Renata Šerelytė (1970) is one of the most widely translated Lithuanian authors. Her works are available in German, Russian, Swedish and Georgian. She debuted in 1995 with a collection of short stories, and since then she has written almost 20 books. Coming from a small town herself, she often writes about daily life in small towns, which in her books is bleak and dreary, but also sweet and nostalgic. Her stories and her characters contain autobiographical details, and her greatest achievements are generally stylistic: she is a true master at crafting sentences. Šerelytė has also written several popular books for children, and is one of the few Lithuanian writers who also writes historical fantasy stories for teenagers and young adults. Her published books include a collection of poetry, essays and a few plays. She is also very highly thought of as a reviewer and critic.

Mėlynbarzdžio vaikai (2008)

Translated into German by Cornelius Hell, and winning the Human Rights Book Award in 2010, this is a very interesting literary achievement. On one hand, it is a fictionalised autobiography, containing quite a lot of features that are typical of a great number of Lithuanians. The story begins in Siberia, were two young Lithuanian children are growing up with a deported mother and a local father. After the mother’s death, which looks like suicide, the children go back to live with their relatives, in a homeland they have never seen before. They somehow manage to grow up there, in spite of the cold reception from the people and the community, but it does not end happily. There is a third child, who remains in Russia and grows up a very different person. The novel is written in what at first appear to be numbered chapters, but later they turn out to be numbered speakers: the mother (and later her ghost), the girl, the boy and the lost baby. Each has their own perspective on both the social context and the inner, deeper core of what makes a being human.

B i b l i o g r a p h y :
Žuvies darinėjimas: short stories. – Vilnius: Lietuvos rašytojų sąjungos leidykla, 1995.
Balandų ratas: short stories. – Vilnius: Lietuvos rašytojų sąjungos leidykla, 1997.
Jundos lemtis: adventure short stories for children (pseudonym Skomantas). – Vilnius: Tvermė, 1997.
Prakeiktas kardas: story of king Mindaugas: adventure short stories for children. – Kaunas: Šviesa, 1997.
Prakeiktas kardas: story of king Mindaugas: adventure short stories for children (in Braille). – Vilnius: Mūsų žodis, 1999.
Ledynmečio žvaigždės: novel. – Vilnius: Tyto alba, 1999.
Ėriukas po baobabu, arba Megztinis su uodega: poems for children. – Vilnius: Lietuvos rašytojų sąjungos leidykla, 2000.
O ji tepasakė miau: short stories. – Vilnius: Lietuvos rašytojų sąjungos leidykla, 2001.
Vardas tamsoje: novel. – Vilnius: Lietuvos rašytojų sąjungos leidykla, 2004, 2013.
Laukiniai mėnesiai: essays. – Vilnius: Alma littera, 2006.
Balzamuotojas: short stories. – Vilnius: Lietuvos rašytojų sąjungos leidykla, 2006.
Balzamuotojas: short stories (in Braille). – Vilnius: Lietuvos aklųjų biblioteka, 2007.
Krakatukų pievelė: fairy tale. – Vilnius: Alma littera, 2007, 2013.
Krakatukų pievelė: fairy tale (in Braille). – Vilnius: Lietuvos aklųjų biblioteka, 2008.
Mėlynbarzdžio vaikai: novel. – Vilnius: Alma littera, 2008, 2009.
Krakatukų brūzgėlynai: fairy tale. – Vilnius: Alma littera, 2008, 2013.
Krakatukų brūzgėlynai: fairy tale (in Braille). – Vilnius: Lietuvos aklųjų biblioteka, 2008.
Trenktukė, liūno vaikas: novella. – Vilnius: Alma littera, 2009.
Krakatukų jūra: fairy tale. – Vilnius: Alma littera, 2009, 2011, 2013.
Krakatukų jūra: fairy tale (in Braille). – Vilnius: Lietuvos aklųjų biblioteka, 2010.
Vėjo raitelis: novel. – Vilnius: Lietuvos rašytojų sąjungos leidykla, 2010.
Krakatukų jūra: fairy tale. – Vilnius: Alma littera, 2011.
Krakatukai kosmose: fairy tale. – Vilnius: Alma littera, 2012.
Sraige, nerūkyk: poems. – Vilnius: Lietuvos rašytojų sąjungos leidykla, 2013.
Krakatukai sniegynuose: fairy tale. – Vilnius: Alma littera, 2013.
Kokono baladės: novel. – Vilnius: Alma littera, 2014.
Rebekos salos: novel. – Vilnius: Alma littera, 2014.
Hepi fjūčer: 18 short stories (together with L. S. Černiauskaitė). – Vilnius: Lietuvos rašytojų sąjungos leidykla, 2015.

B o o k s i n f o r e i g n l a n g u a g e s :
Sterne der Eiszeit: Roman (Deutsch von A. Galvosaitė). – Berlin: Rowohlt, 2002.
Gwiazdy epoki lodowcowej (przełożyła A. Rybałko). – Wałowiec: Czarne, 2004.
Imię w ciemności (przełożyła A. Rybałko). – Wołowiec: Wydawnictwo Czarne, 2005.
Blaubarts Kinder (aus dem Litauischen von C. Hell). – Klagenfurt: Wieser, 2010.

A w a r d s :
1995 2nd award in publishing house “Skomantas” competition of history-adventure short stories for teenagers.
1996 1st award in Lithuanian Radio and Television contest for radio plays.
1997 Šarūnas Marčiulionis award for the book “Jundos lemtis” as the best book of lithuanian author of the year for children.
1999 2nd place in a contest by Lithuanian Open Fund for play “Stoglangis”.
2000 Žemaitė literary award for novel “Ledynmečio žvaigždės”.
2001 Antanas Vaičiulaitis literary award for short stories “Vėjo vėduoklė”, “Raudona ir balta” and “Saldžioji valanda”.
2007 Book “Krakatukų pievelė” was nominated in the Book of the Year Campaign, Children section.
2007 Book “Balzamuotojas” was nominated in the Book of the Year Campaign, Prose section.
2008 Book “Mėlynbarzdžio vaikai” was included into the list of twelve most creative books of the year.
2009 Book “Trenktukė, liūno vaikas” was nominated in the Book of the Year Campaign, Children section.
2009 Book “Mėlynbarzdžio vaikai” was nominated in the Book of the Year Campaign, Prose section.
2010 Jurga Ivanauskaitė literary award for novel “Mėlynbarzdžio vaikai”.
2010 Book “Krakatukų jūra” was nominated in the Book of the Year Campaign, Children section.
2012 Book “Krakatukai kosmose” was nominated in the Book of the Year Campaign, Children section.
2014 Book “Kokono baladės” was included into the list of twelve most creative books of the year.