The Beltz Publishing House was founded in 1841 in Bad Langensalza and has been publishing not only books for children and teens since 1971, but also non-fiction books and reference books, the social science program Beltz Juventa and specialized books and magazines covering psychology and education, including Germany’s leading magazine on psychology, »Psychologie Heute«.
In 1971, publisher Dr. Manfred Beltz Rübelmann founded the children’s and youth book program Beltz & Gelberg, which was directed until 1997 by Hans-Joachim Gelberg. In 1986 the paperback book series ›Gulliver‹ was founded and 2004 the most successful paperback picture book series ›MINIMAX‹ was added. In 2016 the Beltz Group celebrated their company's 175th anniversary. In 2002 the publishing group acquired the extensive book rights from Middelhauve and in 2012 all the titles from the Swiss picture and children’s book publishing house, Bajazzo.
Every two years the publishing group awards the Peter-Härtling-Preis. An independent jury selects the winner from unpublished children’s and youth book manuscripts. The winning manuscript is later published by Beltz & Gelberg.
The whole spectrum of children’s and youth literature ranging from picture and children’s books to teen and non-fiction books is covered by the publishing group. Many well-known and successful authors and illustrators published their first books by Beltz & Gelberg: Jutta Bauer, Peter Härtling, Nikolaus Heidelbach, Janosch, Klaus Kordon, Erwin Moser, Christine Nöstlinger, Mirjam Pressler, Rafik Schami, Axel Scheffler…
Over the course of 50 years, further names have been added to the list: Martin Baltscheit, Zoran Drvenkar, Christian Duda, Christina Erbertz, Wieland Freund, Doro Göbel, Lena Hach, Sybille Hein, Helme Heine, Stefanie Höfler, Jörg Isermeyer, Peter Knorr, Stephan Knösel, Labor Ateliergemeinschaft, Leo Lionni, Salah Naoura, Korky Paul, Alois Prinz, Gerda Raidt, Verena Reinhardt, Ingo Siegner, Philip Waechter, Katrin Wiehle, Martina Wildner...
Besides award-winning and popular picture books and novels for children and teens, small as well as bestselling series shape the program: Katrin Wiehle’s Naturwelt, the 100% sustainable book series for children aged 3, picture books by successful pair Axel Scheffler and Julia Donaldson, witty stories for first readers »Lust auf Lesen«, the »Eliot & Isabella«-book series by Ingo Siegner, the German editions of the bestseller fantasy series »Warrior Cats« by Erin Hunter, selected non-fiction books about nature and society and the activity doodle books by the artists’ studio cooperation Labor Ateliergemeinschaft.
In 1986 Gulliver was founded as a paperback program for Beltz & Gelberg. In the 35 years since it has developed into an independent program with a strong focus on the promotion of reading. Gulliver’s mission is to make stories of different genres accessible to all children and teens, as reading is a basic prerequisite for social participation. Therefore, Gulliver publishes enjoyable stories of quality on a variety of subjects that affect young readers. The program features novels for 5-16 year olds, stories written in a simple form for readers aged 10 and above, school readings and novels translated into »Einfache Sprache« as well as the series »Super lesbare Bücher« for children and teens with reading difficulties.
At Beltz|Der KinderbuchVerlag (The Children’s Publisher), classics like »Der kleine Angsthase« which characterized the children’s literature scene of the former German Democratic Republic are re-published. Authors include Benno Pludra, Hannes Hüttner, Eva Strittmatter and Werner Heiduczek as well as the illustrators Werner Klemke, Gerhard Lahr, Ingeborg Meyer-Rey, Elizabeth Shaw and many more.
Children like to imagine their future; they wish for an animal kindergarten or real amphibian skin, dream of “roller coasters instead of motorways” or of chewing gum against sadness.
This book is a smorgasbord of professions, family plans, inventions, utopias. It is not only full of crazy ideas and imaginative life plans, but it is also highly contagious: it makes children want to spin around without restraint in order to shape their world.
Raccoon wants to bake an apple pie. But because he has no eggs, he goes to Fox, who needs a ladder. They walk to Badger. He has everything. But even he needs help – from Bear. So the four of them (along with Crow) move on through meadows, nibble blackberries and find Bear with a fishing rod at the brook.
One morning there is an excavator in front of Mr. Badger’s building. Mr. Badger is an inventor and Rocket is his best friend. A nature adventure park is to be built here, and they have to get out! Immediately! “And now? Where do we go?” asks Mr. Badger.
