Eugenija Marks, Marija Smirnovaitė. Ragaudžių kaimo vaikai (The Children of the Ragaudžiai Village), Kaunas: Charity and Support Fund Švieskime vaikus, 2025. – 104 p.

The novella The Children of Ragaudžiai Village portrays the summer adventures of children in the Lithuanian countryside. Four characters – eight-year-old Gustė, Emilija who has just moved to the village and is ‘almost ten’, nine-year-old Adomas, and his eleven-year-old sister Miglė – get to know each another and their surroundings. They build a raft, explore winding grass-covered paths, and investigate where they might lead. In the course of their mischief, the children accidentally set a haystack on fire and encounter various dangers and discoveries.

The author also hints at the children’s different social backgrounds and family situations. Miglė and Adomas live in a newly built, luxurious house and ride electric bicycles. Their parents are businesspeople, yet the children feel unhappy because they see and speak with their parents for only a few minutes a day. Gustė has no father and is burdened with constant responsibility for her two younger sisters. Emilija knows that her father once had another family and wonders why he is always so angry and why he sometimes slaps her across the face.

The world depicted in the book can be described as everyday realism. The plot is dynamic and engaging, and the narrative is accessible and easy to read.

Eugenija Marks (b. 1988) studied Lithuanian and Italian philology at Vilnius University. She spent several years living in Latin America. She currently works as a lecturer and public speaking instructor at LCC International University in Klaipėda. She published her first children’s book in 2023.

Marija Smirnovaitė (b. 1978) is a ceramist, artist and illustrator, well-known in both Lithuania and abroad. She has illustrated over 50 children’s books. She studied ceramics and design at the Vilnius Academy of Arts. She lives and creates in Vilnius. The book Udo ir Dra niekaip nesusikalba (Udo and Dra Can’t Communicate at All, 2012), which she illustrated, won the IBBY Best Book for the Youngest Readers Award; Karžygiuko istorija (The Story of a Little Knight, 2012) by Ingrida Vizbaraitė was selected as the IBBY Children’s Book of the Year; in 2013, her illustrations for the Lithuanian folk tale collection Aukso kirvukas (The Golden Hatchet) won the Domicėlė Tarabildienė Award for the Most Beautiful Book; and Ką manė kamanė (The Humble Bumblebee, 2019) by Vainius Bakas was awarded the IBBY Children’s Book of the Year. Marija Smirnovaitė has also illustrated books by authors from Slovenia, Poland, South Korea and the United Kingdom.

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