Contemporary Lithuanian literature today surprises with bold themes, unexpected voices, and works that rival international bestsellers. Alongside them, classics maintain their place – books to which one wants to return again and again.
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The online bookstore patogupirkti.lt shares works dedicated to a special summer with a book: the latest fiction publications, noteworthy debut authors, and already beloved names and works that have become an inseparable part of Lithuanian literature. Perhaps this summer will reward with a new delightful discovery in Lithuanian literature.
Aurelija Savickienė “Whispers of the House”
Journalist, television show and documentary film author Aurelija Savickienė invites readers to dive into an engaging detective story about a house where not only people live but also shadows of the past.
The book “Whispers of the House” tells about Aistė, who moved with her family into an old house, dreaming of creating a new life. But soon the house is shrouded in growing tension: things disappear, mysterious echoes of bells are heard in the bathroom, and little Laura talks about a man visiting her room. There is something more in the house than creaking doors and rustling mice.
The author keeps readers’ attention until the last lines of the book and leads them through a confusing labyrinth, constantly making them guess what happened in the house, whose secrets gradually reveal painful fates and the burden of guilt. This work is a great choice for those who want to spice up their summer with mystery and surprise.
Regimantas Ivickas “Invisible Eyes”
Regimantas Ivickas’s collection of short stories “Invisible Eyes” is the debut book of an author who survived a seven-week coma and underwent radical life changes.
According to doctors, R. Ivickas is one of those people who survived only by a miracle. After being hospitalized due to a cervical vertebra fracture and contracting COVID-19 from other patients there, the young man soon ended up in intensive care and was put into an artificial coma, where he stayed for about seven weeks.
R. Ivickas put his experience into a book divided into three parts. The first is a philosophical conversation between a boy and a mysterious, wise old man. The second part presents six intriguing and completely different novellas. The third part depicts a symbolic journey of the same boy through life – towards his true self and true home.
Rūta Mikėlaitė, Millie Carrasco “Ignacio’s Adventures and Travels”
For those dreaming of traveling to foreign lands but spending summer in Lithuania, the book by author Rūta Mikėlaitė about the most famous Lithuanian in South America will be appealing. The book “Ignacio’s Adventures and Travels,” adorned with illustrations by Chile-born artist Millie Carrasco, tells about one of the most famous scientists in South America – Ignacy Domeyko.
The first part of the trilogy will review the 1831 uprising and the most famous Lithuanian fighters of that time and allow a look at Lithuanian history from the outside. This is a work that will interest fans of historical novels.
Olivija Upė “The Forbidden”
For fans of emotional, bold, and breathtaking novels – an engaging, dramatic psychological journey about desire, identity, and relationships that cannot always withstand the truth. The writer, using the pseudonym Olivija Upė, presents readers with the book “The Forbidden,” which will surprise and captivate until the last page.
This is a work about a woman who, for the first time in her life, stops lying to herself. About a woman who has a good husband, an orderly life, and every reason to be happy. But one sleepless night is enough for her whole world to turn in another direction. Unexpectedly discovering a secret browsing history on her husband’s computer screen, instead of anger – she feels something completely different.
What follows is something she never dared to think about. She has to face three different women, three darknesses, and a husband who notices that the wife returning home in the evenings is no longer the same. “The Forbidden” is a story about a woman who lived her whole life beside herself – and finally found a way to herself.
Andrius Pulkauninkas “Wormwood Soaked in Acetone”
It is said that tearing off a small piece of a book page and putting it under the tongue can cause wonderful hallucinations. It is also said that wrapping a herring with its head in book pages and keeping it at room temperature for three days will make it talk and reveal all the secrets of the world, uncovering all veils. But all this is a dirty marketing trick!
Director, choreographer, and writer Andrius Pulkauninkas in the book “Wormwood Soaked in Acetone” neither offers nor strongly recommends wrapping rolls from book paper, forbids smelling printing inks or book ashes, unlike the book’s characters who madly burn their lives in endless illegal rave parties, alternative festivals, and performances, enjoying short-term sexual adventures, constantly encountering each other in a small underground world.
