Poet and playwright Māra Zālīte was born in 1952 in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, where her family had been deported in 1941 by the Soviet regime. When Zālīte was four years old, her family returned to Latvia. In addition to her writing career, Zālīte has worked at the Latvian Writers’ Union, served as editor-in-chief of the literary magazine Karogs, and headed the Latvian Copyright Agency. She
is the author of six poetry collections and 21 staged plays and musicals, several children’s books, essay collections, and novels Five Fingers (2013) and Birds of Paradise (2018). She has won numerous literary awards, including the prestigious J. G. Herder Prize in 1993. She is an emeritus member of the Latvian Academy of Sciences. Her works have been translated into several languages, including German, Russian, English, Estonian, Lithuanian, and Swedish, among others.
Fiction
Paradīzes putni [Birds of Paradise]. Riga: Dienas Grāmata, 2018.
Pieci pirksti [Five Fingers]. Rīga: Mansards, 2013.
Poetry
Dzeja. Izlases. Ķīniešu valodā [Collection of Poems in Chinese]. Riga: Dienas Grāmata, 2019.
Apkārtne [The World Around Me]. Riga: Preses nams, 1997.
Debesis, debesis[Heaven, Heaven]. Riga: Liesma, 1988.
Nav vārdam vietas [No Place for Words]. Riga: Liesma, 1985.
Rīt varbūt [Perhaps Tomorrow]. Riga: Liesma, 1979.
Vakar zaļajā zālē [Yesterday, in the Green Grass]. Riga: Liesma, 1977.
Children's literature
Mamma un tētis kūrortā [Mama and Papa at a Resort]. Riga: Dienas grāmata, 2016.
Tango un Tūtiņa ciemos [Tango and Tutina on a visit]. Riga: Liels un mazs, 2011.
Plays
Lācis. The National Theatre, Riga, 2009.
Priekules Ikars [The Icarus of Priekule]. Dailes Theatre, Riga, 2009.
Leļļu opera [Puppet Opera], children’s opera libretto, composer Jānis Lūsēns, premiere – the Latvian National Opera, Riga, 2008.
Pērs Gints nav mājās [Peer Gynt is not at home], premiere - Dailes Theatre, Riga. Play chosen to represent Latvia at the Baltic Theatre Festival 2007 in Lithuania, 2007.
Hotel Kristina, premiere – The National Theatre, Riga, 2006.
Še tev Žūpu Bērtulis! [Surely not Tippler Bertulis?], premiere – Dailes Theatre, Riga, 2004.
Zemes nodoklis [All Cats ar Human], premiere - Dailes Teathre, Riga, 2003.
Mistērija par sapni un mīlestību [A Love and Dream Mystery]. 2003.
Sauciet to par teātri [Call It Theater]. Riga: Jumava, 2001.
Margarēta [Margaret], premiere – The New Theatre of Riga, 2001.
Tobāgo [Tobago], a tragicomic musical, composer Uldis Marhilēvičs, premiere – Dailes Theatre, Riga, 2001.
Sfinksa [Sphinx], rock opera libretto, composer Jānis Lūsēns, premiere – The National Theatre, Riga, 2001.
Putnu opera [The Birds’ Opera], children’s opera libretto, composer Jānis Lūsēns 1997, premiere – The National Opera, Riga, 2000.
Neglītais pīlēns [The Ugly Duckling], musical libretto, composer Jānis Lūsēns, premiere – The Theatre of Liepāja, 2000.
Indriķa hronika [Chronicle of Henricus], rock opera libretto, composer Jānis Lūsēns, premiere – The National Theatre, Riga, 1999.
Kaupēn, mans mīļais [Kaupen, My Dear], rock opera libretto, composer Jānis Lūsēns, premiere – The Theatre of Liepāja, 1998.
Eža kažociņš [The Hedgehog’s Prickly Coat], premiere – The Theatre of Valmiera, 1993.
Meža gulbji [The Wild Swans], musical libretto, composer Raimonds Pauls, premiere – Dailes Theatre, Riga,1993.
Dzīvais ūdens [Living Water], premiere – Youth Theatre, Riga, 1988.
Lāčplēsis [The Bearslayer], rock opera libretto, composer Zigmārs Liepiņš, premiere – Riga Sports Hall, 1988.
Tiesa [Trial], written 1982, premiere – Dailes Theatre, Riga, 1985.
Pilna Māras istabiņa [Mara’s Room is Full – The Myth], premiere – Youth Theatre, Riga, 1983.
Books to fall for

