And Then We Saw the Bag . . .: Trash to Them, Treasure to Us - Hardcover

by Emma Adbage (Author), Melissa Bowers (Translator)

A laugh-out-loud story about kid-parent power dynamics, the vital importance of play, and saving what matters. Because who really decides what is trash and what is a beloved toy? And what would happen if adults didn't always get their way?

"Emma AdBage KNOWS families, doesn't she? Deeply funny and scathingly true. A tale for any kid who has 'rescued' their beloveds from willfully obtuse adults." Betsy Bird, School Library Journal Contributor, Author, and Librarian

When the two sisters come home, they notice it right away. The house is too empty. Too tidy. And it smells . . . clean. The parents claim they've just dusted and picked a little, but in the hall there's a black bag, filled with all sorts of "unimportant" and "broken" items.

A rescue operation is immediately launched! A favorite eraser, a beloved trinket box with sand from a vacation and a mini pen from another vacation are dug up. But worst of all - Woody! A piece of wood that's more than just a stick. It's a baby cousin, a friend, and part of the family! How could their parents even think of throwing him away?! The sisters have to do something about this...

Author Biography

Emma AdBåge is a Swedish illustrator and author who debuted in 2001 and has since illustrated several titles, both her own and others. She has won several awards, including the Elsa Beskow Plaque and the Lennart Hellsing Prize. In 2018 she won the August Prize for THE HOLE BEHIND THE GYM, and was also awarded the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis in 2022 for the same title. Her works have been translated into over 20 languages.

Melissa Bowers is a translator and editor living in Seattle, Washington. She is an ATA-certified Swedish-to-English translator and seasoned copy editor whose work spans picture books, graphic novels, poetry and academic manuscripts by non-native English authors. Her recent literary translations include Emma AdBåge's The Wound (Arctis Books, Oct 2025), Moa Romanova's Buff Soul and Goblin Girl (Fantagraphics Books), and Liv Strömquist's The Reddest Rose (2023), while her non-fiction credits encompass legal and governmental documents, subtitles QC, and translation samples for literary agents. As a copy editor since 2013, she specializes in refining academic manuscripts for clarity and voice. Melissa holds an MFA in Literary Translation from Fairleigh Dickinson University and a certificate in Technical Writing & Editing from the University of Washington, and she earned a 2021 Eisner Award for Best U.S. Edition of International Material for her translation of Goblin Girl.