A humorous read-aloud story about moving to the city.
Mornings are hectic in the family and on the streets because everyone has to get going. Work calls! But what does “going to work” really mean? Some occupations are easy to see: people marvel at the crane operator, working at dizzy heights, and the noisy garbage collector in any case. But what does one do all day in an office? Inspired by children’s questions, Mieke Scheier casts a multi-perspective look at Work. Her tiny pictures and concise texts are curiously questioning, amazingly blunt and delightfully humorous. A working pleasure for the whole family.
At grandma’s you can eat on the sofa, at your best friend’s everyone plays in the kitchen and your cousin has two rooms, one at each parent’s place. Every child knows that homes can be very different. What defines them are familiar smells and sounds, familiar language or small rituals. What about people who don’t have a permanent home? Who have to or want to leave their home? Can you choose where you live? And how does one begin to feel at home there? A thought-provoking non-fiction book about how we can shape our coexistence in an inclusive and environmentally sustainable way.
The octopus: barely researched, a loner, inscrutable, superior to its environment – a bit like an alien. And a bit like Fabienne, 16.
Fabienne has just broken up with her boyfriend and thus also lost her friends. Seeking help, she makes an appointment with a psychiatrist – and learns her diagnosis: Asperger’s. Thank you very much! But she can cope with it, and now others have to do the same! Self-determined, she tries to find new friends – and a sex life as well.
Kittens, it is said, are curious, playful and love canned fish. Axel Scheffler takes great pleasure in summing up all the cat wisdom conceived by Frantz Wittkamp. Whether cats play catch with mice or celebrate birthdays with rhubarb juice, they are always in good spirits, and enjoy going into the forest and singing.
The climate crisis, animal welfare, justice. Children have a clear position on these issues and demand change. When is something finally going to happen and why is it so difficult for adults to change? Gerda Raidt explores these children’s questions through many pictures and short texts and reveals the global dimensions behind our food, our clothing, our mobility and energy production. In doing so, it becomes clear that processes that happen “far away” are directly related to our actions here and now. And in spite of obstacles, a new start is possible.
Ada sits angrily in the moving van waiting for her parents, when suddenly a sheep jumps into the driver’s seat. Lilli, the sheep with a nose ring and leopard pattern, hijacks the van along with Ada in order to free the chickens from the chicken factory. Free the chickens! For Ada and the daredevil sheep, a wild and crazy journey into adventure begins. As it happens, luck is always on her side even when Ada meets Pepper, a boy who lives in an old observatory, on the way. A wonderfully comical story told with lots of funny pictures.
When piano student Theo meets the charismatic Aida, his world view collapses. Aida fights along with ZUKUNFT (FUTURE) against the power structures at the academy. The students denounce abuses, want to shake things up and celebrate life. Fascinated, Theo lets himself be carried away by Aida’s fiery speeches and follows the daring actions of ZUKUNFT (FUTURE). Until he experiences something terrible. What remains of their ideals and his feelings? Theo stands against Aida and will fight in his own way for himself and ZUKUNFT (FUTURE).
It literally goes round and round in this book. Life cycles show how an apple seed grows into a tree with apples. How a tadpole becomes a frog that lays eggs, out of which small tadpoles hatch. It is like magic: something grows, transforms and turns into something new! Life cycles are a fascinating creation of nature, for nothing is wasted. Humans try to copy it Yesterday’s newspaper is taken to make paper for tomorrow’s newspaper. And which route do the deposit bottles take? A 360° reading experience to discover, turn and understand!
The rooster is loose on Bieleburg!
A nasty plan full of magic and sorcery. Strange things are happening on Bieleburg: a small cat almost drowns in the castle moat and a black rooster is supposed to have laid an egg. What is the superstitious lord of the castle, wizard Medardus, up to? Animals and ghosts are worried and send the foundling cat, Krispin, and his friend, Little Chicken, to the castle to find out what Medardus is up to. But that is not going to be easy because while Krispin weighs everything up, his companion always jumps right into the middle of the action ...
• A humorous, turbulent story with lovable main characters
• A world full of magic and superstition
• Warm-hearted illustrations
Wieland Freund lives with his family in Berlin. Among others, the following books by him have been published by Beltz & Gelberg: Wecke niemals einen Schrat! (Never Wake a Forest Demon), Träum niemals von der Wilden Jagd! (Never Dream of the Wild Hunt), the three volumes of Törtel, die Schildkröte aus dem McGrün (Toertel, the Turtle from Mcgreen) and Nemi und der Hehmann (Nemi and the Hehmann).
