Dear friend, The first month of this new year has passed on a pretty cool wave. I felt recharged after…
Letter from February
I knew it would dawn on me eventually – the existential crisis of some sort.
Letter from January
Letter from December
I imagined a calm month ahead of me. The end of the year usually inspires us to slow down, look back and reflect. In a way it was like that and even more.
What is your sea of interest?
I would like to become even more useful and to find out more about the community of readers gathering around this lighthouse of books.
Letter from November
Dear friend, November has its tail in bright autumn leaves and nose buried in pure white snow. It’s bones are…
Letter from October
After a summer-like September, October arrived with storms, floods, rain, hail, and colorful leaves of birch and maple trees.
7Q Review: Érik Orsenna “Portrait of the Gulf Stream”
Érik Orsenna calls himself a collector of streams. In this book he tries to collect the Gulf Stream: to find where this powerful ocean current begins and where it ends.
Review: Steve Mentz “An Introduction to the Blue Humanities”
This review first appeared in the issue of “Literary Guide” (Nr 5, July/August 2023), released by the National Library of Latvia on…
Letter from September
Astronomical Autumn has started. Last days of September are tumbling down the calendar. I have two oily brown conkers in the pocket of my rain coat.
7Q Review: David Farrell Krell “The Sea”
Meditation and sea are wedded forever, wrote Herman Melville in Moby-Dick. In this book, American philosopher David Farrell Krell meditates on the sea from a philosophical point of view.
Trust
On September 1st in Latvia, kids return to school. It’s a new start after long summer holidays: hopes, plans and pristine notebooks. An inspiring wish to learn something new.
“Libraries are beacons of hope”: Interview with Yuko Yoshida from Japan
For several years now, Yuko Yoshida from Japan has focused her “researcher’s lens” on the Latvian library system. She is a professor at the Institute of Library, Information and Media Science, University of Tsukuba. In the summer of 2024, her book in Japanese “Latvian Libraries as Hubs of Language and Culture” will be published.
Review: “A Cultural History of the Sea” Volumes 1–6
If I were to start creating the collection of the Sea Library today, instead of five years ago, these six books would be the first to add.
Sea Library is 5 years old!
Some news on Sea Library’s 5th birthday!
Kids Sea Library: Whale Musician David Rothenberg
David Rothenberg is an American musician and philosopher, who has played live with whales, birds, insects, and other animals for years.
Review: Madeline Miller “Circe”
When American writer Madeline Miller’s novel “Circe” was first published in English in 2018, I drank it like the nectar of the gods – quickly and with an intoxicating aftertaste. Now, when reading in Latvian, the effect is the same.
Happy World Water Day
I believe in sea gods and sea people. I am under a strong spell of the Sea Library – this wildly beautiful beast. I’m filling its belly with books. I love sea-infected writers and sea-addicted readers. I need the sea as if my life would depend on it.
Desirable Tomorrow of Public Libraries: Interview with Estonian Designer Mikk Lemberg
Mikk Sander Lemberg is an Estonian designer who graduated in 2021 from the Interactive Design program of the Design Faculty of the Estonian Academy of Arts with a master’s thesis dedicated to public libraries “Shaping the Future of Public Libraries”.
“Read for kids!” Interview with Goda Baranauskaitė-Dangovienė, head of the Children’s and Youth Literature Department of the National Library of Lithuania
“Every family with a newborn receives a bag with his or her first book, tips on reading for parents, and his or her first library card. Therefore, every family in Lithuania at least has the opportunity to acquaint themselves with the benefits of early reading and its best practices.”
Postcard from the Sea Library: Blue Dog
“Eyes of a blue dog. I’ve written it everywhere.”Gabriel García Márquez Dear friend, Was it art or sea that I…
American Artist Walter Anderson and his Secret Paradise – a Wild Island
He was an artist who needed to paint as much as he needed to breathe. His secret world was Horn Island.
“This is the true Christmas land”: Artist Rockwell Kent Spends Christmas in Alaska
“I suppose the greatest festivals of our lives are those at which we dance ourselves,” writes American artist Rockwell Kent in his diary on December 24, 1918, or Christmas Eve.
“A Dreamer’s Search”: Interview with Eric Downs about his Debut Movie and Artist Rockwell Kent
In 1918, Rockwell Kent leaves New York City with his eight-year-old son and travels to the rugged wilderness of Alaska in search of inspiration.
