Article 58: A Latvian Tale of Blood & Treasure

by Diana Mathur, Kārlis Smiltens (Illustrator), Georgia Mathur (Illustrator)

After fifty years of exile, Kārlis Pērkons at last returns to his Latvian homeland, only to be accused of murdering KGB agent Igor Volkov. Their enmity goes back to 1940, when the Soviet occupation was so horrific, a Nazi invasion would be liberating. Kārlis and his high school friends band together, though friendship can be called an illegal assembly under Article 58 of the Russian criminal code.

141 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 13, 2020

Reviews

[Timothy Ishaya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Imagine being a confused teen in a small Baltic territory, sandwiched between two fighting countries in WWII—Soviet Union and Germany—and the horror of sled riding down your backyard snowy hill with your childhood friends into a hostile convoy of advancing soldiers. Your pal is instantly drug off by the advancing military occupation, perhaps for bogus claims of counterrevolutionary activity, or worse, to brandish a rifle instead of a sled for the enemy.

Article 58 (*illegal assembly) is a fictional tale, depicting 17-year-old Kārlis Pērkons in Latvia during this past historical war. Yet the author, Diana Mathur, eerily releases her chilling narrative in 2019, three years prior to the 2022 Ukraine invasion by Russia (again, neighboring Latvia), making this forecasted story current, uniquely possible, and the bordering Latvia’s defense posture along with this book’s tale, more real than ever. Additionally, Mathur’s colorful anecdotes and descriptors are exceptional, i.e.— “The burning question hung there, sucking air from the room”, making Article 58 a delightful treat to this reader’s palate.

EDIT REVIEW

[Nicola Ranson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second in this gripping trilogy which takes me right into what it was like to be in Latvia during the horrors of World War 2. Well written and beautifully illustrated I couldn't put it down.