Five Fingers
Five Fingers (Pieci pirksti)
Five Fingers was the winner of the 2013 Annual Latvian Literature Award. It is a fictionalized childhood memoir in which the author describes her family’s return from Siberia to Latvia in the 1950s, and her life in Latvia in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
“In her career, Zālīte has been best known as a poet and playwright... Poetry and drama are also present in Five Fingers; the best writing in the book has a combination of precise, poetic detail and dramatic purpose, carrying us to the end of the novel where the protagonist, Laura, promises to fulfil her grandfather’s dying wish – to give his wedding ring to his son, Reinis, ‘upon his return’ from Siberia, where he disappeared without a trace after being deported. This means that Laura has taken on the task of remembering.
...The ‘five fingers’ are a metaphor for the branches of the apple tree in which Laura sets up her perch, and a metaphor for God’s hand. They are also the fingers of Jewish opera singer Asia, broken during an interrogation by the Cheka. ...The repressive instrument, the ubiquitous Cheka, has been generalized as an absolute evil in the mythological character of the Ogre, at the same time without paying much heed to political correctness – that other enemy of freedom.”
– Egīls Zirnis, journalist
Contacts: Dace Sparāne-Freimane, dace.sparane-freimane@dgramata.lv
FiveFingers_by_M.Zalite.pdf

Title
:Five Fingers
Title*
:Pieci pirksti
Authors
:Genre
:Fiction
Publisher
:Dienas Grāmata
Pages
:304
Year
:2018
Foreign rights
:Sold to Germany, Finland, Estonia, Lithuania, United States of America, Ukraine, Georgia, Albania

Birds of Paradise
Birds of Paradise (Paradīzes putni)
Birds of Paradise is the sequel to the novel Five Fingers. Its tightly woven drama and precise poetic details clearly and uncompromisingly describe the 1960s – the only time and place in which ten-year-old Laura can grow, mature, and find the truth. The plot unfolds in the beginning of the 1960s when the main character, Laura, is ten years old and is forced to face all the realities of Soviet life – joining the pioneers, Communist political education, work on collective farm brigades. Laura’s thoughts are occupied not only by her readiness to fight for the Communist party’s ideals, but also by the beautiful vision of Pavlik Morozov and the secrets in the school’s attic. Her luck turns sour when she takes chewing gum to school for the first time, and also when she is forced to be on duty with Grigorijs, called the “Goliath Gorilla” in secret, the son of Communist Party organiser Smirnovs. As Laura begins to grow up, she comes into contact with good and bad, with the baggage she inherited from her parents and grandparents echoing their bitter experiences in Siberia nearly always somewhere in the background.
“Māra Zālīte magnificently follows up on Five Fingers by perfectly conjuring up Kurzeme from the days when honest words had to be kept to yourself. Enchanting and gentle contact with the world is set in a dreamlike context as it blends with a growing perception of those whose futures had been trampled into the ground.” –Inga Ābele, author
“It’s doubtful whether Ionesco, Beckett, or Orwell could have done a better job showing the absurd drama in which we lived during that time.” – Virdžīnija Lejiņa, film director
Contacts: Dace Sparāne-Freimane, dace.sparane-freimane@dgramata.lv
BirdsOfParadise_by_M.Zalite.pdf

