & Thriller« and is accessible via http://www.arena-digitales.de.

Authors and Illustrators

Isabel Abedi, Katja Alves, David Arnold, John August, Antje Babendererde, Jürgen Banscherus, Rüdiger Betram, Ella Blix, Katja Brandis, Ina Brandt, Claudia Carls, Stefanie Dahle, Hans-Günther Döring, Nina Dulleck, Ilona Einwohlt, Lukas Erler, Andreas Eschbach, Alex Falkner, Willi Fährmann, Neil Gaiman, Kira Gembri, Kerstin Gier, Russel Ginns, Max Held, Beatrix Gurian, Jennifer Alice Jager, KNISTER, Daniela Kohl, Kathrin Lange, Tom Limes, Anna Lott, Frauke Nahrgang, Emily Palmer, Alice Pantermüller, Harald Parigger, Gisa Pauly, June Perry, Friederun Reichenstetter, Anna Ruhe, Jo Nesbø, Andreas H. Schmachtl, Heribert Schulmeyer, Christian Seltmann, Alex T. Smith, Jörg Steinleitner, Stefanie Taschinski, Thomas Thiemeyer, Anja Tuckermann, Andreas Venzke, Günther Wessel, Tania Witte and many more.

Current awards

  • Leipziger Lesekompass 2022 – Andreas H. Schmachtl: Hörnchen und Bär. Haufenweise echt waldige Abenteuer
  • Leipziger Lesekompass 2022 – Henriette Wich / Steffen Gumpert: Team Lupe ermittelt. Der rätselhafte Hundedieb
  • Goldene Leslie 2021 – Thomas Thiemeyer: Worldrunner, Bd. 1: Die Jäger
  • Leipziger Lesekompass 2021 – Björn Berenz und Christoph Dittert: Explorer Team - Das Abenteuer beginnt
  • Ulmer Unke 2021 – Thomas Thiemeyer: WorldRunner (1). Die Jäger
  • KIMI Kinderbuchsiegel 2020 – Ruth Omphalius, Monika Azakli: Klima im Wandel: Was wir jetzt tun können
  • KIMI Kinderbuchsiegel 2020 – Tullio Forgiarini: Leben.nehmen.
  • KIMI Kinderbuchsiegel 2020 – Anna Lott: Opa und der fliegende Hund: Eine Geschichte über Abschied und Tod
    Illustratorin: Anja Grote
  • LovelyBooks Leserpreis 2020 – Tanja Voosen: Die Zuckermeister. Der magische Pakt

Foreign Rights Highlights

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10 Little Owls Don't Want to Go to Bed

  • Katja Alves
  • Illustrated by Andrea Stegmaier
  • Spring 2022, 32 pages, 22.2 x 28.7 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 3+
  • Rights sold to the Netherlands, Ukraine, the English world
  • Website

Today Mummy Owl has given her 10 owlets a flying lesson. But in the evening, when they all fly back to their tree, there’s one extra. So now she must take the little bat to its real home as quickly as possible. But it’s long past bedtime and who will put the little owls to bed?

Sina Starwings (1) The Secret of the Little Forest Fairy

  • Annette Moser
  • Illustrated by Marina Krämer
  • Spring 2024, 32 pages, 22 x 28.5 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 4+
  • All rights available
  • Website

It is the day of the big magic exam. At last, Sina and her fairy friends will be told their fairy titles. Only Sina has a nasty lump in her throat. There’s nothing she’s particularly good at. But then she gets her big chance. The magic Fairy Tree is in danger. And only Sina knows how to cure it…

Kiki Gets Going! Ready, Set, Scribble!

  • Franziska Gehm
  • Illustrated by Fréderic Bertrand
  • Autumn 2023, 100 pages, 16.1 x 21.2 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 6+
  • All rights available
  • Website

School should be great. But Kiki has to sit there in silence. While going to the loo is a super way to escape from boredom! Because Kiki is full of great ideas like how to do cool lavatory art. Only the teacher gets angry and puts Kikis name on a thundercloud which is specially reserved for “naughty children”. At least Kiki is not alone.

Nelumbiya. The Land of Magic Plants

  • Margit Ruile
  • Illustrated by Helge Vogt
  • Autumn 2023, 344 pages, 15.9 x 21.7 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 10+
  • All rights available
  • Website

Tara is an orphan who lives in the mountain town of Ornata. Beyond the mountains lies the forbidden land of Nelumbiya, which is covered with wild and dangerous plants. But when the talking Dandelion visits Tara in Ornata, she senses that he wishes her no harm but wants to warn her about a great danger that is approaching.