Sabine Mielke, born in Berlin in 1967, first worked as advertising engineer, studied art in Berlin and decided to work as freelance illustrator under the name Juniemond in 2011. Together with her three dogs she lives in Berlin.
The squirrel takes us into its world and, on 7 double pages, shows us how and where it lives, what it eats and what it is especially good at. Warm-hearted illustrations and short texts explain basic connections and inter-relationships between flora and fauna. With an awareness of nature conservation and sustainability, printed with natural inks on ecological cardboard, this is our 100% nature book.
• Discovering nature on your doorstep
• Inside and outside 100% natural
• Complex interrelationships are explained in an easily understandable way
Katrin Wiehle likes tea, pencils and foxes. She was born in 1982 in Hannover and studied communication design in Kiel. A Fulbright scholarship brought her to the United States in 2008, where she has lived since with her husband, son Oskar (age 2) and cat. She has worked as a freelance illustrator since 2009 and received the Talented Young Artist’s Prize from the German Academy for Children’s and Youth Literature in 2011 for her picture book debut, Professor Pfeffers tierisches Abenteuer. Additionally, her nature book, Mein kleiner Wald / My Little Forest was awarded most beautiful book by Stiftung Buchkunst in Germany.
Long before Vida was born, her parents knew that she would be different. She defies the cold in order to watch the lake freeze over, steals honey from the bees and leads the dead towards light. Her aunts teach her languages, science, history and the 12 Mudras of banishment. Nevertheless, Vida is unprepared when she discovers evil. The battle for her soul begins and time is out of joint.
Is it really getting warmer? How can you even feel a one degree difference? Children want to understand what climate change means. The circumstances are explained in descriptive pictures and short texts. Why are there different climate zones on Earth? How does the greenhouse effect work? How do we know what the climate was like a long time ago? It is also demonstrated how our everyday actions influence the climate. And how each of us can protect our planet!
Helsin is small and flexible like a grasshopper and always in a good mood. Up until now, she has only had a tiny problem: Sometimes, when things are not going as she wants them to, she has a big tantrum. Like on the day that Louis comes to the class and mumbles a mocking rhyme about her name. And then Helsin simply steals his Fiji iguana, which turns into a real problem for her. How can she get out of this mess?
The Angel family lives in heaven, the Devils in hell. They avoid each other as much as possible. Yet one day, the children run into each other and become friends. Their parents are horrified and try to prevent this friendship with all their might. Their children, however, show them how wonderful life can be when differences team up to perform miracles! Helme Heine nimbly tells this with humor.
An exciting day in the life of a two-year-old. Time to get up and get dressed, go to daycare, play outside and help shop at the grocery store, receive visitors and finally go through the bedtime ritual in the evening. Clear colours and shapes enable children to easily match pictures to terms and the pages with more action invite them to tell stories and gaze at together. This is an easy way to learn new vocabulary and help children understand daily routines.
Mucker wants to escape from his Aunt Heidi, a real clean freak, and runs to the forest, where he experiences exciting adventures with his new friends – Raisin, the field mouse, Martin Mole and Berta, the lady elephant. This tale is told in juicy language and with endearing details. Together they get to the roots of the secret of Mrs. Owl’s turban, from which her yellow eyes flash, survive a storm and get drunk on woodruff. Everything could be so wonderful, if only the viscious, trap-setting fox didn’t exist!
Many different animals live inside the barn and on the pasture, with baby animals running all around getting into mischief. The tractor rides over the fields, where crops and vegetables grow and the pig secretly chews on a beet. The farmer takes a nap after lunch in the garden, between the humming bees and fragrant flowers, while his wife sells fresh fruit and vegetables in the farm shop.
Time to go to bed! A little girl finds a piece of candy. Should she eat it? Or rather not? This situation causes an inner turmoil carried to the extremes with succulent language and space-consuming illustrations.
»Hey, watch out!« Kasimir yells. »Oh, I’m sorry,« Elke replies in a fright. A cake that almost runs one over has to be tested, so in a wink, the two find themselves in Uwe’s cafe. The cafe is soon filled with guests, because thanks to Elke and Kasimir, there is not only cake and coffee, but also great company. Elke takes care of everyone, just not herself. It is only when her heart misses a beat and starts to act up and she is no longer there, everyone realizes how little they know about her.
