Vytautė Žilinskaitė – the “Not Childish” Children’s Writer

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Vytautas Žilinskaitė could be called the queen of Lithuanian children’s literature – her fairy tales, short stories and novellas have raised many generations of readers. And will keep on doing so, because her books are among the top ten most read works in libraries every year. The work of Žilinskaitė, who celebrated her 90th birthday in 2020, is characterized by a sensitive, but at the same time playful, even slightly ironic approach to the world. Most likely, this is because she does not only write children’s literature, but also satires and humorous stories. Satires are works that depict, through humor, the flaws and weaknesses of people and even society as a whole. Of course, the purpose of satire is not to make fun of someone or ridicule them: they allow the reader to recognise themselves – often making mistakes and imperfect. Žilinskaitė’s fairy tales work similarly: whether the main characters are children, animals or toys, not only children and teenagers, but also their parents understand their experiences.

Vytautė Žilinskaitė was born on 13 December 1930 in Kaunas. However, she claims that her real home is the capital Vilnius, where she moved with her family when she was eight. The characters in the writer’s tales and short stories often experience loneliness. This is probably related to the author’s childhood experiences. In 1945, the Soviets deported her father, Jurgis Žilinskas, to the depths of Russia, because he helped Poles living in Vilnius to leave for Poland illegally. Her mother paid more attention to her sister and the family was poor, so Žilinskaitė had to work from a young age. For example, when summer came, her mother sent her to farmers in the Vilnius district, where the future writer had to work for food. ‘I went to the gymnasium with my father’s coat and big brother’s shoes. There was often nothing to eat. I had enough to eat only during the volleyball competition, because we were fed then’, Žilinskaitė remembers her childhood years. Despite the shortages, she graduated with honors from Vilnius Salomėja Nėris Secondary School and entered Vilnius University to study journalism. After graduating, she worked for the magazine Jaunimo Gretos [Eng. Youth Ranks] and later for the weekly Dienovidis [Eng. The Meridian].

Žilinskaitė made her debut as a writer in 1961 with a collection of poems for adults Nesustok, Valandėle [Eng. Dear Hour, Please Don’t Stop]. Although her poetry was favorably received by well-known writers, she began to write prose – documentaries, humour stories, satires, and parodies. Although Žilinskaitė’s intellectual humour stories and satires were translated into foreign languages ​​and received considerable recognition outside Lithuania, her poetry was more valued in her homeland. However, Žilinskaitė gained greatest recognition when she started writing for children. The author’s literary legacy to date consists of more than eighteen books for children and young adults, which include literary tales, short stories, novellas, and plays. Her most famous works include fairy tales Melagių Pilis [Eng. The Castle of Liars] and Robotas ir Peteliškė (‘The Robot and the Moth’),  and a fairy tale-novella Kelionė į Tandadriką [Eng. Journey to Tandadrik]. Her first fairy tale Mikė Milžinas [Eng. Mikė, the Giant] was published in 1967, and her latest work for teenagers, the short story Kintas [a boy’s name], appeared in 2006.

It is sometimes said that Žilinskaitė’s work is “not childish”, but for children. This is probably because she doesn’t lecture or suggest “right” answers that have been prepared in advance – she lets the reader evaluate the events and characters by themselves. Žilinskaitė doesn’t mislead readers that characters can be divided into good and bad, and that good will always prevail – instead, she shows the complexity of people and their actions and feelings.