The Publishing House and its History
Established in St. Petersburg in 1792, today Gerstenberg is one of Germany’s oldest publishing houses. A family business, the publishing house moved to new headquarters in Hildesheim in 1796. Since the 1980s, Gerstenberg Verlag’s program has placed a particular emphasis on books for children and young people. Gerstenberg publishes picture books, narrative books for children and young people, and nonfiction books. The selection for adults is comprised of illustrated books, cookbooks, cultural history titles, garden art books and stationery items.
Today, the Gerstenberg name stands for sophisticated, aesthetically appealing and innovative books that are successful in the international market.
Ich kann meine Flügel – meine Talente – auch ausbreiten und in die Welt fliegen
Eric CarleProgram
The publications of Eric Carle’s »Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt« and Rotraut Susanne Berner’s ›Wimmelbücher‹ helped turn Gerstenberg into one of the most renowned publishing houses for children’s books. The successful, award-winning program of picture books and children’s nonfiction books is known for its creative, imaginative illustrations. Among these are a number of titles created by Gerstenberg, including Thomas Müller’s bird series, Bärbel Oftring’s nature books, Daniela Kulot’s board books, and the debut titles by Julie Völk and Anke Bär as well as the licensed editions by Bibi Dumon Tak, Floor Rieder, Piotr Socha, and Stephen Biesty.
The children’s and young-adult narrative books for children and young people by German and international authors such as Frida Nilsson, Silke Lambeck, Joke van Leeuwen, Lilli Thal, Dirk Reinhardt, Heinrich Hannover, Johannes Herwig, Timothée de Fombelle and Jakob Wegelius are entertaining and literary.
In 1999, the poetry collection »Dunkel war’s, der Mond schien helle« became the first of the Gerstenberg “familybook” collection, which has since developed into an important section of the publishing company’s program.
The children’s book series ›Abenteuer! Maja Nielsen erzählt‹ is accompanied by non-fiction picture books of the highest aesthetic and textual caliber that teach about nature, technology, and cultural history. Also beloved are the creative books by Sabine Lohf, Antje von Stemm, and Anke Leitzgen, and a popular non-book program has developed around creations by heroes Eric Carle and Rotraut Susanne Berner.
Authors and Illustrators
Gerstenberg books are designed and illustrated by a host of renowned artists, including Anke Bär, Aaron Becker, Rotraut Susanne Berner, Stephen Biesty, Antje Damm, Julia Dürr, Klaus Ensikat, Vitali Konstantinov, Ute Krause, Anke Kuhl, Torben Kuhlmann, Daniela Kulot, Claudia Lieb, Sabine Lohf, David Macaulay, Norman Messenger, Thomas Müller, Daniel Napp, Floor Rieder, Romana Romanyschyn, Sophie Schmid, Peter Sìs, Piotr Socha, Olivier Tallec, Øyvind Torseter, Einar Turkowski, Julie Völk, Henrike Wilson, Linda Wolfsgruber and Lena Zeise. Eric Carle’s entire works are published in Gerstenberg.
Judith Burger, Timothée de Fombelle, Cornelia Franz, Wilma Geldof, Johannes Herwig, Silke Lambeck, Joke van Leeuwen, Maja Nielsen, Frida Nilsson, Bärbel Oftring, Dirk Reinhardt, Gideon Samson, Jan Paul Schutten, Jens Sparschuh, Lilli Thal, Edward van de Vendel, Kathleen Vereecken and Jakob Wegelius are just some of the many authors, who contribute to Gerstenberg’s fiction program.
Current awards
- Deutsch-Französischer Jugendliteraturpreis 2022 – Silke Lambeck & Barbara Jung:
Mein Freund Otto, das Blaue Wunder und ich
- Friedrich-Glauser-Preis 2022 – Dirk Reinhardt: Perfect Storm
- Gustav-Heinemann-Peace Award for Children's and YA-Books 2022 – Kathleen Vereecken: Alles wird gut, immer
- Leipziger Lesekompass 2022 – Cornelia Boese: Wo ist Theatrine? Die Welt rund um die Bühne
- Österreichischer Kinder- und Jugendbuchpreis 2022 – Julie Völk: Zur Zeit, wo das Wünschen noch geholfen hat. Die schönsten Märchen der Brüder Grimm
- Wissensbuch des Jahres - Perspektive - Das Sachkundigste Jugendbuch 2022 – Piotr Socha, Monika Utnik-Strugala: Das Buch vom Dreck
- Die Schönsten Deutschen Bücher 2021 – Volker Mehnert, Martin Haake: Die großen Flüsse der Welt
- Gustav-Heinemann-Peace Award for Children's and YA-Books 2021 – Wilma Geldof (Text), Verena Kiefer (Übersetzerin): Reden ist Verrat
- Leipziger Jugend-Literatur-Jury - Favoriten des Jahres 2021 – Johannes Herwig: Scherbenhelden
- Leipziger Lesekompass 2021 – Olivier Tallec: Das ist mein Baum
- Friedolin 2019 – Maja Nielsen: Tatort Eden 1919
- Gustav-Heinemann-Peace Award for Children's and YA-Books 2019 – Judith Burger: Gertrude grenzenlos
- James Krüss Preis für internationale Kinder- und Jugendliteratur 2019 – Frida Nilsson
- Luchs 2019 – Frida Nilsson: Sasja und das Reich jenseits des Meeres
Foreign Rights Highlights
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- Volker Mehnert
- Illustrated by Martin Haake
- Autumn 2020, 40 fully illustrated pages, 27,7 x 37 cm
- Hardcover
- Age 8+
- USA (English world rights), China and Korea
- Website
Which river is the world’s longest, the Nile or the Amazon? Is the Beautiful Blue Danube really blue? How did the untamed Colorado make its way through the rocky Grand Canyon? And what makes the Nile the lifeline of Egypt?