A story that seems simple, yet has so many complex facets.
Friedrich Snapdragon, who comes from a long line of famous bumblebee riders, is initially not at all happy about having Brumsel, chief of the secret service, accompany him to the north of the country to spy. When it turns out that the bewitching Queen Ophrys is a dangerous despot, great danger threatens. Things start to happen thick and fast, and after several voltes, all the insects, small animals and other living creatures join forces to render the queen harmless and to prevent the great war of Skarland.
A breathtaking debut of an extraordinary writer.
Frantz Wittkamp’s »Foundlings« follow a long tradition of nonsense and aphorisms – wonderful pieces of worldly wisdom about people, animals and other strange creatures – expertly rhymed, very amusing and sometimes also sad. Axel Scheffler’s amazing illustrations help see how playfully cunning and ironic they can be from time to time.
»On the ground right next to me, a big black animal you see. Sometimes it licks my cheek, for we’ve known each other over a week.«
This book opens up a colourful world where you can see how people practice their beliefs. The seek and find pictures show how people practice the five world religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam) in such a direct, intuitive way that you get the feeling you are hearing the babble of voices and music at a celebration or breathing in the smells of the market. The diversity among one religion thus becomes tangible.
The additional booklet offers facts on the 40 most important scenes of each picture.
It is impossible for Lina to go to the bathroom. Papa has to understand that. Behind the door there is a hole. She could fall into it! And a monster sitting next to it! Not only that, there is also an owl that might wake up. And rabbits, a waterfall, butterflies... and a lion! Heinz Janisch wonderfully describes how clever children can be when it comes to describing their fears in images and how they overcome them.
The lion sits on the banks of the river, waiting for some emotions to stir within him, for the beautiful lioness wants a lion with a heart, one who is also able to cry. But that is not as easy as it sounds.
Luckily the green crocodile surfaces and offers help – after all, crocodiles are professionals when it comes to tears.
Fast-paced, funny, full of meaning and at the same time told in a compact manner – the first lion adventure for first readers!
Oh boy! Eliot and his friend, Isabella, want to pick Grandpa Pucky up from the forest festival, but his cabin is empty. Since it suspiciously smells like Bockwurst, the case is pretty clear – Grandpa has been kidnapped by Bocky and his gang of bullies. They are after the treasure of the Dark Forest, which Grandpa surely knows more about! They follow the tracks through the deep, dark forest, where many dangers await young rats. Luckily they not only rescue Grandpa Pucky, but are even able to find out more about the treasure.
Djadi is 8 years old when he flees Syria all by himself and ends up in Frankfurt. Jan and Dorothea from an adult commune take the boy in and care for him. He learns the language, has to fend for himself at school and travels to the sea again – this time, the North Sea. Day for day he learns more about his surroundings and this new world. His close relationship and friendship to Wladi (75), who treats him like an uncle, teach him to live with his fears.
A poetic and very moving novel full of hope which offers the opportunity of looking into the soul of a traumatized child.
Marie, age 10, moves to a new town with her family and feels like a bird out of place. Sensitive and full of situational comic, Marie tells how it feels when everything is new and when frantically searching for a new friend, one sometimes bets on the wrong girl. And how one, luckily, finds the right ones.
The elephant is waiting for the mouse. With perseverance he manages that fox and giraffe look up and down, here and there while he is sitting there and waiting. Where can that mouse be? Eva Muszynski tells this story with clear colours and shapes and teaches young children to follow small commands. Who do you think that orange tail or the flecked body belong to? Where are up and down? Or here and there? A seek and find book for the whole family – with a surprising end...
From the lark’s first warbling in the morning to the blackbird’s evening song, this 100% natural book presents over 20 different species of domestic birds (and a few “exotic” immigrants) and their distinguishing characteristics. Clear shapes and colours, simple texts and reducing things to the essentials make this bird book a guide to nature for the very youngest!
Feeling your heart beat, pressing your stomach, finding your liver: These things are easily possible with this book. The punchouts and clear, graphic images that portray the proportions of a 4-year-old child can be placed on the region of interest on the body. In this way you can tell where the organs are located. The short texts explain which function the organs have.
