Indrė Žigeu, Valerija Kiguolienė, Ula Šimulynaitė. Nerijada (Nerijada), Neringa: Neringa Museums, 2025. – 160 p.

In this comic book, a moose named Nerijonas guides readers through the Curonian Spit. The main character travels through time, journeying ever deeper into the past and introducing forgotten eras, intriguing events, facts, and important figures: Professor Adalbert Bezzenberger, Queen Louise of Prussia, the photographer Robert Mincloff, the writer Thomas Mann, the painter Ernst Mollenhauer, and the artist Eduardas Jonušas. The book is divided into seven chapters: The Stone Age Settlement of Nida, The Road of the Curonian Spit, A Fisherman’s Daily Life in Nida, The Nida Artists’ Colony, The Nida Gliding School, The Curonian Spit during the Soviet Era, and The Oak of Freedom. Having completed this historical circle, the moose Nerijonas returns to present-day Lithuania to celebrate the Oak of Freedom planted in Nida on 16 February 1989. Readers will be captivated by the unusually narrated journeys of Nerijonas the moose, in which he seeks to experience and discover for himself what archaeological finds reveal; how crows were once caught and eaten by people; villages buried under sand; the mountain pines planted by Gottlieb Kuwert to stabilise the dunes; smelt fishing; travelling along the postal road, and more. Šimulynaitė’s evocative illustrations preserve the distinctive colour scheme of the Curonian Spit.

Indrė Žigeu (b. 1986) is an archaeologist, historian, museum professional, and Doctor of Humanities. She lives in Klaipėda and works in Neringa. Her doctoral dissertation (2018) examined glass artefacts and their use in Klaipėda from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries within the Baltic Sea region. She previously worked as a researcher at the Institute of Baltic Region History and Archaeology at Klaipėda University and since 2016 has served as deputy director of Neringa Museums.

Valerija Kiguolienė (b. 1982) is a communication specialist and writer. After studying journalism and completing a master’s degree in law and governance, she worked as a cultural journalist and project manager. She lives in Kaunas.

Ula Šimulynaitė (b. 1983) is an illustrator, graphic designer, and owner of Ki-Lab Studija, a risograph printing studio. She organises various art projects related to illustration, self-publishing, posters, and comics. During 2003-2006, she studied graphic design at the Vilnius College of Construction and Design. She has published 10 books (creating the text, illustration and design): Privataus Vaiduoklio gyvenimas (The Life of a Private Ghost, 2008), Privatus Vaiduoklis atostogauja (Private Ghost Goes on Holiday, 2009, which received an award in the Lithuanian Book Art Competition), Privatus Vaiduoklis keliauja (Private Ghost Travels, 2010), Kotonai Paryžiuje (Cotons in Paris, 2010, which was awarded a diploma in the Lithuanian Book Art Competition for the book), Avinas Liudvikas Besarabijos stepėse (Liudvikas the Ram in the Bessarabian Steppes, 2012), Kotonų Brolija (The Brotherhood of Cotons, 2013), the comics Vilniaus miesto legendos (Legends of the City of Vilnius, 2015) and Miklūs pirštukai (Nimble Fingers, 2017), Privataus Vaiduoklio kaimynai (Private Ghost’s Neighbours, 2019), and Miške (In the Forest, 2019). The author has received multiple awards for book design. She participates in solo and group exhibitions, as well as artist residencies in Lithuania and abroad (France, Great Britain, Ukraine).

Contact for rights: indre@neringosmuziejai.lt