Title
:Birds of Paradise
Title*
:Paradīzes putni
Authors
:Genre
:Fiction
Publisher
:Rīga, Dienas Grāmata
Pages
:320
Year
:2018
Foreign rights
:Sold to Finland and Lithuania.
Susanne von Schenck. Māra Zālīte's novel Five Fingers. The deportation from a child's point of view // Deutschland Funk Kultur, October 2022 [GER]
Let's get to know Latvian fiction // Savb.lt, September 2022 [LT]
Jukka Rislakki .Pioneers and the Red Army are present in the gems of contemporary Latvian literature // Helsingin Sanomat, January 2022 [FI]
Evelin Arust. Childhood in Latvia // sirp.ee, October, 2015 [EST]
Māra Zālīte web page// http://www.marazalite.lv [LV, EN]
Māra Zālīte, poems in English// The Drunken Boat [EN]
Interview with Māra Zālīte // Diena.lv, 2015 [LV]
Interview with Māra Zālīte // Diena.lv, 2011 [LV]
Bright and sad about the occupied childhood: the new novel "Birds of Paradise" by M. Zālīte // Bernardinai.lt, December 2021 [LT]
Māra Zālīte: Birds of Paradise, review // Kirjarikaselamani.blogspot, December 2021 [FI]
Lights in the fog. Review of the anthology of Latvian poetry "All the birds that are in me..." translated by Olga Wiewióra, review // Przeglad baltycki, October 2021 [PL]
Māra Zālīte “Viienäpu”, review // edaade.wordpress, April, 2020 [EST]
Zane Grudule, Ar bērna muti runā patiesību, review of Birds of Paradise // University of Latvia, 2018 [LV]
Jūlija Dibovska, Gaidām trešo, review of Birds of Paradise // Online magazine Satori, 2018 [LV]
Bārbala Simsone, Iesākumā bija vista, review of Birds of Paradise // Diena.lv, 2018 [LV]
Māra Zālīte “Viienäpu”, review // aluik.blogspot, July, 2015 [EST]
Egils Zirnis, Zālītei piecinieks, review of Five Fingers // Diena.lv, 2014 [LV]
Inga Gaile, Visi pirksti sāp, review of Five Fingers // Online magazine Satori, 2014 [LV]
Undīne Adamaite, Sieviete Latvija grib cept kotletes savējiem, review of Tango and Tutina on a visit // Diena.lv, 2011 [LV]
In print
2020_Zalite_NZZ_am_Sonntag_Five_Fingers.pdf
2019, the Annual Latvian Literature award for Birds of Paradise
2015, Great Readers Award for Five Fingers
2013, the Annual Latvian Literature Award for Five fingers
2012, The International Jānis Baltvilks Prize for Tango and Tutina on a visit
2004, the Annual Latvian Literature Award for All Cats are Human
2001, the Annual Latvian Literature Award for Call It Theater
1995, The Order of Three Stars for participation in the Barricades
1993, J. G. Herder Prize
1992, Aspazija Award
1982, Mayakovsky Award

The Major and the Candy / Best European Fiction 2016
The Major and the Candy / Best European Fiction 2016 (Fragments no romāna "Pieci pirksti")

Title
: The Major and the Candy / Best European Fiction 2016Title*
: Fragments no romāna "Pieci pirksti"Authors
:Genre
:Anthology
Language
:English
Publisher
:Dalkey Archive Press, United States
Pages
:332
Year
:2016
Copyrights
:Māra Zālīte
Synopsis
:Fragment in English of Māra Zālītes' book "Five fingers" included in anthology "Best European fiction 2016".

Sun Stroke in the Dark
Sun Stroke in the Dark (Izlase)

Title
: Sun Stroke in the DarkTitle*
: IzlaseAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Poetry
Language
:English
Publisher
:Rīga, Atēna
Pages
:80
Year
:2005
Copyrights
:Māra Zālīte
Synopsis
:Poetry collection in English of Latvian author Māra Zālīte.

ხუთი თითი
ხუთი თითი (Pieci pirksti)

Title
: ხუთი თითიTitle*
: Pieci pirkstiAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:Georgian
Publisher
:Bakur Sulakauri, Georgia
Pages
:311
Year
:2015
Copyrights
:The author, the publisher
Synopsis
:Five fingers is fictionalised childhood memoir in which the author describes her family's return from Siberia in the 1950s.

Viienäpu
Viienäpu (Pieci pirksti)

Title
: ViienäpuTitle*
: Pieci pirkstiAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:Estonian
Publisher
:Randvelt Kirjastus, Estonia
Pages
:Year
:2015
Copyrights
:Māra Zālīte, Mansards
Synopsis
:Five fingers is fictionalised childhood memoir in which the author describes her family's return from Siberia in the 1950s.

Penki pirkštai
Penki pirkštai (Pieci pirksti)

Title
: Penki pirkštaiTitle*
: Pieci pirkstiAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:Lithuanian
Pages
:288
Year
:2016
Copyrights
:Māra Zālīte, Mansards
Synopsis
:Five fingers is fictionalised childhood memoir in which the author describes her family's return from Siberia in the 1950s.

Viisi sormea
Viisi sormea (Pieci pirksti )

Title
: Viisi sormeaTitle*
: Pieci pirkstiAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:Finnish
Publisher
:Arktinen Banaani, Finland
Pages
:347
Year
:2018
Copyrights
:The author
Synopsis
:Five-year-old Laura was born in one of Joseph Stalin's prison camps in Siberia.