Scharif tells the story of Sami, the story of his life in Syria and the story of his scars, which each have their own stories. He describes how he grew up in Damaskus with Sami, about their games, their friends and enemies. He remembers the growing resistance against the dictator, how they swore to take revenge when the wise letter carrier was murdered. And how, as computer experts, they managed to outwit the secret service again and again. Yet the day comes when they have to flee, and Sami has to leave the love of his life, Josephine, behind. Since then there has been no trace of him.
An armed, masked person forces people to do tasks with a loaded pistol, each of which relentlessly drags everyone’s secrets to the surface. Anorexia, arrogance, thefts, lies – gaping chasms open up that were carefully hidden behind sleek fronts. Fiona speechlessly battles with her inability to act, Mark outgrows of himself and Mr. Filler sways between aggression and passiveness. When the attacker is finally exposed, the limits of normalcy have been exceeded so far that there is no turning back for anyone.
A psychological chamber drama.
Kitty, the red princess, is still young, yet she has experienced quite a bit already. When Emma, who is old, can no longer take care of her, she says to her, “You’ll make it, Kitty. You’re smart and strong and have a heart bigger than many humans.” And it’s true. In the courtyard of the old bakery, Kitty finds friends with whom she philosophizes about the good and evil in the world. Lastly the kitten finds a new home, for cats don’t like being alone.
A deeply human cat story about life, surviving and love. Told by Mirjam Pressler in a touching and wise way.
Hugo has forgotten his bathing suit. How embarrassing! Everyone else is wearing bathing suits. Everyone except him. Where can he hide? Behind the fishy guy on the diving board? Between the oily sardines in the sun? Hugo sticks out like a sore thumb! He saves himself by jumping into the water. And then he realizes – a real fish in the water doesn’t need a bathing suit! Sensitive, humorous and with bright illustrations, this picture book conveys the message that you don’t necessarily need to be like everyone else to find your place in the world.
The soccer cleats called Renato Flash are Toni’s greatest wish. He can only achieve his goal of becoming a world famous soccer player with them, but Toni’s mother is not convinced. So he has to go about making his wish come true by himself …
In nine episodes, Philip Waechter tells the story of all the things Toni and his friends do in order to raise enough money.
One of Flo’s teeth is wiggly. His brother, Anton, wants to try the “string-door method” on him. Ouch! During the night, a girl is suddenly standing in his room and politely asks him for his tooth. Could it be the tooth fairy? But she does not exist, Flo knows it. Her cape and her pale skin remind him of … Oh, you black twelve!
Lots of reading fun for all children!
When Ben and his younger brother wake up on a sunny October day, their mother is dead. Ben talks about the following days, the shock, how this death feels and how each member of his family reacts to it in a different way. He remembers his mother’s legendary rages or how she loved to climb up chestnut trees – and finds comfort in a feather floating out of the sky.
A story of the unimaginable, of great intensity and closeness, full of consolation and confidence.
For years Katrina lived with her father and sister, Zoe, in a cabin in the woods. This idyll is destroyed, however, when her sister and father die. What happened? Katrina can only remember fragments. Now she is on the move, driven by feelings of revenge. When she begins to renovate a dilapidated house that she somehow feels strongly attached to, thoughts of back then slowly return to haunt her ...
Brilliantly written and with a strong feeling for her characters, Antje Wagner makes the ordinary turn into something spooky creating such fascination that no one will be able to escape it...
Open up the bin, toss in the trash and gone is the waste! Children know very well that things are not quite that easy. They have heard of gigantic mountains of waste and of plastic islands in the sea. They are worried. And want to do something about it. Gerda Raidt encourages children to become active. In many images and texts she describes where the waste goes when the trash trucks pick it up, why it travels around the world and even speeds through space, why we produce tons of waste – and how we can change things by starting with ourselves.
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Beltz & Gelberg in der Verlagsgruppe Beltz
Werderstraße 10
69469 Weinheim
Germany
Phone +49 (0)6201 60 07-0
Publisher Marianne Rübelmann (-353)
Director of the Children’s and Youth Books Publishers Petra Albers (-357)
Program Directors Beatrice Wallis (-360), Christian Walther (Gulliver; -328)
Editorial Department Andrea Baron (-391), Matthea Dörrich (-380), Carolin Eichenlaub (-397), Barbara Gelberg (-364)
Marketing Franziska Schiebe (Manager; -440)
Events Sassa Kraft (-399)
Foreign Rights Kerstin Michaelis (-327)