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Ivan Aivazovsky -The Ninth Wave (1850)

The phrase "руки не доходят"

The straight translation: Hands do not reach (hands do not come to)

The meaning: I need to do something, but it’s not interesting and I don’t want to do it. So, I’ll blame my hands, that they are very busy and they have no time for this thing.

A kind of procrastination. It’s usually connected with house work like “Make out (clean) the balcony”, “Knock out (clean) carpets”, “fix something”, “look at something to fix it” and etc.

🌸The paper work isn't gonna fill out itself I promise you🌸

Esperanto would have experienced more success if Zamenhof was a Shaniac, change my mind

In Russian we don’t say “Good for you” sarcastically, we say “Возьми с полки пирожок”, which translates to “Take a patty off the shelf [as a reward]”, which I think is cruel because of course there is no patty

5 German films to watch (that aren’t dark and gritty or Lola rennt)

1. Honig im Kopf

(lit.: Honey in the head)

The story of a girl and her grandfather, who has Alzheimer. The film follows the whole family coming to terms and dealing with the illness. Starring Germany’s Til Schweiger, who’s otherwise known to make kind of silly rom-coms with weird titles that nobody really likes (at least I haven’t met anyone yet). Bittersweet and sad at times, yes, but also doesn’t paint the story in too dramatic colours and always keeps a bit of the light-hearted atmosphere through out the film. Everyone was going nuts when it came out though, guess it was kind of the surprise of Til Schweiger doing something that was actually good?? I don’t know. Just watch the film, don’t ponder too much about it.

2. Bibi Blocksberg und das Geheimnis der blauen Eulen

(lit.: Bibi Blocksberg and the secret of the blue owls)

My childhood. I’m not kidding. Bibi Blocksberg is a popular German children’s character - she’s like, what, maybe 11 years old? Anyway, she’s a witch and her mum’s one too, her father’s named Bernard, her mum, who’s also a witch by the way, is named Barbara (because of ALLITERATION) and she has a broom called “mashed potates”. That’s kinda all you need to know to start. So I rewatched the trailer now, and I cringed a little bit at how 2004  it is, but it’s glorious. I don’t remember much of the plot to be honest, just that Bibi is … at a summer school and there’s a labyrinth under the school, which is where the secret of the blue owls is hidden. Bibi and her friend Elea, whose parents died in a car accident when she was young and who now uses a wheelchair, are determined to find out more, but the evil witch Rabia (whom Bibi more or less successfully banned to the Devil’s Moor in the first movie) is back and already plotting for revenge. Is it a kid’s movie? Yes. Should you watch it anyway? YES.

3. Systemfehler - Wenn Inge Tanzt

(lit.: Systemfehler (name of the band) - When Inge Dances)

Dude. I’ve never watched this movie, but I heard it’s really fricking funny. A mix of Germany’s adaption of Camp Rock, Rock It! (I’ve linked the trailer but that doesn’t mean you should go watch it honestly don’t do that to yourself) and the actually really funny Groupies bleiben nicht zum Frühstück (lit.: Groupies don’t stay for breakfeast), that didn’t make this list for the simple reason that “6 German films to watch” would break the tradition of using either 3, 5 or 10 for these kind of posts. And who am I to anger the langblr ancestors?

Anyway ABOUT THE MOVIE. So Max is the singer of a small band called “Systemfehler”, which he founded with his friends. Recently they’ve landed a surprisingly big hit with a song making fun of their more eco-friendly activist classmate Inge, which…the name alone. Any German will understand. It’s no Kevin, but … just don’t call your child Inge if you want it to make friends on the Pausenhof. The song, called “Wenn Inge Tanzt”, blows up so much that manager Dan Biermann offers them to be the opening act of the band Madsen (they’re moderately big Germany, trust me). But oh no! Their guitarrist Joscha breaks both of his hands! Just when it seems their dream of fame will only remain a dream, Inge offers to replace Joscha, under one condition…that they won’t play “Wenn Inge Tanzt” at the concert. Genuinely funny! I haven’t watched it but I definitely want to!!

4. Rubinrot   (English Trailer)/(German Trailer)

(lit.: Ruby Red)

I think this is the only film here with an English dub (not going to comment on the quality here, or the fact that they all have American accents even though the film CLEARLY takes place in the uk…beggars can’t be choosers).

It’s a fantasy film, based on the YA Novel by Kerstin Gier, which was an internation success and I think it even made it on the NY Times bestseller list (correct me if I’m wrong).