Five Fingers
Five Fingers (Pieci pirksti)

Title
: Five FingersTitle*
: Pieci pirkstiAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:English
Publisher
:Dalkey Archive, United States of America
Pages
:248
Year
:2017
Copyrights
:The author, the translator
Synopsis
:Five-year-old Laura was born in one of Joseph Stalin's prison camps in Siberia. When the book opens, she and her parents are on their long journey back to Latvia.

Fünf Finger
Fünf Finger (Pieci pirksti)

Title
: Fünf FingerTitle*
: Pieci pirkstiAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:German
Publisher
:KLAK Verlag, Germany
Pages
:306
Year
:2019
Synopsis
:Five fingers is fictionalised childhood memoir in which the author describes her family's return from Siberia in the 1950s.

Pesë gishta
Pesë gishta (Pieci pirksti)

Title
: Pesë gishtaTitle*
: Pieci pirkstiAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:Albanian
Publisher
:Ombra Gvg, Albania
Pages
:372
Year
:2019
Copyrights
:The author, the publishers
Synopsis
:Five fingers is fictionalised childhood memoir in which the author describes her family's return from Siberia in the 1950s.

П’ять пальців
П’ять пальців (Pieci pirksti)

Title
: П’ять пальцівTitle*
: Pieci pirkstiAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:Ukrainian
Publisher
:Ярославів Вал, Ukraine
Pages
:288
Year
:2019
Copyrights
:The author, the publishers, the translator
Synopsis
:Five fingers is fictionalised childhood memoir in which the author describes her family's return from Siberia in the 1950s.

Öt ujj
Öt ujj (Pieci pirksti)

Title
: Öt ujjTitle*
: Pieci pirkstiAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:Hungarian
Publisher
:Magyar Naplo, Hungary
Pages
:293
Year
:2020
Copyrights
:The author, the translator, the publisher
Synopsis
:Five fingers is fictionalised childhood memoir in which the author describes her family's return from Siberia in the 1950s

Paratiisilinnut
Paratiisilinnut (Paradīzes putni )

Title
: ParatiisilinnutTitle*
: Paradīzes putniAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:Finnish
Publisher
:Arktiken Banaani, Finland
Pages
:399
Year
:2021
Synopsis
:The plot unfolds in the beginning of the 1960s when the main character, Laura, is ten years old and is forced to face all the realities of Soviet life – joining the pioneers, Communist political education, work on collective farm brigades.

Rojaus paukščiai
Rojaus paukščiai (Paradīzes putni)

Title
: Rojaus paukščiaiTitle*
: Paradīzes putniAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:Lithuanian
Publisher
:Lietuvos rašytojų sąjungos leidykla
Pages
:375
Year
:2021
Copyrights
:author, publisher, translator
Synopsis
:The plot unfolds in the beginning of the 1960s when the main character, Laura, is ten years old and is forced to face all the realities of Soviet life – joining the pioneers, Communist political education, work on collective farm brigades.

Paradicsommadarak
Paradicsommadarak (Paradīzes putni)

Title
: ParadicsommadarakTitle*
: Paradīzes putniAuthors
:Translated by
:Genre
:Fiction
Language
:Hungarian
Publisher
:Magyar Napló Kiadó Kft.
Pages
:336
Year
:2022
Copyrights
:the author
Synopsis
:The plot unfolds in the beginning of the 1960s when the main character, Laura, is ten years old and is forced to face all the realities of Soviet life – joining the pioneers, Communist political education, work on collective farm brigades.

Descant 124. In Latvia, Observed / Abroad / In Memory
Descant 124. In Latvia, Observed / Abroad / In Memory (Latvijai veltīts literārā žurnāla Descant numurs)

Title
: Descant 124. In Latvia, Observed / Abroad / In MemoryTitle*
: Latvijai veltīts literārā žurnāla Descant numursAuthors
: , , , , , , , , , , , ,Genre
:Anthology
Language
:English
Publisher
:Descant Arts & Letters Foundation, Canada
Pages
:251
Year
:2004
Copyrights
:Authors
Synopsis
:An issue of literary journal in English dedicated to Latvia, includes translations of contemporary Latvian authors.