Pat de Groot’s Sea Paintings in Philip Hoare’s RISINGTIDEFALLINGSTAR
How to paint the sea? It has to be as mysterious a process as writing about it. How to find the right words, not overdo it? How to paint how big it is?
How to Paint the Sea in Alessandro Baricco’s “Ocean Sea”
Sea and art: I love to read about both. Most of all I prefer to read about the sea in art and about artists in the sea.
Ten Quotes About Christmas from the Sea Library Books
“The smaller you are, the bigger Christmas is.” Tove Jansson “Christmas” from “Sculptor’s Daughter” “For the last seventeen years I’ve…
Getting Ready for 2023
Today I bought a new notebook. I am ready to anchor words on its pristine pages to set all my dreams to sail.
“We have a wonderful job!” The best Green Library project in Paris
Best Green Library Project this year is the Canopée Mediathèque in Paris, France. It was awarded as a pilot project – to try out how to be a sustainable library without a special budget for that, so that the lessons learned could be implemented in the entire Paris library network
Together for the Community: An Interview with Missoula Public Library Director Slaven Lee
“Together” is a keyword for the Missoula Public Library. Not only the structure of the building is made up of elements inspired by the surrounding nature, put together, but also the library itself implements a visionary idea: to gather various organizations under the “hat” of a public library.
Book of essays and art, RADICAL FAUNA, is out today
From today the “Radical Fauna” is available as a free e-book. Please, download, read, and share with young minds and rebellious souls to change the world back to beautiful.
Review: “Albert & the Whale” by Philip Hoare
I have to admit that for a long time I was afraid to read it. I learned to swim after reading Philip Hoare’s previous book. What would be waiting for me now?
Silent Stories: Interview with the creators of Brooklyn Public Library project “Our Streets, Our Stories”
Next year will mark 10 years since the Brooklyn Public Library launched a community studies project, collecting, recording and digitally storing the stories of residents of Brooklyn neighborhoods. The ambitious and at the same time intimate project “Our Streets, Our Stories” is easily accessible to every citizen of the world on the interactive map.
Don’t use “all caps”: Interview with library marketer Mark Aaron Polger
This material first appeared on the Library Portal on September 20, 2022, in Latvian. I interviewed Mark Aaron Polger as an editor of…
Looking Back at Summer 2022
A few days ago, on August 26, I celebrated my 38th birthday. I was 30 and pregnant with our second…
Let’s Play a Game: SEA-LIBRARY.COM
Yes, I know, I already told you that Sea Library books are listed now on a wonderful library app. It…
Interview: Future Library in Norway
Interview with the creators of Future Library in Oslo, Norway, by Libraries Portal.
With a Bus and a Train to the Island of the Day Before
I’m reading now mostly on wheels. My copy of “The Island of the Day Before” by Umberto Eco is filled…
The Sea Library Catalogue
Dear readers and sea lovers, I finally have a nearly perfect catalogue to share with you. There are 652 books…
After 8 years I have found a day job I love
I love to joke that one day the sea invented a job for me. On the fluid line between imagination…
Become a Pirate Patron of the Sea Library
I have dedicated years to this dream for a sea-loving community to have a place of books where everything is…
Review: “Lampie” by Annet Schaap
Here’s a book that I read each night for my boys at bedtime recently. Soon they started to notice that…
Sea Library: Coast as Muse
I was honored and happy to be invited to participate in Coastal Connections’ seminar Coast as Muse on February 3.…
Happy New Year!
2021 has been a wondrous year for the Sea Library which is just 3 years old. I have bought and…
Online Shop Up Now
I have wonderful news and a gift for the Kids Sea Library this Christmas: I have created a lovely online…
Sea Library Postcards for Readers and Dreamers
With Christmas just around the corner, the Sea Library has new postcards, drawn by the amazing artist Katrīna Ģelze. I…
Kids Sea Library: Castaway C.C. O’Hanlon
Traveller and diarist C.C O’Hanlon spent most of the first half of his life at sea aboard a variety of…
Kids Sea Library: Plankton Chronicler Christian Sardet
The sea is not made of water. This is a challenging phrase, isn’t it? It is also a title for…
Sailor’s Bookmarks for Christmas?
