Aistė Petrauskienė, Dovydas Čiuplys. Kartą Merkinėje (Once Upon a Time in Merkinė), Self-published, 2025. – 80 p.

Once Upon a Time in Merkinė is a comic book that invites teenagers to explore the history of Lithuania’s struggle for freedom through an engaging narrative form. The comic is based on real events. On 15 December 1945, the largest offensive operation of Lithuanian partisans took place. Under the leadership of Adolfas Ramanauskas-Vanagas, the partisans seized the headquarters of the NKVD (the Soviet institution of security and repression), the post office, and the police stations in the town of Merkinė. In the comic, past events are connected with the present. The story begins with a recent incident: in 2024, the monument to Adolfas Ramanauskas-Vanagas in the town of Merkinė was desecrated. Then the plot takes an unexpected turn – the main character, a boy named Domantas, is magically transported into the past, where he becomes a scout for Merkinė‘s partisans and takes part in the attack on the town. At the end of the comic the boy returns to the present and shares what he has experienced.

The comic contains elements of a playful detective story, featuring headstrong characters, and captivating the readers with its vivid depiction of historical events. For readers who wish to learn more about the history portrayed in the comic, the book includes an article by Aistė Petrauskienė, Atmintis gyva: neišrauta, nenuskinta, nesunaikinta (Memory Is Alive: Not Uprooted, Not Plucked, Not Destroyed), as well as an excerpt from Adolfas Ramanauskas-Vanagas’s memoir, Daugel krito sūnų (Many Sons Have Fallen).

Aistė Petrauskienė is a historian who researches the history of the post-war armed resistance in Lithuania. She co-authored the book Lietuvos partizanų valstybė (The State of Lithuanian Partisans) with Vykintas Vaitkevičius. She works at the National Museum of Lithuania.

Dovydas Čiuplys is an artist and illustrator. He specialises in educational books for children. He also creates designs for music albums and illustrations used in video installations and animations.

Contact for rights: petrauskiene.aiste@gmail.com