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Born in Ligatne, Latvia in 1973, Pauls Bankovskis is a prolific writer and novelist. In decade he has published ten novels, two short story collections, a children's book and a work of non-fiction. His books have been translated into English, French, Russian, Finnish, Swedish, Czech and Lithuanian. He studied glasswork at the Riga School for Applied Arts and philosophy at the University of Latvia (1992-1996).

"Two Latvians, two different periods, with almost a century between them. One of them, in the autumn of 1917, is not entirely sure whether it is worth it for Latvians to attempt and establish their own country. There is still time until November 18th, and his thoughts on it could change, if one could give him an answer to the question 'Why?' The second comes upon this same question today. That which seemed already self-evident to many in 1918 suddenly doesn't seem that way anymore. This is a story about an improbable encounter between these two characters." - Text from the Annual Latvian Literature Award