Last week I finished an order of ten bookmarks for a lovely little shop in the Azores, Portugal. While I…
Kids Sea Library: Seahorse Guardian Neil Garrick-Maidment
This summer I adopted a seahorse named Namid or the Star-Dancer in Chippewa Native American. The Short Snouted British seahorse…
Seahorses in Helen Scales’ “Poseidon’s Steed”
“For many centuries, people marveled at the seahorse’s eccentric profile, wondering why they look the way they do, where they…
Diving after your Dreams in “The Aquanaut” by Jill Heinerth
“Becoming an aquanaut is a little bit like becoming an astronaut,” says Fabien Cousteau in an interview for Kids Sea…
A Story of Jacques Cousteau in “Manfish” by Jennifer Berne
Manfish: A Story of Jacques Cousteau is written by Jennifer Berne and illustrated by Eric Puybaret. Originally released in 2008,…
Kids Sea Library: Aquanaut Fabien Cousteau
Oceans cover 71 percent of the world’s surface, but humans have only mapped less than twenty and explored about five…
Dressed for an Underwater Walk in Jules Verne’s “20’000 Leagues Under the Sea”
“Space exploration and underwater exploration are very similar,” says Sergio Gamberini in When I Grow Up interview. As a manufacturer…
Postcard from the Sea Library: Beachcombing
Dear friend, I want to tell you about one find. It was an overcast February morning. I threw my bike…
Beachcombing in “Treasure from the Sea” by Lisa Woollett and Sarah McCartney
“Beachcombing became on of the children’s favourite things to do. Searching, wrecking, treasure hunting,” writes Lisa Woollett in her book…
Tim Winton, Forever the Beachcomber, in his Coastal Memoir “Land’s Edge”
To return to books I was reading when I had just started my secret-at-first affair with the sea, feels special…
Kids Sea Library: Lego Beachcomber Tracey Williams
Ancient Greeks believed that sea was a place of no return. The sea made unwanted things disappear, it was an…
Driftwood for a Fireplace in Ernest Hemingway’s “Islands in the Stream”
On a cold, clear blue morning I fastened a sun bleached piece of wood to my bicycle and rode it…
Postcard from the Sea Library: Sailing to Ithaca
Dear friend, What’s your journey home? This week I was thinking about mine. Greek hero Odysseus sailed to his homeland…
Scylla and Charybdis as Glowing Deep-Sea Squids in Latvian Children’s Book “Ocean and Desert”
Homer’s horrible creatures, Scylla and Charybdis, keep re-appearing in many stories of the Sea Library. One of the books with…
Tim Severin Searches for Scylla and Charybdis in the Mediterranean Sea
This week I have embarked on a dangerous journey: I am looking for Scylla and Charybdis in the Sea Library’s…
Kids Sea Library: Marine Ecologist, Sailor, Artist and Writer Hannah Stowe
She was sailing the Baltic Sea, when I noticed her wooden boat Larry in the online sea of Twitter. A…
Odysseus Sails between Scylla and Charybdis
You probably have heard an idiom “being between Scylla and Charybdis” which means to choose the lesser of two evils.…
Postcard from the Sea Library: Flowers and the Sea
Dear friend, What do you think about when you hear a phrase “flowers and the sea”? First of all, I…
Underwater Farmer in Dahlov Ipcar’s Picture Book “Deep Sea Farm”
“In both my painting and my writing, I create worlds of the imagination. I transform ordinary reality into a reality…
Derek Jarman’s Seaside Garden in his Diary “Modern Nature”
This week I am looking for flowers in pages of Sea Library’s books. As a farewell to summer, also as…
Kids Sea Library: Underwater Gardener Sergio Gamberini
“It was then ten in the morning; the rays of the sun struck the surface of the waves at rather…
White Petal Boats in Virginia Woolf’s “The Waves”
Seven friends are together since nursery: Bernard, Jinny, Louis, Neville, Rhoda, Susan and Percival. Nursery is located right by the…
Magic Murals of Flowers in Tove Jansson’s “Moominpappa at Sea”
I spent hours and hours with my flowers this summer. I had planted in the soil so many seeds and…
A Room of One’s Own: The Secret Room Inside Our Soul
“Children create miracles when they read.” – Astrid Lindgren “‘I’ve got special powers,’ she smiled.‘All this is down on me.I’m…
Listen to the Sea Library on Sound Waves of BBC Radio 4
Any plans for this Sunday? My beloved Sea Library will be featured on “Open Book” @ BBC Radio 4. Tune…
Ronia’s Summer
Since the grown-up Astrid lived in Stockholm she was not able to enjoy nature all the time, but she could travel there in her imagination. That’s how the story about Ronia began – with a longing for the forest.
