Maarja Kangro (born 20 December 1973 in

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

) is an

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

n poet,

short story writer A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

, novelist, essayist, nonfiction writer and

librettist A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major ...

Life

She is the daughter of composer Raimo Kangro and author

Leelo Tungal Leelo Tungal (born 22 June 1947 in Tallinn) is an Estonian poet, children's writer, translator, editor and librettist. Life and career Tungal studied Estonian literature at the University of Tartu. After her graduation, she has worked as a tea ...

. She studied English at the

University of Tartu The University of Tartu (UT; ; ) is a public research university located in the city of Tartu, Estonia. It is the national university of Estonia. It is also the largest and oldest university in the country.

and is currently a PhD student in cultural studies at the

University of Tallinn Tallinn University (TLU; , ''TLÜ'') is a public research university in Estonia. Located in the centre of Tallinn, the capital city of Estonia, Tallinn University is one of the three largest institutions of higher education in the country. Both Q ...

. She has written several libretti for Estonian composers and has translated from Italian, English, German, and other languages (among others

Giacomo Leopardi Count Giacomo Taldegardo Francesco di Sales Saverio Pietro Leopardi (29 June 1798 – 14 June 1837) was an Italian philosopher, poet, essayist, and philologist. Considered the greatest Italian poet of the 19th century and one of the greatest a ...

, Andrea Zanzotto,

Valerio Magrelli Valerio Magrelli (born 10 January 1957, Rome) is an Italian poet. He graduated in philosophy at the University of Rome and is an expert in French literature which he has taught and teaches at the University of Pisa and University of Cassino. ...

Giorgio Agamben Giorgio Agamben ( ; ; born 22 April 1942) is an Italian philosopher best known for his work investigating the concepts of the state of exception, form-of-life (borrowed from Ludwig Wittgenstein) and '' homo sacer''. The concept of biopolitic ...

Hans Magnus Enzensberger Hans Magnus Enzensberger (11 November 1929 – 24 November 2022) was a German author, poet, translator, and editor. He also wrote under the pseudonyms Andreas Thalmayr, Elisabeth Ambras, Linda Quilt and Giorgio Pellizzi. Enzensberger was regarde ...

Selected works

Books

* 2006 ''Kurat õrnal lumel'' (poems) * 2006 ''Puuviljadraakon'' (children's book) * 2007 ''Tule mu koopasse, mateeria'' (poems) * 2008 ''Heureka'' (poems) * 2010 ''Ahvid ja solidaarsus'' (short stories) * 2010 ''Kunstiteadlase jõulupuu'' (poems) * 2012 ''Dantelik auk'' (short stories) * 2013 ''Must tomat'' (poems) * 2014 ''Hüppa tulle'' (short stories and a novella) * 2016 ''Klaaslaps'' (novel) * 2018 ''Minu auhinnad'' (nonfiction) * 2019 ''Tuul'' (poetry) * 2019 ''Varietee'' (selected poetry translations) * 2020 ''Kaks pead'' (collection of libretti with an afterword) * 2020 ''Isa kõrvad'' (stories for children)

Books in translation

* 2011 ''La farfalla dell'irreversibilità'' (poems in Italian) * 2012 ''Обезьяны и солидарность'' (short stories in Russian) * 2013 ''Чёрный помидор'' (poetry in Russian) * 2018 ''Stikla bērns'' (novel in Latvian) * 2018 ''Kind aus Glas'' (novel in German) * 2019 ''Фруктовый дракон'' (children's book in Russian) * 2020 ''Stiklo vaikas'' (novel in Lithuanian)

Libretti and other texts for music

* 1999 ''Süda'', an opera by Raimo Kangro (with Kirke Kangro) * 2005 ''Kaubamaja'', an opera by Tõnis Kaumann * 2006 ''Tuleaed'' and ''Mu luiged, mu mõtted'', operas by Tõnu Kõrvits * 2007 ''To Define Happiness'', a multimedia work by

Gavin Bryars Richard Gavin Bryars (; born 16 January 1943) is an English composer and double bassist. He has worked in jazz, free improvisation, minimalism, Musical historicism, historicism, Avant-garde music, avant-garde, and experimental music. Early lif ...

and Peeter Jalakas * 2008 ''Monument Muneja-Kukele ehk Kuked ja kanad'', a cantata by Timo Steiner * 2009 ''Tartumaa täditütar'', an opera by Tõnis Kaumann * 2011 ''Kaks pead'', an opera by Timo Steiner

Awards

* 2006 Estonian Children's Literature Centre's Best Book of the Year Award (for ''Puuviljadraakon'') * 2008 Tallinn University Literary Award (for ''Tule mu koopasse, mateeria'') * 2009 Tallinn University Literary Award (for ''Heureka'') * 2009 Estonian Cultural Endowment's Literary Award for poetry :et:Kultuurkapitali kirjanduse sihtkapitali aastapreemia (for ''Heureka'') * 2011 Estonian Cultural Endowment's Literary Award for prose :et:Kultuurkapitali kirjanduse sihtkapitali aastapreemia (for ''Ahvid ja solidaarsus'') * 2011 Friedebert Tuglas Short Story Award (for ''48 tundi'') * 2014 Friedebert Tuglas Short Story Award (for ''Atropose Opel Meriva'') * 2016 Tallinn University Literary Award for translation (Hans Magnus Enzensberger's "Der Untergang der Titanic") * 2016 Erster Rödermarkscher Literaturpreis (for the poem "Der Ex" / "Vana armuke") * 2020 Tallinn University Literary Award for Poetry and Translation (for "Tuul" and "Varietee")