Under the Ghost Train

  • Isabel Abedi
  • Spring 2024, 352 pages, 14.8 x 21.0 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 6+
  • All rights available
  • Website

We’re off on a journey by ghost train! It’s all a bit scary for Lorenzo, while Dina is looking forward to the event. But that changes when a real ghost suddenly turns up in the ghost train. He pulls Lorenzo and Dina through a secret hatch into the land beneath the ghost railway – a world full of witches, vampires, and genies in bottles. Will the children succeed in saving the magical world?

Philine and the Oracle Disaster (1)

  • Lilly Silver
  • Illustrated by Simona Ceccarelli
  • Spring 2024, 224 pages, 14.8 x 21.0 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 8+
  • All rights available
  • Website

It’s arrived at last: Philine’s 11th birthday and she will learn what kind of oracle she is going to become. But why is everyone behaving so strangely after the Grand Oracle Show? And why won’t anyone tell Philine the meaning of her own personal oracle motto? How on earth can she learn in peace how to see into the future?

Donnie & Jan. Pretty Good Brothers. The Gangster Cows Attack (1)

  • Sabine Zett
  • Illustrated by Daniel Stieglitz
  • Autumn 2023, 192 pages, 14.5 x 21.1 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 9+
  • All rights available
  • Website

Dominic Otto Nicholas, Count of Traubenborn-Hayn, known as Donnie, can’t believe that his father has decided to move out into the country with him. No more private school, no more posh car. How on earth is Donnie supposed to find his way around? And then there’s Jan, Dad’s girlfriend’s son.

Glimmer Gossip. A mystery and a perfect disaster (1)

  • Emma Flint
  • Autumn 2023, 328 pages, 14.9 x 21.1 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 10+
  • All rights available
  • Website

Lexi Glimmer is determined to make a fresh start at Sandsgarden, an elite boarding school. To that end, she has even taken over editing the boring school magazine. But nothing goes according to plan.People suspect her of having posted some nasty gossip on the blackboard. In order to prove her innocence, she needs to find the real culprit.

The Ruby Circle. All our Secrets (1)

  • Jana Hoch
  • Autumn 2023, 416 pages, 14.8 x 21.2 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 14+
  • Rights sold to Spain
  • Website

When Louisa wins one of the rare scholarships to Highclare Academy, she hopes her life will have a new beginning, that at last she'll be protected against the lies that have turned her life into a nightmare.But behind the walls the Academy is seething with unrest and everybody has a secret.

Today I’ll talk to him (1)

  • Bianca Wege
  • Autumn 2023, 384 pages, 13.7 x 20.7 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 16+
  • All rights available
  • Website

Layla is faced with a challenge: should she get to meet heartthrob Asher Woods in real life? Because at the moment they are only messaging each other in a role-playing Sims game. But just as she is about to take the plunge, Asher’s archenemy Henry comes into her life and throws her emotional world into turmoil. Who does her heart really belong to?

Zefira. She should never have existed

  • Thomas Thiemeyer
  • Illustrated by Timo Grubing
  • Spring 2024, 420 pages, 16.3 x 21.7 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 14+
  • All rights available
  • Website

Delivering food in Neo-Hongkong is no easy job. When Maddie is attacked by four youths and thrown from a window and faces imminent death, she hears a voice from within her head. It belongs to someone named “Zefira”, who now takes control of Maddie’s body. But who is she? And why is Maddie suddenly being hunted?

Meet me in the Deep Blue

  • Antje Babendererde
  • Spring 2024, 392 pages, 21.5 x 15.5 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 14+
  • All rights available
  • Website

The wild waves lash the shores of the little Hebridean island of Orasay, where Leonie is seeking refuge with her mother. By contrast, Leonie herself is still and silent, because she is carrying a secret. But when she meets a boy who swims with a dolphin, her curiosity is aroused.

Events

All events in German language!

Currently no events. Visit the publisher’s website for up-to-date events (visit website).

Contact

Arena Verlag GmbH

Rottendorfer Str. 16
97074 Würzburg

Germany

Phone +49 (0)931 796 44-0

info@arena-verlag.de
www.arena-verlag.de
https://www.instagram.com/arena_verlag/?hl=de

Contact Person

Managing DirectorAlexandra Schönleben

Sales Iris Haas

Program Isa-Maria Röhrig-Roth, Stefanie Letschert and Nikoletta Enzmann

Public Relations Tatjana Herold (-72)
presse@arena-verlag.de

Events Tatjana Herold (-72)
lesungen@arena-verlag.de

Foreign Rights and Licences (-62)
lizenzen@arena-verlag.de