Bear's Ears. An Anthology of Latvian Literature
Bear's Ears. An Anthology of Latvian Literature (Latvijas Literatūras antoloģija)

Title
: Bear's Ears. An Anthology of Latvian LiteratureTitle*
: Latvijas Literatūras antoloģijaAuthors
: ,Genre
:Anthology
Language
:English
Publisher
:Rīga, Zinātne
Pages
:287
Year
:2014
Copyrights
:Authors
Synopsis
:An anthology in English of Latvian Literature.

Terra Mariana
Terra Mariana (Dzejas antoloģija)

Title
: Terra MarianaTitle*
: Dzejas antoloģijaAuthors
: , , , , , , , , , , , ,Translated by
:Genre
:Anthology
Language
:Georgian
Publisher
:Pages
:419
Year
:2016
Copyrights
:info@akka-laa.lv
Synopsis
:Poetry anthology of Latvian authors in Georgian.

Trafica Europe. Essential New European Literature
Trafica Europe. Essential New European Literature (Antoloģija. Literatūra no Eiropas)

Title
: Trafica Europe. Essential New European LiteratureTitle*
: Antoloģija. Literatūra no EiropasAuthors
: ,Genre
:Anthology
Language
:English
Publisher
:The Pennsylvania State University Press, USA
Pages
:207
Year
:2016
Copyrights
:info@akka-laa.lv
Synopsis
:An excerpt of Māra Zālīte's novel "Five fingers"; selected poems of Edvīns Raups' poetry collection "Then Touch Me Here";

The Baltics Riveter
The Baltics Riveter (Baltijas literatūras almanahs)

Title
: The Baltics RiveterTitle*
: Baltijas literatūras almanahsAuthors
: , , , , , , , , ,Translated by
: , , , , ,Genre
:Anthology
Language
:English
Publisher
:The Riveter, United Kingdom
Pages
:108
Year
:2018
Copyrights
:The contributors
Synopsis
:The fourth edition of the literary magazine The Riveter, that is dedicated to present literature from the Baltics, inluding guest editors, reviews and sample translations.

11 Lettiske Digtere
11 Lettiske Digtere (11 Latvian Poets)

Title
: 11 Lettiske DigtereTitle*
: 11 Latvian PoetsAuthors
: , , , , , , , , ,Translated by
:Genre
:Anthology
Language
:Danish
Publisher
:Husets Forlag, Denmark
Pages
:102
Year
:1980
Copyrights
:The translator
Synopsis
:Anthology of Latvian Poets

Ord och steg. Lettland diktar
Ord och steg. Lettland diktar (Latvijas dzeja)

Title
: Ord och steg. Lettland diktarTitle*
: Latvijas dzejaAuthors
: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,Translated by
:Genre
:Anthology
Language
:Swedish
Publisher
:Tranan, Sweden
Pages
:243
Year
:2008
Synopsis
:Poetry from Latvia

Wszystkie ptaki, co we mnie…
Wszystkie ptaki, co we mnie… (Visi putni, kas manī...)

Title
: Wszystkie ptaki, co we mnie…Title*
: Visi putni, kas manī...Authors
: , , , , , , , , , ,Translated by
:Genre
:Anthology
Language
:Polish
Publisher
:Warsztaty Kultury, Poland
Pages
:296
Year
:2020
Copyrights
:The authors, the publisher, the translator
Synopsis
:Contemporary Latvian Poetry Anthology

Unstetes leben
Unstetes leben (Antoloģija)

Title
: Unstetes lebenTitle*
: AntoloģijaAuthors
: , , ,Translated by
:Genre
:Anthology
Language
:German
Publisher
:KLAK
Pages
:237
Year
:2021
Copyrights
:publisher
Synopsis
:An anthology in German of Baltic Literature.

Tirpsta diena kaip ledai
Tirpsta diena kaip ledai (Dzejoļi bērniem, antoloģija)

Title
: Tirpsta diena kaip ledaiTitle*
: Dzejoļi bērniem, antoloģijaAuthors
: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,Translated by
: , , , , , ,Genre
:Anthology
Language
:Lithuanian
Publisher
:Slinktys
Pages
:160
Year
:2023

Lidé jako my
Lidé jako my (Latviešu autoru prozas antoloģija)

Title
: Lidé jako myTitle*
: Latviešu autoru prozas antoloģijaAuthors
: , , , , , , , , , ,Translated by
: , , , , , ,Genre
:Anthology
Language
:Czech
Publisher
:Nakladatelství Karolinum
Pages
:294
Year
:2024
Copyrights
:The authors