How Can You Support the Sea Library?
Stars shine upon the good deeds as in the last few weeks lots of people have asked me if there are any ways how to support the Sea Library.
Shop: Sea Library’s Bookmarks and Postcards
Sea Library is a dream world I have created in our old wooden house, standing for a century on a dune peninsula between river and sea. For three years the doors of the library are wide open for books about seas and curious readers to come and go. To support what I do, I weave. If you will buy a woven bookmark, you can be sure that a new book will be bought and added to the unique watery collection.
Review: Ernest Hemingway “Islands in the Stream”
On July 2, sixty years ago, American writer Ernest Hemingway shot himself. Among all else he left a nearly finished book.
Guest Review: Rachel Carson’s Sea Trilogy
Rachel Carson’s seminal ‘Sea’ trilogy – “Under the Sea-Wind” (1941), “The Sea Around Us” (1951), and “The Edge of the Sea” (1955) – has been reissued by Canongate in the publisher’s modern classics series, ‘The Canons’. The beautifully-produced paperbacks – each a celebration of the sea told through poetic nature writing – include a full set of integrated illustrations and a pertinent new introduction by Margaret Atwood.
Happy Birthday, Sea Library !
No need for birthday gifts. Sea Library is the best gift I could ever wish for. Happy birthday!
Diary: Seven Rivers
Sea Library lives on a peninsula between the river and sea. After seven days by the sea, I’ve gathered talismans now from the riverside. It is Lielupe River, second largest in Latvia, and one of the slowest. I’ve grown to love this river, one hundred steps from our wooden house and the library.
Diary: Seven Seas
Seven seas is a figurative term for all the seas of the world. To cross the seven seas means to sail them all, to sail to the most distant coast. But the only sea and the only coast that means all the world’s treasures to me is my Asari beach three miles from my bed. I cycle there to gaze, to swim, to take notes and guess birds. I collect talismans as if they were clues and try to untangle the secret of the sea…
“Saving American Beach” by Heidi Tyline King
“Saving American Beach” tells an important and inspiring story. The illustrations by Ekua Holmes are a work of art. I think this could be the most beautiful book for kids in the Sea Library. Mixing painting and collage each spread is vibrant and full of life. Perfectly mirroring the unique and powerful personality of MaVynee Betsch.
“A Book About Whales” by Andrea Antinori
Children’s books on the shelves of the Sea Library bring tides of illustration. In “A Book About Whales” by Andrea Antinori you will find exquisite pencil-drawn whales, a beautiful pakicetus, the first cetacean that walked on land, and so much information told in a fun way.
“What is a River?” by Monika Vaicenavičienė
“What is a River?” is a gentle gem, telling you a layered story about a river. “The river glimmers in the shade, reflecting trees and flowers. It has hidden depths beneath its surface. Just like people. “River, who are you? Grandma, what is a river?” The book tells you that river is a thread, a journey, a meeting place; that river is home, a name, a history and a mystery.
“Down to the Sea in Ships” by Horatio Clare
A beautiful and terrifying portrait of the oceans and their human subjects, and a fascinating study of big business afloat, “Down to the Sea in Ships” by Horatio Clare is a moving tribute to those who live and work on the great waters far from land.
My Essay about Clocks, the Sea and Art for A La Luz
I was honoured to be invited to write a piece for A La Luz about the Sea Library. My essay is about clocks and sea, and my dad’s thumbnail. A La Luz is an important and visually stunning online platform created for art and culture in a time of crisis. It is a compendium of creative responses to climate change. Happy to be a part of it now!
“The Little Book of Swimming Safely” by Sue Gyford
“The Little Book of Swimming Safely: Incomplete Advice for Wild Swimmers” was written last year in the middle of the pandemic with closed public pools and a huge increase in the number of people heading to rivers, seas and lochs near home. Even before lockdown swimming throughout the year in wildness had become more and more popular. Cold water swimming is beautiful, healthy and also dangerous. This little blue book comes in handy.
