Freies Geistesleben

© Nathalie Dion, »Die Wale und wir«

The Publishing House and its History

Verlag Freies Geistesleben was founded in 1947 and is one of the leading publishers of anthroposophy and Waldorf education for adults. Since the 1970s, it has also been publishing books for children and young people. What began with fairy tale books developed under the motto "books that grow with you" into a programme that ranges from very young to all-age.

Program

The publisher's books are intended to promote and accompany the child's spiritual development, to encourage them to read, to fire the imagination, to tickle the mind and to embrace the wonders like the wounds of the world in two book covers.
In addition to picture books with modern illustrations – which delight not only young children – there is a wide selection of fantastic, historical and contemporary stories.
Great importance is attached to a careful layout and production in Europe that is as climate neutral as possible.

Authors and Illustrators

Jef Aerts, David Almond, Isabelle Arsenault, Rodney Bennett, Marta Abad Blay, Silvia Borando, Tamara Bos, Claudia Burmeister, Coco & June, Lydia Corry, Dave Cousins, India Desjardins, Charlotte Dematons, Linda Dielemans, Nathalie Dion, Tonke Dragt, Elbautorinnen, Sarah Ellis, Dagmar Fink, Diane & Christyan Fox, Graham Gardner, Sally Gardner, Alan Garner, Katja Gehrmann, Mordicai Gerstein, Ben Guterson, Rick de Haas, Annemarie van Haeringen, Iris Hannema, Frances Hardinge, Leo Hoffmann, Michaela Holzinger, Polly Horvath, Eva Jöckel, Jean Jullien, Jon Klassen, Angela Kočonda, Iain Lawrence, Jan de Leeuw, Mattias De Leeuw, John Lennon, Christiane Lesch, Martijn van der Linden, Elisabeth Longridge, Christa Ludwig, Ross MacKenzie, Birte Müller, Kate Milford, Jochem Myjer, Benjamin J. Myers, Zazu Navarro, G. Neri, Claire A. Nivola, Pat O’Shea, Inge Ott, Jean E. Pendziwol, Milja Praagman, Anthony Read, Werner Rohner, Michael Rosen, Gareth Ryans, Erna Sassen, Marie-Thérèse Schins, Janneke Schotveld, Bettina Stietencron, Lauren St John, Harmen van Straaten, Jakob Streit, Rosemary Sutcliff, Sandra Theumert, Marit Törnqvist, Lobke van Aar, Max Velthuijs, Kaatje Vermeire, Dolf Verroen, Marco Viale, Marc Veerkamp, Jeska Verstegen, Nancy Vo, Brigitte Werner, Bette Westera, Sylvia Weve, Linda Wolfsgruber, Octavie Wolters and many others.

Current awards

  • Buchempfehlungen der Deutschen Akademie für Kinder- und Jugendliteratur 2023 – Bilderbuch des Monats – August 2023
    Birte Müller: Die Kartoffel und der Sinn des Lebens
  • Deutscher Gartenbuchpreis 2023 – (2nd Place)
    Birte Müller: Die Kartoffel und der Sinn des Lebens
  • Die Schönsten Deutschen Bücher 2023 – Octavie Wolters: Das Lied des Stars
  • Drei für unsere Erde 2023 – Mai
    Octavie Wolters: Das Lied des Stars
  • Kranichsteiner Jugendliteratur-Stipendien 2023 – Werner Rohner: Mehr als ein Wunsch
  • James Krüss Preis für internationale Kinder- und Jugendliteratur 2022 – David Almond (Autor u.a. von Bone Music, Skellig, Mina) & seine Übersetzerin Alexandra Ernst
  • KIMI Kinderbuchsiegel 2020 – Marco Viale: Ich bin der König
  • KIMI Kinderbuchsiegel 2020 – Nancy Vo: Ranger
  • KIMI Kinderbuchsiegel 2020 – Nancy Vo: Der Outlaw
  • KIMI Kinderbuchsiegel 2020 – Polly Horvath: Super reich
    Übersetzerin: Anne Brauner
  • KIMI Kinderbuchsiegel 2020 – G.Neri: *Tru und Nelle

Preview Catalogues

Foreign Rights Highlights

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The Little Yellow House

  • Leo Hoffmann
  • Illustrated by Claudia Burmeister
  • Spring 2022, 112 pages, 16.7 x 23.9 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 7+
  • All rights available

It can’t go on like this. No one pays attention to it – and besides, everyone quarrels and is only interested in themselves. The little yellow house therefore decides to leave its family and find a new home as a house. But in its search for the best of all locations, it does not immediately make the right decisions. A reason to give up? No! Because every place it settles in has something good as well as something bad. It courageously continues its search, always open to new things. It gets to know different landscapes and the animals living there. And at the end of an adventurous journey, it finally finds its place. Would you like to know where it is ...?

"The Little Yellow House” is a playful children’s book about conflicts and solutions, courage and gentleness, which is imaginatively complemented and expanded by Claudia Burmeister’s expressive pictures.

Friendship Book. Getting to Know Animals and Protecting Wildlife

  • Eva Jöckel and Sandra Theumert
  • Autumn 2021, 112 pages, 22.5 x 22 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 6+
  • All rights available

Where would we all be without our good friends? And what would this world be without all the wonderful animals on the different continents and with all their special features?

The atmospheric pictures by Eva Jöckel and the appealing graphics by Sandra Theumert are combined with the entertaining and informative texts by the two authors to create an artfully designed friendship book. In this way, children learn interesting facts about endangered animal species and how to protect them. Furthermore, the children can fill in the fun questionnaire, write a little bit about themselves and share their interests.

