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She is a writer and literary translator. She graduated from Vilnius University with a master’s degree in Literary Theory and a bachelor’s degree in Lithuanian Philology, then worked as an advertising copywriter for a few years before moving to New Zealand, where she obtained her PhD in Religious Studies from Victoria University of Wellington. She later moved to Sydney, Australia.

Akvilina Cicėnaitė made her literary debut in 2009 and has been writing extensively since then. She published two novels – Tylos istorija (The Story of Silence, 2017, 2023), and Anglų kalbos žodynas (A Dictionary of the English Language, 2022, excerpts in English were published in Vilnius Review). The latter novel received multiple awards, including The Book of The Year award. Currently, it is being translated into Polish by Agnieszka Rembialkowska to be published later in 2024 by Marpress.

She also wrote six young adult books: Viskas apie mano šeimą (Everything About My Family, 2009), Mano tėtis ir kiti nesusipratimai (My Dad and Other Misunderstandings, 2010), Kengūrų slėnio paslaptis (The Secret of Kangaroo Valley, 2014), Raudonosios uolos prakeikimas (The Curse of the Red Rock, 2015), Niujorko respublika (New York Republic, 2015, 2023), Kad mane pamatytum (So You Would See Me, 2020). Four of them were nominated for the Book of the Year award. In 2023, her first children’s story Jūrų žvaigždė, kuri ieškojo širdies (A Starfish That Was Looking for a Heart) was published, illustrated by Reda Tomingas. All books were published by Alma littera.

Akvilina Cicėnaitė translated fifteen books from English into Lithuanian. Her translations include Bernardine Evaristo Girl, Woman, Other (Mergaitė, moteris, kita, Alma littera, 2020), Abdulrazak Gurnah Desertion (Apleidimas, Alma littera, 2023), Graeme Macrae Burnet Case Study (Pacientė, Alma littera, 2024), Hernan Diaz Trust (Pasitikėjimas, Baltos lankos, 2024). She is a member of the Lithuanian Writers Union, the Lithuanian Literary Translators Association, and the Lithuanian Section of IBBY (The International Board on Books for Young People).

Currently, Akvilina divides her time between Sydney and Vilnius, where she is working on her PhD in contemporary Lithuanian literature, focusing on the formation of writers’ identity in the 21st century.

pic. Laura Vansevičienė