“The Secret of Black Rock” by Joe Todd-Stanton
Erin is fascinated by the legend of Black Rock. It is huge, dark and spiky mass that is said to destroy boats. But are the tales really true? One day Erin sneaks on board her mother’s fishing boat to find out.
“The Log from the Sea of Cortez” by John Steinbeck
“Be careful when opening this book,” writes American author Lewis Buzbee in an added letter, “inside is a tiny sliver of wood, which is a veneer from the original planking of the Western Flyer, the boat Steinbeck used for this journey.” Gifts like these make me a grateful and happy sea librarian.
News: I am Writing a Book About my Road to the Sea Library
I am happy to announce that brilliant Robert Caskie is my agent and that I am writing a book about my road to the Sea Library. I can’t believe to see my name among writers I admire! It’s time to set sail…
“Meet me by the Sea” by Taltal Levi
Beautiful new book for kids in the Sea Library. “Meet me by the Sea” is written and illustrated by Taltal Levi who was born in Israel and currently works and lives in Switzerland. From a young age she used drawing as a tool to liberate herself from reality’s hardships and dullness.
“Surf, Sweat and Tears” by Andy Martin
“Surf, Sweat and Tears: The Epic Life and Mysterious Death of Edward George William Omar Deerhurst” by Andy Martin has arrived in the Sea Library. Finally!
“Albert and the Whale” by Philip Hoare
Sea comes back closer again, ice melts, and a silver cover appears. There are not so many books that I am afraid to begin because who knows where will I become stranded this time. “Albert and the Whale” by Philip Hoare is published in March, 2021.
“Islands of Abandonment” by Cal Flyn
What happens to abandoned places when nature is allowed to reclaim its place. A unique book “Islands of Abandonment: Life in the Post-Human Landscape” by Cal Flyn, published earlier this year, has reached the Sea Library thanks to the generosity of Iain Rousham from England.
“The Fo’c’sle” by Nan Parson Rossiter
A book I didn’t know existed until I received it as a gift from Jean Wilson in Christmas. Henry Beston’s nature writing classic “The Outermost House” turned into a beautifully illustrated book “The Fo’c’sle” for children. Nan Parson Rossiter is the author of text and drawings.
“The Mousehole Cat” by Antonia Barber
How to draw water? “The Mousehole Cat”, written by Antonia Barber and illustrated by Nicola Bayley, is a beautiful example to explore. It has become a Christmas tradition in Cornwall to re-tell the story of a brave old fisherman and his cat Mowzer who saved their coastal village.
“The Mermaid and the Shoe” by K. G. Campbell
“And she recounted her adventures until the starfish came out and the anemones fell asleep.” A gorgeous book for kids by K. G. Campbell will take you to the underwater world of Neptune’s daughters. One of the mermaids, Minnow, wants to find her purpose and has so so many questions.
“The Frozen Sea” by Piers Torday
It is 1984 and forty years since Simon, Patricia and Evelyn and Larry first stepped through a magical library door into the enchanted world of Folio. When Patricia’s daughter, Jewel, makes a mysterious discovery in an old bookshop, she begins a quest that will make her question everything she thought she knew. Summoned to Folio, she must rescue a missing prince, helped only by her pet hamster and a malfunctioning robot. Their mission to the Frozen Sea will bring them face-to-face with a danger both more deadly and more magnificent than they ever imagined.
Dara McAnulty “Diary of a Young Naturalist”
Book chronicles the turning of 15-year-old Dara McAnulty’s world. From spring and through a year in his home patch in Northern Ireland, Dara spent the seasons writing. These vivid, evocative and moving diary entries about his connection to wildlife and the way he sees the world are raw in their telling.
Interview with Nancy Campbell
In her new book “Fifty Words for Snow” Nancy Campbell digs deep into the meaning of words for snow from all around the world – each of them offering a whole world of myth and story.
“Mrs Armitage and the Big Wave” by Quentin Blake
Surf’s up! Mrs. Armitage and her dog, Breakspear, paddle out to surf the Big Wave. Soon the kindly Mrs. Armitage notices that Breakspear’s little legs are getting tired–so she swims off and returns with an inflatable desert island for him to rest on.
“River Stories” by Timothy Knapman
Sail along five mighty rivers around the world and open up the giant fold-out pages to reveal incredible stories from history, mythology and modern times.
