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Siobhán Parkinson is a novelist, translator, editor and lecturer; she is also one of Ireland’s best-known writers of children’s literature. She has published over 20 books for children, teenagers and adults in English and Irish that have been translated into many languages. Two of her books – “Sisters – No Way!” and “The Leprechaun who Wished he Wasn’t” – have also been published in Latvian. Siobhán studied English Literature and German at Trinity College, Dublin and served as Ireland's first-ever laureate for children's literature (Laureate na nÓg) from 2010 to 2012.
Siobhán Parkinson. Photo: Jura Podnieka studija
The riddle quoted in the short film is taken from the “Zelta sietiņš” (Golden Sieve, 1920) collection of children's poetry by Rainis. Along with several other of his books for children, it is considered a classic of Latvian children's literature. Rainis’ poems for young readers are playful and easily understandable. The author manages to build the foundations of an ethical world for children without moralising.
Special thanks for help with this episode go to the Laumiņas rezidence kindergarten and the artist Ieva Kauliņa who created the animation.
The #mindpower (#domasspēks in Latvian) project is dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the Latvian poets Rainis and Aspazija. It features a collection of 29 short films in which celebrities from all the EU Member States read excerpts from the works of Rainis and Aspazija in their native language. The project is part of the Presidency cultural programme.
Each week a new video is released on the Presidency's website EU2015.LV. You can also watch the episodes on the Presidency's official Youtube channel and on the project's Facebook page.
