What’s Goin’ on There is one of the most impressive literary debuts of 2019 in the category of documentary fiction. This is the vivid collection of Varde’s observations on the everyday life of contemporary Latvian society – a string of over one hundred short episodes wherein his sharp, humoristic descriptions of things happening here and now – either with Varde himself or with somebody right beside him – often turn into deeper contemplations on some aspect of our perception of current reality.

Varde calls his literary sketches “the chronicles of attempts to survive.”

“For the author, it might be enough to enjoy the soap bubbles which reflect all the world which is impossible to catch in the eye of the camera. But for us, the readers, this book is indeed a valuable gift – a tool to improve our perception of life’s beauty and absurdity.” – Ingmāra Balode, poetess and translator.

Contact: Renāte Punka, renate.punka@jr.lv