Viesturs Vecgrāvis (born in 1948) is a Latvian literary historian and critic, researcher, writer, Doctor of Philology, and asoc. prof. at the University of Latvia. After finishing high school, he went on to study philology at the University of Latvia (1968-70, 1973-81) and graduated with a doctoral degree in 1981. Vecgrāvis is the author of many forewords and commentary for books of poetry and novels, including such famous Latvian authors as Veronika Strēlerte, Leons Briedis, Edvarts Virza and Zenta Mauriņa, et al. His first important publication was his research article on “The Role of Personality in the Works of Jānis Poruks” in the Literatūra un Māksla magazine. He has published various articles and reviews about romanticism and existentialism poets (V. Grēviņš, J. Sudrabkalns, V. Cedriņš, Z. Lazda, V. Strēlerte, F. Bārda, J. Poruks, K. Skalbe, et al.), as well as Latvian poets in exile, most significantly, Linards Tauns and Gunārs Saliņš. He is the co-author of textbooks in literature for years 10 and 11. Since 1989, he reads a course on Poetry in Exile at the Department of Philology and Pedagogy of the University of Latvia, as well as other lectures on movements in Latvian literature and literary history. He is a member of the Latvian Writers' Union since 1993.
Non-fiction:
Nākamības cilvēka sirdsdedzi alkdams. Personības koncepcija Jāņa Poruka daiļradē. [The Role of Personality in the Works of Jānis Poruks]. Research article. Riga: Literatūra un Māksla, 1981.
Dainojen henki [The Soul of the Daina Folk Songs, research on four hundred years in Latvian Literature] Helsinki 1990.
Materials for teaching the history of Latvian literature [for Latviešu literatūras vēsture/ History of Latvian Literature, Vol .1-2], Riga: 1989-99.
Compiler and author of foreword:
Selected Poems of E. Ādamsons, 1985.
Selected Poems of L. Laicens, 1986.
Padoms [Advice], 1988.
Selected works of K. Skalbe, Ziemeļmeitas vēdeklis [The Fan of the Northern Girl], 1989.
Collection of novels by A. Grīns, Nameja atgriešanās [The Return of Namejs], 1990.
The bilingual edition of a collection of Latvian erotic poetry in Italian, 1991.
Collection of poems by F. Bārda , Atgriešanās [The Return], 1997.
Poetry Column Riekšava for Literatūra un Māksla magazine, 1988-90.
Forewords/Afterwords:
V. Strēlerte's collection of poems, Mans laiks [My Time]. 1992.
L. Briedis' collection of poems, Dzedzieda [Sonsong], 1998.
Z. Mauriņa's novels, Dzelzs aizbīdņi lūst [Iron Shutters Collapse], 1998, and Drosme būt [Courage to Be] 1999.
V. Veldre's novel, Dēli un meitas [Sons and Daughters]. 2002.
Books to fall for
Viesturs Vecgrāvis, profile //The Council of the Creative Unions of Latvia [LV]
Viesturs Vecgrāvis, enciclopedic article // Literature.lv [LV]