This is a book about love, alchemy, and the irony of fate, which is abundant in today’s world as well.
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Aldona Tüür “The Pool”
Creative writing lecturer, author of journalistic and fiction texts Aldona Tüür invites readers this summer to discover emotional works that invite traveling through time and immersing in swirling vortices of feelings. This is exactly the nature of the author’s latest work – the novel “The Pool.”
It tells about Liepa – an office worker soon to celebrate her fortieth birthday, whose life flows calmly. Her relationships with her husband, best friend, and mother are completely ordinary. But Liepa’s calm is unexpectedly disturbed by a letter from an ex-boyfriend, reminding her of long-forgotten events. The woman embarks on an inner journey where everything she has known so far takes on a completely new meaning.
The action of this book takes place in contemporary Kaunas, with thoughts returning to the period of Lithuanian independence. Through the characters’ memories, environment, and human relationships, change, tradition, and certain traits of our national identity are revealed. A symbol-filled work – an engaging walk through Kaunas that will appeal to lovers of emotional historical novels.
Kotryna Nausėdė “Thank You for Nothing/Thank You for Everything”
Lifestyle medicine specialist, lecturer, and active promoter of mental health and well-being topics Kotryna Nausėdė presents readers with her new book – “Thank You for Nothing/Thank You for Everything.”
This is an autobiographical novel about life against the backdrop of eating disorders, depression, and self-destruction. About how the voice of illness takes control, how one slowly sinks into silence while life seems to go on beside them. But this story is not only about collapse. In the book, the author reveals the process when a person gradually begins to see, hear, and feel themselves anew.
It is a journey from complete exhaustion to clarity, from control and guilt to the search for forgiveness and acceptance, falling down again and again.
Saulius Šaltenis “Nut Bread”
Or maybe this summer is meant to discover or remember Lithuanian classics? An immortal, timelessly relevant book about the most carefree time of life – youth – in the novella “Nut Bread.”
First published in 1972, the work by beloved Lithuanian writer, screenwriter, and signatory Saulius Šaltenis tells about the Kaminskas and Šatas – two neighboring families who constantly quarrel and disagree. This rivalry is instilled in the children, who also dislike their peers living nearby. But over the years, Andrius Šatas becomes increasingly interested in Liuka Kaminskaitė. Feelings arise between the young people, breaking down the walls artificially built by their parents. In a small Lithuanian provincial town, a story worthy of Romeo and Juliet’s drama unfolds.
This is a rebellious story about young people who do not want to settle for routine, resist existing customs, fight everyday life, and established societal views.
Tomas Venclova “Alphabet”
Poet, publicist, translator, and literary researcher Tomas Venclova is already a well-known name in Lithuania. Currently, the author presents readers with his latest book – “Alphabet.”
This is a collection of memories, personal stories, reflections, and opinions – 50 short essays about people, places, philosophical categories, and life phenomena important to the author. Although T. Venclova’s childhood, youth, and maturity coincided with a dangerous era, the book shows this time as one that shapes personality, forcing resistance to history and the flow of time itself.
Having lived in emigration for more than four decades and returned to Lithuania seven years ago, the writer devotes considerable attention in the book to reflections on what Lithuanian identity, nationalism, and faith mean. It is an alphabet about life, lessons, experiences, and people met.
Monika Tarasauskienė “Fisherman’s Chair”
For those who enjoy novels that leave strong impressions – a literary novelty – the book “Fisherman’s Chair” by author Monika Tarasauskienė.
The shocking story tells about a girl Emile, whose life was irreversibly changed by a family-shattering tragedy. After this blow, her world begins to fall apart, and Emile herself finds herself in a whirlpool of constant uncertainty, pain, and conflicting feelings. Seeking comfort and security, she makes decisions that do not always bring the desired peace.
An unexpected betrayal by her beloved destroys trust, and suddenly rising dangers force her to face the darkest sides of reality. This is a book about love and betrayal, about shadows of the past and inner strength that is found only when hope seems lost.