Gwendolyn Shepherd never felt like she was anything special, because even though she lives in midst of her big family in a posh mansion in Mayfair, as far as she can remember all attention has been on her cousin Charlotte. You see, Charlotte is the Ruby, last in a line of 12 people (each with pretentiously assigned symbolic gemstones) that possess the gift of time-traveling, spanning through out history. All of Gwen’s family is part of the Lodge, an underground club made up of England’s upper ten thousand dedicaded to protecting the secret, who have been training and preparing Charlotte and her time-traveling partner aka Mysterious Arrogant Hottie aka Gideon De Villiers aka Kotzbrocken all their lifes. But in the days before Charlotte’s first time jump, Gwen’s stomach does some weird things and instead of the school cafeteria, she finds herself back in 1823.

What is she supposed to do? Tell the Lodge that their century-old calculations are wrong? Face the blistering wrath of her aunt and cousin? Learn how to dance the minuette? All that plus one thing: Under no, NO circumstances fall for handsome-but-devilishly-arrogant Gideon de Villiers. Which turns out to be harder than it seems.

This is 2011-you’s day dream, jokes aside. A posh mansion in London with a quirky family? Check. A secret society of time-travelers? Check. Doing adventerous stuff in a ball gown with an arrogant hottie that would drop everything for you in 0.2 seconds? CHECK.

(btw if you’re about to shit all over them bc you’re ~edgy and ~cooler than the rest of us, fricking FIGHT ME 12 year olds deserve all the cheesy time traveling heroine stabbing bad guys in ball gown fantasies they can get)

I WORSHIPPED these books and I wish the film had done them justice, because even though clearly written for 10-15 year olds, they’re funny and full of original ideas and plot twists. Unfortunately, they fell victim to the Percy Jackson Phenomenon, where in comparison with the book the film is an abyss of badness, but sufficiently entertaining when viewed as a stand-alone. If you’re into fantasy and you had a long day in school/at work and just want to get some daily target language input without having to think too much about plot deepness, this exactly what you’re searching for.

5. Fack Ju Göhte

(lit.: well…kind of self-explanatory.Goethe is a very famous German poet, if you didn’t know. Smart guy.)

(If you’re a beginner you maybe shouldn’t start with this film. The characters talk very fast, use incorrect grammar, slang and all in all it’s not very easy to understand).

You knew it was coming. You knew it. @ German person that clicked on this list, curious, whispering to themselves “but will she mention … that film??”. Yes. Yes, I will. This list could not be complete without this film. My life and the lifes of thousands of other German students would not be complete without this film.

Okay, let me explain. You can argue with me all you want, but right here is a work of immensiously contemporary importance in the German society, arguably the peak of German cinema. Everyone has seen it at least twice. Kindergarten children repeat the punchlines one to another. Make the mistake to say the name “Chantall” out loud in a classroom full of 7th graders and you’ll be greeted with a chorus of delighted “HEUL LEISER”‘s.

I could write a the whole plot out here and go into a deep analysis of how this film criticises the German education system and in particular its neglection of everyone who comes from a lower social class or the place and role of turkish immigrants in society and what problems they face, but. Imma be honest. That film is first and foremost fricking hilarious.

It’s an ex-bank robber called Zeki Müler who ends up as a substitute teacher on accident, assigned to now teach the “Problemklasse” (usually the class with the worst reputation, made up of kids that don’t study and find joy in disrupting class (in this case all clichées of the German lower classes) of the school. Throw in a bag of money that’s buried under the gym, a doomed reenactment of Romeo and Juliet, a paintball gun and an overly correct teacher prone to hysterics that can’t seem to mind her own business and you got yourself a movie that Germany won’t forget so quickly.

(the title is a pun - an intentional misspelling of F*ck You, Goethe since the name of the school where the film takes place is the Goethe Gesamtschule).

A colourful, goofy, exagerated portrayal of school in Germany. All teachers show it in the last class before summer holidays. Iconic. If you want to immidiately get on the good side of a German teen, drop a few references. Just- watch it.

