Astrid Lindgren The Brothers Lionheart

Karl is afraid of death. He is seriously ill and knows that he will soon die. But his older brother Jonathan comforts him: In a land called Nangijala, where one goes after death, they will see each other again. Shortly after, a fire devastates their home, and Jonathan saves his brother from the flames but loses his own life. Soon after, Karl dies as well and truly arrives in Nangijala.

There, he finds everything just as Jonathan had promised him, and of course, he meets him again in the Valley of Cherry Blossoms. Finally, Karl can do all the things that were denied to him during his long illness - he rides, he swims, he plays around. However, even in the Valley of Cherry Blossoms, life is not without worries. The tyrant Tengil and his soldiers, along with the terrible dragon Katla, oppress the neighboring Thorn Rose Valley. Jonathan joins the fight against Tengil and rides off on a dangerous mission into the Thorn Rose Valley. Karl does not want to lose his brother again and secretly follows him.