Rivers have always had a special importance for humanity – whether as political or cultural boundary, trade route or religious symbol. This richly illustrated compendium, created in a modern collage style, introduces 18 legendary rivers from all five continents. It shows the rivers’ outstanding features and their diverse flora and fauna, and highlights historical events and personalities associated with each waterway.
There is much to discover – including astonishing facts and important dates– in this masterful and
stimulating assemblage of text and image.
Features a four page gatefold: The Nile from the Pharaohs until Today
Table of Contents
Amazon • Colorado • Danube • Ganges • Yangtze • Congo • Lena • Mekong • Mississippi • Murray • Nile • Orinoco • Parana • Rhine • Rio Grande • St. Lawrence • Thames • Volga
- Thomas Müller
- Illustrated by Thomas Müller
- Spring 2021, 40 fully coloured pages, 25,5 x 22 cm
- Hardcover
- Age 4+
- Rights sold to Spain
- Website
What’s making that loud noise in the sky above? It’s the cranes migrating to their winter home. How thrilling it is when thousands of these birds pass through in the fall, and we have a chance to study them while they gather the strength to fly further south.
In this book we take a close look at the “good luck” birds, and we follow a family of cranes throughout the year – their elaborate courtship dances, how they raise their young, and their first journey together as a family: the great Crane Migration.
An appendix offers further information about the life cycle of the Common Crane (Grus grus). The
meticulous illustrations in the books of Thomas Müller make birdwatchers out of even young readers!
- Einar Turkowski
- Spring 2019, 40 pages, 28 x 28 cm
- Hardcover
- 5+
- All rights available
- Website
- Karsten Teich
- Spring 2019, 40 pages, 25 x 21 cm
- Hardcover
- 4+
- All rights available
- Website
- Daniela Kulot
- Spring 2019, 28 pages, 22 x 15.5 cm
- Boardbook
- 2+
- All rights available
- Website
- Antje damm
- Spring 2017, 26 pages, 15 x 15 cm
- Boardbook
- Ages 3+
- Rights sold to: Spain, China
- Website
- Rotraut Susanne Berner
- Spring 2019, 14 pages, 17 x 27.5 cm
- Boardbook
- 2+
- All rights available
- Website
- Markus Bennemann
- Illustrated by Janine Czichy
- Spring 2019, 64 pages, 20.5 x 28 cm
- Boardbook with flaps
- Website
- Daniela Kulot
- Spring 2017, 32 pages, 29.5 x 20 cm
- Boardbook
- Ages 2+
- Rights sold to: Denmark, Israel, Italy, Turkey, China, Mongolia
- Website
- Daniela Kulot
- Spring 2016, 24 pages, 22 x 16 cm
- Cardboard
- Ages 2+
- Rights sold to: Czech Republic, China, Brasil, Spain
- Website
- Daniel Napp
- Spring 2016, 40 pages, 25 x 21.5 cm
- Hardcover
- Ages 5+
- Rights sold to Korea, China, Belgium, Brasil
- Website
- Johannes Herwig
- Autumn 2017, 256 pages, 14 x 22 cm
- Hardcover
- Ages 14+
- All rights available
- Website
- Dirk Reinhardt
- Spring 2019, 320 pages, 14 x 22 cm
- Hardcover
- 13+
- All rights available
- Website
- Julie Völk
- Autumn 2016, 32 pages, 29 x 21.5 cm
- Hardcover
- Ages 3+
- All rights available
- Website
- Thomas Müller
- Autumn 2017, 64 pages, 24.5 x 33 cm
- Hardcover
- Ages 6+
- Rights sold to: China, Belgium/Netherlands, Czech Republic
- Website
Events
All events in German language!
Currently no events. Visit the publisher’s website for up-to-date events (visit website).
Contact
Gerstenberg Verlag GmbH & Co. KG
Rathausstraße 18-20
31134 Hildesheim
Germany
Phone +49 (0)5121 106-0
Contact Person
General Manager Daniela Filthaut
Sales and Marketing Hajo Schwabe
Editorial Department adult books Isabelle Fuchs
Editorial Department children's books Birgit Göckritz, Kathrin Jockusch, Birgit Lockheimer, Dagmar Schemske, Claudia Steinke
Public Relations Andrea Deyerling-Baier, Katrin Schaper
Production Susanne Reeh
Foreign Rights Ulrike Bastong