Puukki, Reinikka win Helsinki City Library writing competition

The winners of the writing competition held by Helsinki City Library have been selected, said the City of Helsinki in a press release on Monday.

Aada Puukki, 17, from Uusikaupunki won the award from in the youth category while Matti Reinikka, 39, from Helsinki won the award in the adult category.

The theme of ‘hope’ inspired almost 300 writers. The competition attracted texts by writers of different ages around Finland.

The majority of the writers entered a text in Finnish, but some also wrote in English or Swedish.

Many of the writers approached the theme of hope through the pandemic. Experiences of war were also present.

According to the jury of the adult category, the texts’ level of quality varied, but there was still a host of high-quality texts. The task of selecting the top three participants in each category evoked emotions among the jury.

“It was fascinating to see a cross-section of life during the pandemic. We would have liked to see more narrative elements, unconventional approaches, and vivid imagination in the texts. But maybe people just are preoccupied with the pandemic, at the moment,” said the jury, consisting of employees of Helsinki City Library.

The texts entered by young people also dealt with COVID-19. The jury of the youth category said the level of quality was good but the finalists still stood out from the crowd.

The winners will receive gift cards for a bookshop. The best pieces of writing will be published on the Helmet website of the Metropolitan Area libraries.

The winners of the youth category (aged 12–20) were (1). Aada Puukki for writing ‘Sky so Bright.’ The poem flows and shines. Great language and wonderful poetic images. (2). Aaria Sitomaniemi for ‘Toivoa’, an imaginative and flowing text, captivating and makes you want to know the rest of Ylva’s story. And (3). Sinianna Paukkunen for ‘Toivo’, a poem which describes how much hope there still is in simple everyday life.

The winners of the adult category were (1). Matti Reinikka for ToivontuojatplaneettaPohs-VT:ltä, an absurd and warm sci-fi story that surprises the reader. (2). Christopher Ryan for ‘Toivo’, a short story with beautiful language, and (3). Elli Valtonen for Kanipäivä, a story with edge and fresh narration of a veterinarian’s challenges in the face of a apocalypse of rabbits.