Wiesław Myśliwski (born 1932) studied Polish philology at the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin. He is a novelist, playwright, and scriptwriter whose early work was primarily focused on rural life. However, his style gradually evolved, and he began to write novels in the form of monologues by people reflecting on their lives.

He made his debut with Nagi sad (“The Bare Orchard”, 1967). The plot centres on the experiences of peasants and the changes that took place in the countryside during the communist era. Myśliwski expanded on this theme by means of anthropological observations, giving it a universal character. One of his novels that has become a permanent addition to the canon of contemporary Polish prose is Kamień na kamieniu (Stone Upon Stone, 1984), an epic panorama presenting village life from the 1920s to the early 1980s. The novel’s protagonist, Szymon Pietruszka, becomes a chronicler of his declining community.

Piotr, the narrator of Myśliwski’s novel Widnokrąg (“The Horizon”, 1996), is an urban intellectual on whom the writer bestowed many of his own characteristics. In his reminiscences, he returns to events from his childhood. In the present day, Piotr is a man weary of life who tries to chart the titular horizon—in other words, to describe and understand the boundaries of the world that he knows.

In Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli (A Treatise on Shelling Beans, 2006), Myśliwski once again turns to his favourite form of monologue. The novel tells the story of an old man who works as a watchman. The oldest events he recalls date back to the years of the Nazi occupation, while the most recent ones are contemporary. They become triggers for reflections on destiny and the role of blind chance in people’s lives.

Ostatnie rozdanie (The Last Hand, 2013) is also a monologue. The narrative is supplemented by letters that the protagonist has received from a former lover over the course of several decades. The theme of the novel is failure in life, but this theme is explored with deep philosophical curiosity. Myśliwski poses fundamental questions, such as: what criteria do we use when we judge a life as successful or unsuccessful?

Myśliwski continues these reflections in Ucho igielne (“The Eye of the Needle”, 2018). This is a reference to the Dominican Gate in the town of Sandomierz, where the author grew up, as well as to the gate in the Bible through which a person must pass on the Day of Judgement. For Myśliwski, passing through it causes time to repeat itself, stretching from the interwar period to the present day.

A unique retrospective of Myśliwski’s literary career was published to mark his 90th birthday, titled Wiesław Myśliwski. W środku jesteśmy baśnią (“Wiesław Myśliwski: We Each Carry a Fairy Tale Within Us”, 2022). It compiles various texts written by Myśliwski, transcripts of his public appearances, and the most interesting interviews with him.

From time to time, Myśliwski’s plays and adaptations of his novels have been performed. Directors such as Kazimierz Dejmek, Izabella Cywińska, and Krzysztof Nazar have used his works. Recently, an adaptation of Widnokrąg, directed by Michał Kotański, was staged to great acclaim at the National Theatre in Iceland as part of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage’s “Inspiring Culture” programme.

Myśliwski has won numerous literary awards (including two Nike Literary Awards—for Widnokrąg and Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli). He has been honoured with national distinctions and orders, including the Order of Polonia Restituta (Commander’s Cross with a Star). He also holds honorary doctorates from four Polish universities. His works have been translated into many languages. In 2011, the French edition of Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli, translated by Margot Carlier, was awarded the Saint-Emilion Literary Prize for foreign novels. Ucho igielne won the Translation of the Year Award in Lithuania in 2020, in the category of contemporary fiction, and the English edition of Kamień na kamieniu (Stone Upon Stone), translated by Bill Johnston, received the Best Translated Book Award in New York in 2012.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Nagi sad (“The Bare Orchard”), Warsaw: PIW, 1967
• Pałac (“The Palace”), Warsaw: PIW, 1970
• Kamień na kamieniu (“Stone Upon Stone”), Warsaw: PIW, 1984
• Drzewo (“The Tree”), Szczecin: Glob, 1989
• Widnokrąg (“The Horizon”), Warsaw: Muza, 1996
• Requiem dla gospodyni (“Requiem for a Housewife”), Warsaw: Muza, 2000
• Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli (A Treatise on Shelling Beans ), Kraków: Znak, 2006
• Ostatnie rozdanie (“The Last Hand”), Kraków: Znak, 2013
• Ucho igielne (“The Eye of the Needle”), Kraków: Znak 2018
• Wiesław Myśliwski. W środku jesteśmy baśnią (“Wiesław Myśliwski: We Each Carry a Fairy Tale Within Us”), Kraków: Znak 2022

TRANSLATIONS

English:

• The Palace (Pałac), trans. Ursula Phillips, London Chester Springs, P. Owen, 1991
• Stone Upon Stone (Kamień na kamieniu), trans. Bill Johnston, New York: Archipelago Books, 2011
• A Treatise on Shelling Beans (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Bill Johnston, New York: Archipelago Books, 2013

Bulgarian:

• Kam"ku v"rchu kam"k (Kamień na kamieniu), trans. Galina Belinska, Sofija: Narodna Kultura, 1987

