Vain pahaa unta

Vain pahaa unta (‘Just a Bad Dream’) is a story about nightmares. It contains the elements of a picture book and a comic and is an impressive work containing therapeutic, artistic and even humorous elements. The picture book-like illustrations fuse drawings done by Ville Tietäväinen (b. 1970) and his daughter Aino. The images intertwine and overlap, forcing adults to take a new look at what lies behind fear. On a meta-level, the story discusses sleep, talking about dreams and how the book came to be. There are humorous insights and familiar moments from family life when the reader isn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. New nightmares find their way into the book, yet it feels as if they become easier to deal with. This book also uses storycrafting, a technique familiar from early childhood education, where children tell a story in their own words. The book tells that to some bad things there are no words, not even pictures – but closeness and warmth can make it easier.