Ronald Blythe “The Time by the Sea”
“The Time by the Sea: Aldeburgh 1955–1958” is written by Ronald Blythe and published in paperback by Faber & Faber…
Arkādijs Fīdlers “Ukajali dzelmēs zivis dzied”
Grāmatā “Ukujali dzelmēs zivis dzied” poļu rakstnieks, žurnālists un dabas pētnieks Arkādijs Fīdlers 20. gadsimta 30. un 40. gados vairākas reizes dodas zooloģiskā ekspedīcijā uz tolaik maz izpētīto Amazones baseinu.
“Night Surfing” by Fiona Capp
There are some summers, like there are some waves, that can never be forgotten. Hannah has dropped out of university to learn how to ‘walk on water’. At Ruben’s Cafe at the end of the Peninsula, she meets Jake, who has demons of his own and dreams of surfing the night. They come from different worlds but what brings them together is a love affair with the sea.
Henry Beston Notices a Winged Visitor upon Cape Cod on a September Morning
In September 1926 Henry Beston went to his new summer house on Cape Cod for a couple of weeks but stayed there for a year. It resulted in a book.
Five Summer Swims in the River and Sea from a Diary
I wrote a 100-day diary this summer, from May 27 to September 4, choosing one swim each day to write about in around one hundred words. Here are five from the documented dips in river Lielupe and the Baltic Sea.
What the Sea Means for an Artist? Rosalind Pounder
“The sea is the outer limit of my small world, both boundary and destination. A psychological motif and upholder of the evidence of human disrespect for the planet on which we live.”
Twinkling Stars, Bright Moon and a Lighthouse Beam Guide a Little Red Boat Home
“Sea Lights” by Ruth Symons and Carolina Rabei is a magical seaside storybook about a little girl and her fisherman dad out there at sea at night.
Adam Nicolson Sails Alone at Night Navigating by Stars Like Greek Hero Odysseus
“You only have to sail by the stars once or twice for that connection to remain with you for the rest of your life,” writes Adam Nicolson.
Philip Hoare on Swimming at Night in the Sea
“Every swim is a challenge to my mortality and my stupidity. They become ever more extreme with every season and every place,” says Philip Hoare. He swims before dawn.
Quotes About Moon, Stars, Darkness and Sea from Books in the Sea Library
“The sea begins with the stars,” wrote Charlotte Runcie. More words about the night sky and moon and sea from Henry Beston, Emily Brontë, Iris Murdoch, Tove Jansson and others.
Surfing the Waves of Emotions in Jaimal Yogis’ Book for Kids and Parents
“Just breathe and let those waves pass. Like the ocean, your mind is always changing,” says mum to her boy in a wise and beautiful book written by Jaimal Yogis and illustrated by Matthew Allen.
How Juli Berwald Found Her Purpose of Professional Life in Jellyfish
“Looking back, I see that jellyfish came to me at a unique moment in my life,” writes Juli Berwald in her book “Spineless: The Science of Jellyfish and the Art of Growing a Backbone”.
A Woven Blanket Inspired by Sarah Moss’s “Names for the Sea: Strangers in Iceland”
For the shelves in the Sea Library to be filled with new books, I’ve learned to weave on a large wooden frame, my loom. The second dreaming blanket is inspired by a book on Iceland.
Julia Baird on Phosphorescence as a Metaphor for Inner Light
Julia Baird chooses phosphorescence as a perfect metaphor for “flashes of life in the middle of the dark, or joy in difficult times.”
Beautiful Quotes About the Sea from Books in the Sea Library
Virginia Woolf, Anton Chekhov, Rachel Carson, Herman Melville, Iris Murdoch, Oscar Wilde, Mary Oliver, Tim Winton, Albert Camus, Chloe Aridjis and other writers about the sea.
Postcard from the Sea Library: Reindeer Antlers and Baltic Ancestors
“When I waded out in the lake on the evening of my birthday I tried to imagine my ancestors living by this same lake thousands of years ago.”
A Story About a Boy Whose Dad is a Coal Miner Deep Down Under the Sea
In a book for kids “Town is by the Sea”, written by Joanne Schwartz and illustrated by Sydney Smith, a boy awaits for his dad to return from a dark coal mine deep under the sea.