Croatian:

• Traktat o ljustenju graha (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Mladen Martić, Zagrzeb: Naklada Ljevak, 2015

Czech:

• Na kameni kámen (Kamień na kamieniu), Josef Vlášek, Prague: Odeon, 1986
• Zloděj: drama bez jednání a bez scén (Złodziej), Prague: Dilia, 1990
• Traktat o louskání fazolí (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Lenka Daňhelová, Prague: Havran, 2010
• Obzor (Widnokrąg), trans. Lenka Kuhar Daňhelová, Prague: Havran, 2020

Esperanto:

• La paląco (Pałac), trans. Tomasz Chmielik, Svidniko: T. Chmielik: Fondumo Edmond kaj Yvonne Privat, 1992

Estonian:

• Kivi peal on kivi (Kamień na kamieniu), trans. Olev Jōgi, Tallinn: Èèsti Raamat, 1988

French:    

• L'Art d'écrosser les haricots (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Margot Carlier, Paris: Actes Sud, 2010
• La dernière partie (Ostatnie rozdanie), trans. Margot Carlier, Paris: Actes Sud, 2016

Georgian:

• K'va k'vaze (Kamień na kamieniu), trans. Ambrosi Grišikašvili, T'bilisi: s.l., 2001

Hebrew:

• Hirhur ʻal ḳiluf sheʻuʻit (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Zajdman Anat, Kinneret, Dvir-Publishing House Or Yehuda, 2010

Spain:

• El arte de desgranar alubias (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Francisco Javier Villaverde, Madrid: 451 Editores, 2011

Lithuanian:

• Akmuo ant akmens (Kamień na kamieniu), trans. Judita Grigienė, Vilnius: Vaga, 1992
• Traktatas apie pupeliu gliaudymą (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Kazys Uscila, Vilnius: Mintis, 2009
• Akiratis (Widnokrąg), trans. Vyturys Jarutis, Vilnius: Lietuvos rašytojų sąjungos leidykla, 2017
• Paskutinis išdalijimas (Ostatnie rozdanie), trans. Kazys Uscila, Vilnius: Mintis, 2018
• Adatos ąsa (Ucho igielne), trans. Kazys Uscila: Mintis, Vilnius 2020

Latvian:

• Akmens uz akmęna (Kamień na kamieniu), trans. Vija Brangule, Rīga: Liesma, 1988

Dutch:

• Over het doppen van bonen (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Karol Lesman, Amsterdam: Querido, 2009
• Steen op steen (Kamień na kamieniu), trans. Karol Lesman, Amsterdam: Querido, 2012
• De laatste hand (Ostatnie rozdanie), trans. Karol Lesman, Amsterdam: Querido, 2016
• De horizon (Widnokrąg), trans. Karol Lesman, Amsterdam: Querido’s, 2017

German:

• Der nackte Garten (Nagi sad), Caesar Rymarowicz. Berlin, Weimar: Aufbau-Verlag, 1974
• Stein auf Stein (Kamień na kamieniu), Henryk Bereska, Berlin, Weimar: Aufbau-Verlag, 1990
• Der helle Horizont (Widnokrąg), Roswitha Matwin-Buschmann, München: btb, 2005

Russian:

• Kamen' na kamen' (Kamień na kamieniu), trans. Ksenia Starosielska, Moscow: Raduga, 1987

Romanian:

• Piatra peste piatra (Kamień na kamieniu), trans. Pavel Mocanu, Ion Dodu Bălan, Bucharest: Ed. Univers, 1987
• Orizont (Widnokrąg), trans. Stan Velea, Bucharest: Saeculum I. O., 2000

Serbian:

• Traktat o čišćenju pasulja (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Jovan Jovanović, Belgrade: Clio, 2013

Slovakian:

• Kamień na kameni (Kamień na kamieniu), trans. Jozef Marušiak, Bratislava: Slovensky Spisovatel', 1989
• Horizont (Widnokrąg), trans. Jozef Marušiak, Bratislava: Kalligram, 2007
• Traktát o lúštení fazule (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Jozef Marušiak, Bratislava: Kalligram, 2010

Slovenian:

• Traktat o luščenju fižola (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Staša Pavlović, Ljubljana: Mladinska knjiga, 2014

Turkish:

• Taş taş üstünde (Kamień na kamieniu), trans. Neşe Taluy Yüce, Stambuł: Aylak Adam, 2016

Hungarian:

• Pásztorkastély (Pałac), trans. Irén Fejér, Budapest: Magvető, 1986
• Értekezés a babfejtésről (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Hermann Péter, Budapest: Poligráf, 2019
• Látóhatár (Widnokrąg), trans. Péter Józsa, Budapest: Széphalom Könyvmühely, 2006

Italian:

• L’arte di sgranare i fagioli (Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli), trans. Alessandro Amenta, Rome: Gaffi Editore, 2012