The Boy Who Swam with Piranhas

The life of Stan Erund, just yesterday an ordinary boy, changed overnight: wake up at 6:00 and - fish, fish, fish... Clean it, gut it, roll it into cans. From morning till night. And no holidays. Even running away doesn't save him from the nightmare. Stan finds himself at a fair, in a dangerous world of booths and magic, and is already preparing to dive into an aquarium with bloodthirsty piranhas... Where are you going, come to your senses! They'll eat you!

"Do you know what I think?" said Dostoevsky.
- I think you've been cooped up too long. You're ripe for adventure, kid. Am I right or am I wrong?"

David Almond writes about people who are true to themselves and to each other. He is a laureate of the Andersen Prize, the highest international award, and the prestigious Whitbread Prize. In 2020, Almond will be an honorary guest at the IBBY Congress, which will be held in Moscow. This book was previously published by Samokat in 2016, and has now been published in an updated design.

Awards and press about the book
Almond is the best that exists today in literature - both for children and adults.
The Times
One could try to explain for a long time why these books are so exceptionally beautiful. Firstly, it is absolutely impossible to tear oneself away from them. Secondly, they are remarkably sensitive to the life and suffering of the living world. Thus, "Skellig" makes us listen to the squeak of newborn chicks, and "The Boy Who Swam with Piranhas" teaches us to sympathize with fish. One can also recall how masterfully Almond plays with children's fears without pushing them beyond the boundaries of the story. But for his heroes, a homeless man with a dog, met in abandoned mines, turns into a guide of the underworld, and from the stench, dirt and cobwebs a creature is born that is closer to angels than to people. However, no matter what magical creatures hatch on these pages, they are not the main ones in Almond's world. The main thing here is always the children: suffering, lonely, so different from everyone else or, on the contrary, so ordinary, but always finding words to talk about themselves.
Lisa Birger, "Kommersant"

A great metaphor for the inner piranha; but overall, Almond is worth reading for his ineradicable optimism.
Tatyana Naumova, "Bookworm"

Recommended reader age: 6+

Author: David Almond
Artist: Oliver Jeffers
Translation: Olga Varshaver
Year of release: 2020
Publisher: Samokat
Pages: 256
Cover type: Hardcover
Dimensions: 208x146x26 mm
ISBN: 978-5-91759-351-7