ICC publication nominated for the main prize in the Ambassador of New Europe 2025 competition

The books “Carpathia” by Prof. Maciej Janowski and “Archipelagos. A personal Atlas of Questions and Experiences” by Drago Jančar, translated by Nikodem Szczygłowski and Joanna Pomorska, have been shortlisted among the top five titles for the 13th edition of the Ambassador of New Europe Award. The award is presented by the European Solidarity Centre in Gdańsk and the Jan Nowak Jeziorański College of Eastern Europe in Wrocław.

This year, the competition organisers selected two publications from ICC Publishing from among the 48 nominated titles. The book “The Carpathia” by Prof. Maciej Janowski is a narrative of the history of the Carpathians from prehistory to the present day. The author describes the Carpathians as a space where people and the landscape share a common destiny, and where history unfolds to the rhythm of the valleys and mountain passes. Professor Janowski presents these mountains as a multinational region where various ethnic and religious groups have coexisted for centuries. He paints a picture of a landscape straddling cultures and empires, in which “mountainousness” becomes a cultural category — a way of life and thought shaped by nature, beliefs and art. Professor Janowski also examines the period of post-war transformations: displacements, industrialisation, and changes to the landscape and collective memory. With literary sensitivity and historical erudition, he paints a panorama of the Carpathians, which have no single centre.

The book “Archipelagos. A Personal Atlas of Questions and Experiences”, a collection of essays by the Slovenian writer Drago Jančar, is the second of the nominated titles published by the ICC. The author recounts the history of his nation in the context of issues that are familiar and relatable to most people in Central Europe. He takes the reader on a journey to the Maribor of his childhood, to besieged Vukovar, and also to Joseph Roth’s Austrian Galicia. Drago Jančar describes, in a perceptive and nuanced way, the experiences and places that have shaped his thinking on history, memory and the writer’s responsibility. He maps out Europe from the perspective of an individual’s fate, a map riddled with fractures, contradictions and traumas. 

The New Europe Ambassador Award has been presented since 2011 and honours the best publications in Polish that present historical processes or the current experiences of Europeans in an innovative way, from the perspective of social relations and civic engagement in the fields of culture, education, politics and the economy. It honours books that boldly and uncompromisingly challenge stereotypes and clichés about Europe and its inhabitants, helping to understand its unique cultural code. The prize consists of the title Ambassador of the New Europe 2025, a medal, a cash prize and a certificate. The winner will be announced in mid-July 2026, and the awards ceremony, together with a meet-the-author event, will take place on 13 September during the Gdańsk Book Fair at the European Solidarity Centre.

The other nominees for the main prize:

• Joanna Czeczot, “Cisza nad stepem. Kazachstan i pamięć Rosji”, Czarne Publishing House.

• Timothy Snyder, “On Freedom”, trans. Bartłomiej Pietrzyk, Znak Horyzont Publishing House.

• Szczepan Twardoch, “Null”, Marginesy Publishing.  

We warmly congratulate the nominees!

“The Carpathia” by Prof. Maciej Janowski at the ICC bookshop

The twenty-third volume in the Library of Central Europe series.

The publication is available in print and as an e-book

The book “Archipelagos. A Personal Atlas of Questions and Experiences” by Drago Jančar at the ICC bookshop

Translated from Slovenian by Nikodem Szczygłowski and Joanna Pomorska.

The second volume of the Ister series, edited by Łukasz Galusek, Paulina Małochleb and Bartosz Sadulski.

The publication is available in print.