June Central European Book Club

10 June, 6 pm

Join us for a conversation about the book “Dark Mother Earth” one of the most widely read Croatian novels of the last decade. Author Kristian Novak creates a story of childhood trauma, sets it in a criminal intrigue and transports the reader to Croatia's Twin Peaks, which becomes the town of Međimurje.

The book's protagonist, young writer Matija, is unable to find his way in either his personal or professional life. The key to his emotional and creative blockage turns out to be a childhood trauma: the death of his father, immediately followed by a series of mysterious deaths among neighbors and acquaintances. In order to understand what really happened that year and why he, his mother and sister had to flee their native village, Matija has to confront repressed memories.

The novel “Black Mother Earth” was first rejected by publishers, only to become one of the most widely read titles of recent years in Croatia. A film adaptation of it is in development.

The meeting will be moderated by Aleksandra Wojtaszek – Balkanist, literary scholar, translator and expert on Central European culture. Author of the book “Fjaka. Sezon na Chorwację”, scientific monograph ”Topographies of imaginary spaces. Serbian and Croatian speculative fiction” and texts in HERITO magazine and “Tygodnik Powszechny”.

Kristian Novak – writer, linguist, lecturer at the Institute of croatistics at the University of Rijeka, karate player. He is the author of “Višejezičnost i kolektivni identiteti Iliraca” (2012) and the novels “Obješeni” (2005), “Črna mati zemla” (2013, “Dark Mother Earth”) and “Ciganin, ali najljepši” (2016, “Gypsy, but the most beautiful”). He has won awards for his novels: including the T-portal Prize for the best novel of the year and the Ksaver Šandor Đalski Prize.  

For materials, please contact us at email: p.malochleb@mck.krakow.pl

Free admission

Join us for reading and conversation – in the heart of Krakow, among people who believe that books unite Central Europe.