A Woven Blanket Inspired by Kevin Barry’s “Night Boat to Tangier”
For the shelves in the Sea Library to be filled with new books, I’ve learned to weave. “Dreaming blankets” are made out of wool and their colours are inspired by books in the library.
Godrevy Lighthouse in Cornwall in a Poem by Jennifer Edgecombe
Godrevy Lighthouse was built in 1859 on Godrevy Island in St Ives Bay, Cornwall. It inspired Virginia Woolf nearly one hundred years ago and appears in Jennifer Edgecombe’s poem today.
Charlie Connelly on Swimming in the English Channel in Winter
Charlie Connelly wakes up “ridiculously early”, listens to the shipping forecast on the radio and goes for a swim in the English Channel. One day he decides to continue to swim in winter too.
Black Dunes and Starless Rivers in Robert Macfarlane’s “Underland”
“We know so little of the worlds beneath our feet.” In Italy, Robert Macfarlane descends to see a starless river with black dunes on its shores. It has remained almost unmapped to this day.
Seven Stories from the Ocean: Interview with Laura Trethewey
“If we can still learn from the ocean and its creatures, then we are not lost,” says Canadian author Laura Trethewey in an interview about her debut book “The Imperiled Ocean” and a new one she is working on right now.
The Sea from Here: Interview with Artist David Cass
“Sometimes when I’m near water I can switch off and appreciate the beauty of it all, and in much of my painting I hope to convey this feeling. But at other times, I can’t help but fear the ocean’s power, and regret the damage we’ve done.”
Look! Illustrations of Seaside Houses from Books for Sale
Create your own UNREAL ESTATE collection of coastal houses in literature, and note that there are only 50 copies of each signed, numbered and framed drawing and some have already found their new homes in UK, Ireland and Latvia.
Elsewhere Journal: Interview with Juliet Blaxland
As a companion piece to the third of our essays by Anna Iltnere about literary seaside houses – The Easternmost House – we present an interview with Juliet Blaxland.
“Severnside” by Carolyn Black
“Severnside: An Artist’s View of the River Severn” by Carolyn Black is a love letter to a river in drawings and texts. “The story is tidal, the river, like spinal fluid, flows between the banks.”
“Mop Rides the Waves of Life” by Jaimal Yogis
A beautiful, wise and summery book “Mop Rides the Waves of Life” by writer and surfer Jaimal Yogis has arrived in the Sea Library. Mop loves to surf but struggles with mood swings until his mum shows that it is possible to surf those waves too!
Elsewhere Journal: Unreal Estate No.03 The Easternmost House
In the third of a series of essays on seaside houses from literature, Anna Iltnere takes us to The Easternmost House Juliet Blaxland’s book of the same name. “On a stormy night, sleeping at the Easternmost House is like sleeping in a boat.”
To fall in love with a place: Interview with Julian Hoffman
“To have feelings for the natural world, we fundamentally need contact with it, something which is itself imperilled as we’re continually losing places of importance from our surroundings,” says British writer Julian Hoffman in an interview about his book “Irreplaceable”.
#OURSEA: To Save the Most Important Sea for Tove Jansson
The year 2020 marks 75 years since Finnish writer and artist Tove Jansson wrote her first story about the Moomins. To celebrate the anniversary, Moomin Characters together with its partners is launching a one-year campaign to save the Baltic Sea from blue-green algae.
What the Sea Means for an Artist? Katrīna Ģelze
“I’ve always found the sea uncomfortable. Its flat horizon, bare dunes, everything in the spotlight of the sun, no shadows to hide in, wind pushing me from all sides and the pull of the waves. I much rather admire its greatness from a hideout.” Katrīna Ģelze
Elsewhere Journal: Interview with Annie Proulx
As a companion piece to the second of our essays by Anna Iltnere about literary seaside houses – Quoyle’s Point from “The Shipping News” – we present an interview with Annie Proulx, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of the novel.
Six Questions: Matt Gaw about moon, stars and darkness
“I think seeing the stars has probably never been so important. They locate us within the universe, show us where we live and allow us to grasp (even if it is just for a second) the sheer scale of life.” Matt Gaw
Elsewhere Journal: Unreal Estate No.02 Quoyle’s Point
In the second of a series of essays on seaside houses from literature, Anna Iltnere takes us to Quoyle’s Point from Annie Proulx’s “The Shipping News”. “No matter what they did to the house, it kept its gaunt look, never altered from that first looming vision behind the fog.”
