Lot #17: 1970 Latvian Diaspora First Edition Krāšņa un bagāta dzīve by Jānis Gorsvāns (Tilta Apgāds

Rare piece of Latvian diaspora (Trimda) literature: a first edition hardcover copy of Krāšņa un bagāta dzīve ("A Beautiful and Rich Life"). Written by acclaimed Latvian exile author and painter Jānis Gorsvāns, this collection of nine novellas features stark, beautiful black-and-white graphic block illustrations designed by the author himself. Published in 1970 by the renowned Tilta Apgāds press based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, this book stands as an excellent artifact of Mid-Century Baltic emigre culture and publishing history. • Author/Illustrator: Jānis Gorsvāns (1930–2000) • Format: Hardcover, bound in green cloth with gold-stamped detailing on the spine and a stylized tree emblem on the front cover. • Language: Latvian • Publisher: Tilta Apgāds (Minneapolis, 1970) • Contents: 9 short novellas accompanied by original text illustrations. • The Author: Jānis Gorsvāns was a prominent figure in the post-WWII Latvian exile community. He fled Latvia as a refugee in 1944, eventually settling in the United States in 1949. He successfully balanced careers as both a prose writer and a visual painter. This exact volume, Krāšņa un bagāta dzīve, was awarded the prestigious Jānis Jaunsudrabiņš Prose Award—the highest literary honor given to Latvian writers living in exile. • The Publisher: Tilta Apgāds was one of the premier post-war diaspora printing presses established in North America. It served as a critical cultural lifeline, preserving independent Latvian literature, free speech, and artistry while Latvia was under Soviet occupation. • Linguistic & Cultural Significance: Books published in the Trimda (exile) loop are highly valued for their limited press runs. They were distributed globally among small Baltic refugee pockets in the US, Canada, Australia, and Western Europe, meaning few copies survived intact over the decades. Pickup category timeslot {A}