The Polish Book Institute

A translation of Wiesław Myśliwski's novel Ucho igielne (“The Needle's Eye”), has been published in the Netherlands. The publication of the book translated by Karol Lesman was supported by the Book Institute as part of the ©POLAND Translation Programme.

The novel Het oog van de Naald, as reads the title of the Dutch translation of the book, has been published by the Querido publishing house in Amsterdam.

The Needle's Eye is a poignant meditation on human fate, memory, and history, the mysteriousness of intimate relationships, and, above all, the mystery of the encounter of youth and old age. Myśliwski's novel reflects, as if in a mirror, a piece of Polish history with everything that is dramatic, painful, passed over in silence, and untold. Most of all, however, it is a story about how the passing of time leaves its mark on people's experience of themselves and the world. Beautiful, profound literature in which acute observation and a peculiar tenderness towards man are intertwined with a symbolic dimension.

Karol Lesman's oeuvre includes more than 50 books that almost constitute the canon of Polish prose. Thanks to his work, Dutch-speaking readers can discover the works of Polish writers such as Brandys, Herbert, Hłasko, Huelle, Korczak, Kołakowski, Krajewski, Lipska, Masłowska, Myśliwski, Pankowski, Pilch, Różewicz, Stasiuk, Szymborska, Tokarczuk, and Witkacy. For years, he has dreamt of translating Lalka (“The Doll") by Bolesław Prus, and now this dream is coming true: Lesman is working on the translation, and the novel will soon appear in print. In 2013, his contribution to the promotion of Polish literature was recognised by the Book Institute, honouring him with the Transatlantyk Award.