By The Polish Cultural Institute New York
Looking for a taste of Polish writing to tide you over in the dog days of summer? Check out these recent Polish books by some of Poland’s greatest writers.
Killing Auntie
by Andrzej Bursa
translated by Wiesiek Powaga
New Vessel Press, 2015
When Jurek, a young student, kills his doting aunt out of boredom, he faces a host of problems as he tries to dispose of the body. This dark comedy featuring nearsighted relatives, false-toothed grandmothers, meat grinders and lovemaking lynxes sheds a caustic light on how a whole society gets caught up in disposing of dear old Auntie.
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Emancipated Women
by Boleslaw Prus
translated by Stephanie Kraft
Self-published, 2015
The first translation into English of this classic of Polish literature, Emancipated Women by Boleslaw Prus (1847-1912) tells the story of Magdalena Brzeska, a naive altruist trying to make her way in 19th century Polish society. Though written over a hundred years ago, the book is startlingly relevant, with a charming, sprightly writing style that makes it ideal for a modern reader.
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The World Shared
by Dariusz Sosnicki
translated by Piotr Florczyk and Boris Drayluk.
BOA Editions, 2014
This bilingual edition is the first collection by this prolific and celebrated Polish poet and critic available in English. Sosnicki’s surreal, dream-like poems speak to our suppressed, unacknowledged fears about contemporary life, his style evoking writers such as John Ashbery, Jorie Graham and Bill Nott.
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The Coffee Mill
by Konstanty Ildefons Galczynski
translated by Antonia Lloyd-Jones
Festina Lente, 2015
A classic children’s fairy-tale by the legendary poet, playwright and humorist Konstanty Ildefons Galczynski. The Coffee Mill is the story of a coffee grinder thrown away by its owners, Mikolaj and Celina, that goes wandering through Earth and outer space, trying to find where it belongs. Translated for the first time by Antonia Lloyd-Jones.
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See also:
* The Polish Cultural Institute New York.
* The Polish Cultural Institute In Chicago.
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Comments welcome.
Posted on July 31, 2015