Idiot! [Idiot!] is the newest example of how Danish children’s books are testing the limits of children’s literature. Most recently the book has been sold to the Swedish publisher Daidalos - traditionally a publisher of philosophical texts. The well-renowned expert on children’s literature Ulla Rhedin has praised Idiot! [Idiot!] in the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter, giving it credit for its courage – according to Rhedin, clearly a thing missing in the contemporary Swedish children’s book.

Idiot![Idiot!] bluntly discusses serious matters and lead by the perspective of August, a mentally retarded boy, the reader is taken through a rather problematic life. The author and illustrator Oscar K and Dorte Karrebæk have created a poetic and attentive book that in its almost Dadaistic inspired storyline, drawings and texts, points beyond the scopes of a traditional children’s book. A brave decision by the authors as well as Høst&Søn that have placed Idiot! [Idiot!] in the epicentre of the Nordic debate on the subject.

Similar to Idiot! [Idiot!] Danish titles like Børnenes bedemand [The Children’s Undertaker] and Hallo! – Flere hundrede historier [Hello! – Hundreds Of Stories] by Louis Jensen are thematically changing the genre by openly discussing serious topics like death and grief.