Along with Vilis Lācis and Andrejs Upīts, Anna Sakse (1905– 1981) is one of the most contradictory figures in Latvian literature. Her stories and prose for children are still much read and beloved, but her political work and prose for adults have, in the opinion of many, irretrievably stained her legacy. Anna Sakse was born into a poor family of farmers. She studied pedagogy and philology, and worked as a translator and editor. By the time of Latvia’s interwar independence years, she had already become involved in the work of the Communist underground, and during the Second World War she moved to the Soviet Union, where she worked at the newspaper “Cīņa” in Kirov. On returning to Latvia, she focused on literary work and worked in the Soviet peace defence committee. The author received many Soviet awards and commendations. Sakse’s three adults’ novels – Darba cilts [Labour Tribe], Pret kalnu [Towards the Mountain], and Dzirksteles naktī [Sparks in the Night] – were all mostly devoted to glorifying Soviet power and its ideology, as well as criticising the government and culture of pre-war Latvia. Along with praising her “class precision” and “expressions of social justice”, the critics of that time also noted the subtle and nuanced descriptions of the female characters in Sakse’s works, as well as the ethically clear, strong heroes in the stories, who follow their ideals and never retreat in the face of opposition. Nowadays this aspect of her prose seems more propaganda- like than her children’s literature.
Children's literature
Kas ir vismīļākais? [Who is the most beloved?] (1975)
Māsiņa smaida [Sister Smile] (1973)
Puķu zirnītis [Little Flower] (1969)
Varavīksne [Rainbow] (1968)
Māmiņa [Mummy] (1967)
Pasakas par ziediem [Flower Stories] (1966)
Gunas darba diena [Guna's Working Day] (1965)
Kalējdēls Kaspars [Kaspar the son of Blacksmith] (1964)
Pīķa kunga stāsts [Story of the King of Spades] (1962)
Tēva dāvana [Father's Gift] (1961)
Laimes kalējs [Blacksmith of Happiness] (1960)
Pasakas mazajiem [Fairy tales for the Young] (1960)
Lidojums uz mēnesi [Flight to the Moon] (1958)
Čitas burtnīca [Notebook of Chita] (1958)
Lido, mans putns! [Fly My Bird!] (1957)
Pēdējais divnieks [Last Low Grade] (1950)
Mārītes piecgade [Marite's five-year] (1948)
Jaunā maiņa [New Shift] (1947)
Trīs šķūnīši [Three Barns] (1945)
Prose
Stāsti [Stories] (1976)
Nokaltis zars [Dead Branch] (1968)
Māra (1951)
Dzirksteles naktī [Sparks in the Night] (1951)
Lūzums [Fracture] (1949)
Pret kalnu [Towards the Mountain] (1948)
Skarbais piesities [Harsh Touch] (1946)
Atgriešanās dzīvē [Coming Back to Life] (1945)
Darba cilts [Labour Tribe] (1941)
Essays
Vēstules jaunībai [Letters to Youth] (1979)
Par vācu fašistisko briesmoņu zvērībām Latvijā [On German Fascist Atrocity in Latvia] (1945)
Books to fall for

Flower Stories
Flower Stories (Pasakas par ziediem)
This book consists of the stories behind the origins of various types of flowers, such as daffodils, snowdrops and hyacinths. Compared to modern-day children’s literature, Flower Stories distinguishes itself with its sorrowful and even tragic tone. So, for example, in the story about the water-arum (called a “pig’s ear” in Latvian), she describes the life of Jānītis, who has lost his mother and is forced to herd pigs all day by his evil stepmother. His stepmother’s children begin to call him Pig’s Ear. Later in the summer, one of Jānītis’s piglets wanders off in search of water, falls into a pool in the marsh, and begins to sink. The stepmother forces Jānītis to go after the piglet, and he manages to catch hold of it by its ears but then sinks into the bog himself. Only his fist remains above the water, and this transforms into a flower.
In the story about the peony, the main character is also a child who has lost her mother. Peony is the oldest daughter in a family of six children and is in love with a boy named Simeons. However, due to all of her chores and the need to take care of her younger brothers and sisters, she can’t leave to marry her beloved. Simeons goes off to seek his fortune in faraway lands and sends Peony a marriage proposal every two years, but they are always forced to delay their wedding. In her old age, Peony writes to Simeons that she is ready at last to join him, but Death arrives first and refuses to wait for Peony to marry. Soon afterwards, we see Simeons standing at her grave with a peony, which he brings as a sign of his love.
Contact: info@akka-laa.lv

Title
:Flower Stories
Title*
:Pasakas par ziediem
Authors
:Genre
:Childrens-book
Publisher
:Liesma
Pages
:283
Year
:1966
Foreign rights
:AKKA/LAA
1965, Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic People's Writer Award
1959, Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic Award for Sparks in the Night
1949, USSR Award for Towards the Mountain
1946, Order of the Red Star
1945, Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic Culture Award

花的故事
花的故事 (Pasakas par ziediem)

Title
: 花的故事Title*
: Pasakas par ziediemAuthors
:Translated by
: , , , , , , , ,Genre
:Children`s Book
Language
:Chinese
Pages
:128
Year
:2024
Copyrights
:The author, the illustrator

Tirpsta diena kaip ledai
Tirpsta diena kaip ledai (Dzejoļi bērniem, antoloģija)

Title
: Tirpsta diena kaip ledaiTitle*
: Dzejoļi bērniem, antoloģijaAuthors
: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,Translated by
: , , , , , ,Genre
:Anthology
Language
:Lithuanian
Publisher
:Slinktys
Pages
:160
Year
:2023