Books blog

February 07, 2010

Translated diary offers teenage boy’s view of life after war

The book has been out for a few months, but now there’s a Web site to support The Journal of Valdis Fomenko, the English translation of a teenage Latvian boy’s diary of life in a liberated Nazi concentration camp at the end of World War II.

January 06, 2010

Minsteres latviešu ģimnāzija topic of history book

Minsteres latviešu ģimnāzija (MLĢ), the former Latvian high school in Münster, Germany, is among the legendary exile institutions. Minsteres latviešu ģimnāzija izdzīvoja, by community activist, writer and teacher Alberts Spoģis, is the recently released history of the school.

January 05, 2010

‘Latviešu tautas piedzīvojumi’ now in podcast format

The popular story of the Latvian people’s struggle for freedom, Latviešu tautas piedzīvojumi by historian Uldis Ģērmanis, has seen several editions since first published 40 years ago. Now it is available as an audio podcast, thanks to the Daugavas Vanagi veterans group in Canada.

November 22, 2009

Skyforger’s pork ribs recipe included in heavy metal cookbook

Not only can pagan metal band Skyforger kick out some growling tunes about Latvia’s history, but at least one of its members can cook up a mean dish of pork ribs.

November 10, 2009

Poet Uldriķe honored with new collection

The Liepāja-based poet Aina Uldriķe died last year. To honor her, the bookseller and publishing house Valters un Rapa has released Pēdējā stīga, a 98-page collection her work.

October 15, 2009

Latvian literature on exhibit at Frankfurt fair

Latvian literature is getting exposure during the annual Frankfurt Book Fair (Frankfurt Buchmesse) in Germany, according to the Latvian Literature Centre (Latvijas Literatūras centrs).

September 29, 2009

Historians commission releases 25th volume

The 25th book in a series of titles released by the Commission of the Historians of Latvia (Latvijas Vēsturnieku komisija) is due out Sept. 30, President Valdis Zatlers’ press office has announced.

September 25, 2009

Tome on Latvians in the West is imperfect work

A relatively recent guide to the history of Latvians in the West, Latvieši Rietumzemēs, has been drawing attention on the online mailing list of the diaspora organization ELJA50. Unfortunately for author Ilgvars Veigners, the comments have not been all that positive.

September 25, 2009

Berzins’ next book to be biography of mother’s beauty

Latvian-Canadian writer and artist Ilze Berzins is switching from mystery to biography for her next book, which is due out Nov. 30.

July 29, 2009

Story of deportation draws on relatives’ memories

Gundars Kalve’s first novel, Līnis, tells the story of a young mother, Līva Lūse, and her daughter, Liene, who are deported from Latvia on June 14, 1941, to the Ural mountain region of the Soviet Union. Although the story is fictional, it is based on Kalve’s memories of stories about his relatives, especially the fate of his grandmother’s sister.

July 13, 2009

Mystical forest of Pokaiņi is topic of new book

Among the mystical places in Latvia is Pokaiņi, a forest not far from Dobele known particularly for the supposed strange powers that work their magic on visitors. The writer Arnolds Auziņš has recently put together a book, Pokaiņi, that seeks to separate truth from fiction about the place.

June 26, 2009

Grāmata par gleznotāju Jāni Osi

Monogrāfija Jānis Osis. 1926-1991 veltīta vienam no talantīgākajiem pēckara paaudzes māksliniekiem Jānim Osim, kuru var uzskatīt par Dieva dotu talantu, kurš varēja gleznot kā ainavas, tā industriālus motīvus - viss zem viņa otas pārvērtās par vīrišķīgas romantikas pilnu stāstu par dzīvi Baltijas jūras krastā. Diemžēl viņa dzīves laikā par viņu tika maz rakstīts, šī ir pirmā nopietnā publikācija.

June 23, 2009

Two poems by Brūveris published by literary journal

Two poems by Pēters Brūveris of Latvia have been published in the latest issue of the biannual Michigan-based literary journal Absinthe.

May 01, 2009

Tourist book on Rīga published in nine languages

A tourist guide to Latvia’s capital city, written by Rīga Vice Mayor Andris Ārgalis and available in nine languages, has been released by the publishing house Nacionālais apgāds.

May 01, 2009

Nesaule talks about novel with The Smoking Poet

Zinta Aistars, a Latvian-American writer and editor-in-chief for The Smoking Poet, talks to author Agate Nesaule for the online publication’s spring issue.

April 05, 2009

Poems of Čaks reach Bulgarian audience

The work of poet and prosaist Aleksandrs Čaks (1901-1950) is now reaching a wider audience in Bulgaria, thanks to a new anthology focused on Latvian writers. Čaks’ collection of poems Iedomu spoguļi has been published by the Sofia-based Foundation for Bulgarian Literature, reports the Latvian Literature Centre.

March 25, 2009

Viks atzīmē jubileju ar prozas krājumu

Latvijas rakstniekam Vikam šogad paliek 70 gadi. Atzīmējot šo jubileju, apgāds Zvaigzne ABC izdod prozas krājumu Bīstamvieta, kurā apkopoti vairāki stāsti un pasakas.