Grumpy the Wizard

  • Brigitte Werner
  • Illustrated by Birte Müller
  • Autumn 2008, 107 pages, 16.7 x 23.9 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 5+
  • All rights available

When Grumpy the wizard rages and rages, all the animals in the forest hold their breath and hide; even the trees tremble with fear. Only a small, carefree, dishevelled rabbit is not deterred and lands unexpectedly right in front of the wizard’s house.
Will he manage to resist the dark magician and counter his raging madness?
A story about intense, elemental feelings of fear, anger, loneliness, trust and tenderness, told with a lot of humour and an almost inexhaustible delight in the poetic and pictorial possibilities of language, together with wonderful illustrations by Birte Müller.

A bestseller in the programme of Verlag Freies Geistesleben with over 60,000 copies sold!

The Seventh Saga

  • Christa Ludwig
  • Illustrated by Henriette Sauvant

Molly’s Super Duper Day!

  • Brigitte Werner
  • Illustrated by Claudia Burmeister
  • Autumn 2019, 32 pages, 21 x 27 cm
  • Picturebook
  • Ages 4+
  • All rights available

When Molly woke up that early morning she knew it would be a very special day. A super duper day! She may be a little chubby. But Molly wasn’t going to let that spoil her day. And besides Mummy had given her five magic carrots to see her through her day. A super duper day! And indeed she had no fears of that growling, barking Hercules. Not even of that bully boy Freddy! This was her day A super duper day!

Brigitte Werner and Claudia Burmeister tell a glowing tale of finding confidence in the face of adversity A super duper tale!

Little Fox and the Big Blue Sky

  • Brigitte Werner
  • Illustrated by Claudia Burmeister
  • Autumn 2015, 48 pages, 21 x 27 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 5+
  • All rights available
  • Website

Little Fox is very sad. Grandfather Fox has died and Little Fox misses him very badly. But Father Fox lets him know that in the Big Blue Sky Grandfather Fox is being very well looked after by GreatBigFox. Then Little Fox meets Squirrel and feeling rather sad again Squirrel reassures him that in the Big Blue Sky Grandfather Fox is being very well looked after by GreatBigSquirrel. Oh, that is a surprise! And with each encounter with Snail, Woodpecker, Frog and Owl Little Fox hears about how in the Big Blue Sky GreatBigSnail, GreatBigWoodpecker, GreatBigFrog and GreatBigOwl are all looking after Grandfather Fox!

Bobblebob and Snout

  • Brigitte Werner
  • Illustrated by Claudia Burmeister
  • Spring 2016, 80 pages, 17 x 21 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 5+
  • All rights available
  • Website

One day Bobblebob the Elephant hears a knock on his front door and opens it to discover Snout the Rat seeking asylum from a horde of cats. It takes quite some time for the two to become acquainted with each other as both begin to learn about each other’s fears and longings. And then, when Snout makes a brave outing into the wild wide world and suddenly disappears Bobblebob has to summon all his courage and ingenuity to find and save his friend. – This is a charming, dramatic tale of two very unlikely friends!

Denni, Klara, and the House No. 5

  • Brigitte Werner
  • Illustrated by Birte Müller
  • Spring 2011, 149 pages, 17 x 21 cm
  • Hardcover
  • Ages 7+
  • Rights sold to South Korea, Armenia
  • Website

A tale about a special friendship, the discovery and the delight of being different, and many astonishing wonders.

»New tenants move into Klara’s house: Denni, toy rabbit Rübe, and Denni’s dad. Denni, who has Down syndrome, and Klara quickly become friends and turn the house upside down … Told in a laid-back manner the story deals with the topic of otherness and describes a wonderful friendship.« White Ravens 2012

Little Ben

  • Brigitte Werner
  • Illustrated by Claudia Burmeister
  • Autumn 2018, 32 pages, 30 x 22 cm
  • Picturebook
  • 4+
  • All rights available
  • Website

One fine day Benedict doesn’t want to be Daddy’s “Benny” anymore, nor Granny’s “Little Ben”, and certainly not Mummy’s “Bunny Ben”! So he decides to change his name. Every day of the week he wants to be somebody else, someone new, someone nobody has met before: On Monday Grumpy Green, on Tuesday Smelly Spleen,
on Wednesday Creepy Crawly … an so on. Every day of the week Benedict chooses a new name for himself until … until, come Sunday he’s quite quite tired of being someone else every day and decides to be Benedict again!

»Little Ben« is a charming picture book about a little boy’s wish to change and yet remain himself.

Events

All events in German language!

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

Contact

Verlag Freies Geistesleben und Urachhaus GmbH

Landhausstraße 82
70190 Stuttgart

Germany

Phone +49 (0)711 285 32 00

info@geistesleben.com
www.geistesleben.com

Contact Person

Publisher
Maria A. Kafitz (-20)
maria.kafitz@geistesleben.com
Claudius Weise (-29)
claudius.weise@geistesleben.com

Editorial Department
Maria A. Kafitz (-20)
kafitz@geistesleben.com
Martin Lintz (-22)
martin.lintz@geistesleben.com
Paulina Suska (-23)
paulina.suska@geistesleben.com

Sales
Simone Patyna (-32)
simone.patyna@geistesleben.com

Production
Bianca Bonfert (-37)
bianca.bonfert@geistesleben.com
Thomas Neuerer (-41)
thomas.neuerer@geistesleben.com

Foreign Rights Dagmar Seiler (-26)
dagmar.seiler@geistesleben.com

Public Relations
Paulina Suska (-23)
paulina.suska@geistesleben.com