“Myths and Legends of the Amazon” by Abigail Frost
Illustrated legends of secret gold and sacred animals in a collection of tales of the Amazon Indians.
“Barbarian Days” by William Finnegan
Barbarian Days is William Finnegan’s memoir of an obsession, a complex enchantment. Surfing only looks like a sport. To initiates, it is something else: a beautiful addiction, a demanding course of study, a morally dangerous pastime, a way of life. For this book William Finnegan received 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Autobiography.
What the Sea Means for an Artist? Jonny Hannah
“As a terrible swimmer, the sea is the only place, strangely enough, that I enjoy splashing about in the water. Swimming pools are too noisy or organised, but La Mer is the place for me to practice my terrible breast stroke.” Jonny Hannah
“Umi: The Hawaiian Boy Who Became a King” by Robert Lee Eskridge
For Umi, life on the lush and colorful islands of Hawaii is about as average as it can be. As commoners, he and his brothers spend their days weeding the taro field, fishing in the sparkling blue waters of the Pacific Ocean, and dreaming of the delicious foods and thrilling games that are reserved only for the chiefs and priests. But late one night, when everyone is supposed to be asleep, Umi’s longing for adventure gets the best of him.
“Grey Skies, Green Waves” by Tom Anderson
Tom Anderson has always loved surfing – anywhere except the UK. But a chance encounter leads him to adventure on home shores. As he visits the popular haunts and secret gems of British surfing he meets the Christians who pray for waves (and get them), is nearly drowned in the River Severn and has a watery encounter with a pedigree sheep. All this rekindles his love affair with the freezing fun that is surfing the North Atlantic.
Sultan’s Seal: Interview with Tom de Freston and Kiran Millwood Hargrave
Kiran and Tom collaborated more than once before, blending their imagination and skills to create unique universes. Even now they are working on a joint book, which is still secret but will feature a lighthouse and a Greenland shark. I interviewed them together, although each was on a different continent when I received their answers.
What the Sea Means for an Artist? Elina Ruka
“Walking by the sea is one of my favourite activities – sounds, colours, smells and temper, always different, always changing, affect me. I’m meditative, exhilarated, reflective, creative. It makes me feel how comforting the change could be.” Elina Ruka
Elsewhere Journal: Interview with Miles Leeson
As a companion piece to the first of our essays by Anna Iltnere about literary seaside houses – Shruff End from “The Sea, The Sea” by Iris Murdoch – we present an interview with Miles Leeson, lead editor of the Iris Murdoch Review.
Elsewhere Journal: Unreal estate No.01 Shruff End
In the first of a new series of essays on seaside houses from literature, Anna Iltnere, founder of the Sea Library on Latvia’s Baltic shore, takes us to Shruff End from Iris Murdoch’s novel “The Sea, The Sea”. Each essay will be about a different house, illustrated by the artist Katrina Gelze.
What the Sea Means for an Artist? Angela Cockayne
“Afloat on the afterglow of forbidden energy, texting the celestial canopy above. To sleep on the sea I return to a primeval cradle, a place to rest, not to think, but absorb. Transmuted in dreams I become the ocean.” Angela Cockayne
Six Questions: Philip Marsden about Real and Imagined Islands
My interview with English writer Philip Marsden, author of “The Summer Isles: A Voyage of the Imagination”, published in 2019 by Granta and available in the Sea Library.
Sultan’s Seal: Sea Library
I think I’ve never written anything more personal than this. About being born in the family of artists, about truth that haunts me and my sea-changed compass, and the Sea Library.
New Section: Sea Library in Press
Visit the new section to read articles and interviews about the Sea Library in press!
Sultan’s Seal: Interview with Caroline Eden
“Greetings from Almaty!” she writes in her e-mail a few days ago. If British writer Caroline Eden is not at home in Edinburgh, she is most probably traveling the roads of Eastern Europe or Central Asia, and her explorations in different cultures have a special kind of prism – food.
The Sea, The Sea!
Sea doesn’t care and sea doesn’t listen, it just lets me be in her magnificent presence. When I enter the seaside, I enter a different world.
Six Questions: Stephen Rutt about Seabirds and Islands
My interview with British writer Stephen Rutt. His debut book “The Seafarers: A Journey Among Birds” is available in the Sea Library.
Sea Library 