Two books by Latvian writer Laura Vinogradova to be translated into Ukrainian

Award-winning Latvian author Laura Vinogradova’s “Upe” (“The River”) and “Vārnas” (“Crows”) will be published in Ukrainian by Books – XXI with support from the Latvian Literature grant program.

In the second 2026 grant round, the Ukrainian publisher received 2,000 euros for each title. The Ukrainian translations of both books will be prepared by Vasylyna Melnyk, whose work on “Upe” and “Vārnas” had already received support in the program’s first 2026 round.

“Upe,” published in Latvian in 2020, centers on Rute, who retreats to the countryside after inheriting a house from the father she never knew and confronts memories of family trauma, loss, and her sister’s disappearance. The novel won the European Union Prize for Literature in 2021 and was also nominated for the Annual Latvian Literature Award.

“Vārnas,” published in Riga in 2024, follows Sanna, who grew up in an orphanage, and her daughter Lia, who faces hostility and exclusion because she is perceived as different. The novel received the Egons Līvs Memorial Award “Krasta ļaudis” for the best original prose work in Latvian for 2023–2024.

Vinogradova’s work has already appeared in Ukrainian. Her children’s book “Tētis un suns” was published in 2025 as “Тато й пес” by Books – XXI in a translation by Lina Melnyk, with support from the Latvian Literature grant program.

The latest grants are part of Latvia’s broader effort to support the international circulation of its literature. In 2025, 82 translated works by Latvian authors were released in 33 countries, 53 of them with support from Latvian Literature grants.

As reported earlier, the literary exchange between Latvia and Ukraine also works in the opposite direction. As reported earlier, Victoria Amelina’s children’s book “Eeeeeeeeevil Eka’s Excavator Stories” was published in Latvian in 2025 by Liels un mazs in a translation by Māra Poļakova, with support from the Translate Ukraine program and the Latvian State Culture Fund.

Chytomo has also reported sustained interest in Ukrainian literature in Latvia, with Latvian publishers participating in translation-support initiatives and Ukrainian books becoming increasingly visible to local readers.

In the second 2026 grant round, experts assessed 33 applications from foreign publishers and 22 from translators. Thirty-one publishing projects and 21 translation projects received support, with 57,107 euros allocated to publishers and 43,195 euros to translators.

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