So, I hoped you all liked this collection of films and I could help you out a bit. Who knows, I think I might make a post about popular German YA literature. You see, these are the things that help me enourmosly when learning a new language - pop cultur, wether it is recent or a bit older. Often it shows the spirit of a country and you’ll always have something to talk about with native speakers!

japanese book recommendations

japanese literature is one of the reasons i absolutely adore the language and the culture. it’s unique, different from anything i’ve seen in literature from other parts of the world. during the years of learning japanese i’ve discovered many authors and books that are now my favourite, so i thought i’d share them with you! they can become great help while studying japanese, but you definitely should read them for fun first - it’s worth it, believe me.

i’m gonna include romaji, in case someone who doesn’t speak japanese wanted to read these!

dazai osamu - ningen shikkaku (太宰治・人間失格) (english title: no longer human)

this novel is considered one of the masterpieces of contemporary literature in japan. it’s taught at school, adapted to mangas and films and anime series, reissued up to this day despite it being first published in 1948. the book follows a man who feels like he is losing his ability to be human. it’s a timeless story, but also very sad and engulfing the readers in hopelessness. don’t read if you hate emotional rollercoasters.

natsume souseki - kokoro (夏目漱石・こころ)

natsume is another of the most respected japanese writers, this novel considered his masterpiece. during a trip, the protagonist meets someone he calls sensei - someone he deeply admires and looks up to. however, sensei is more mysterious than it seems. though the plot is quite simple and spoiling it in any way would be ruining your fun, it’s definitely worth reading. the author conveyed the feelings of admiration, loss, guilt, shame, as well as described developing friendship between the two men.

yumeno kyuusaku - dogra magra (夢野久作・ドグラマグラ)

the japanese say that whoever finishes this novel will surely go mad. i can’t deny; when reading it for the first time i stopped halfway because it’s very long and difficult. i still want to go back and read it properly though. it’s a very creepy and disturbing story about a man who wakes up in a mental hospital, not remembering who he is, why he’s there and what he has to do with the woman who keeps calling him from behind the wall. since this novel has no english or even european language translation (only a french one, to my knowledge) reading it would be big challenge. it contains a lot of medical vocabulary related to psychiatry and mental illnesses. recommended to horror fans.

yoshimoto banana - kitchen (吉本ばなな・キッチン)

this novel is quite short and fairly easy to read. it’s often described as a shoujo manga without pictures. it tells a story of a young woman who loses her last family member and suddenly finds herself lost in the adult world. luckily, she gets the chance to live with her acquaintance and his mother. the mother is actually a father, but it doesn’t stop them all to live together like a family. this book is very calm and melancholic, devoid of swift action, focused more on the feelings of the characters. it’s full of coziness and descriptions of food. read when it’s dark outside.

sakurazaka hiroshi - all you need is kill (桜坂洋・all you need is kill)

now this book might seem like it doesn’t fit in this list, which is full of classics and serious books. it’s a light novel, made solely for entertainment. it even got a hollywood adaptation starring tom cruise (which isn’t very good, mind you). what i love about this novel, though, is its simplicity in telling the story. the hero, a soldier, gets trapped in a time loop which feels like a nightmare but also allows him to master his fighting skills. the narrations follows his witty thoughts, which is very entertaining. despite it being simple, the novel is touching and gripping, it also has a fairly simple language to read it in japanese.

that sums up my top 5 japanese books list. if you have any recommendations of your own, don’t hesitate to add them here, since i’m always looking for new books to read!

頑張りましょう！

- SOPHIE HEAWOOD

Verstärkungswörter / Strengthening words

absolut - absolute/absolutely

total - total/totally

völlig - complete/completely

vollkommen - complete/completely

äußerst - extreme/extremely

überaus - extreme/extremely

brutal - brutally

irre - insane/crazy

entsetzlich - horrible/horribly

grässlich - awful/awfully

widerlich - disgusting

riesig - huge

furchtbar - frightful/frightfully

fürchterlich - dreadful/dreadfully

leidenschaftlich - passionately

großartig - awesome

unheimlich - uncanny

sehr, sehr - very, very

hoch- - high

ausgesprochen - decidedly

wahnsinnig - crazy

immer alles ganz - always the same

schrecklich - terribly

phantastisch - fantastic

ehrlich - honestly

bestimmt - great

sicher - certain/certaintly

sicherlich -certain/certaintly

echt - real

toll - great

prima - super

klasse - great

Spitze - top

bestimmt - certainly

wirklich - really

super - super

extrem - extreme/extremely

arg - very

verdammt - damn

ziemlich - somewhat

unverschämt - outrageous/outrageously

38 Classic Polish Books You Should Know (About)

requested by anon

That’s a hell of a Buzzfeed title, wow! I focused solely on books, but you need to remember that poems play a HUGE part in Polish literature in general. Instead of doing a list of “classic Polish texts”, which would include full-on books, poems, dramas, everything, and would be probably 18637 positions long, I did only some of the most important books, dramas, and comic books. If you’d like me to tell you more about anything on this list, cover something more in detail, or make another list — shoot me an ask!

I ordered the list NOT by how much I like these books or how strongly I’d recommend them. The list is ordered from the easiest ones to the toughest ones – literarily, not linguistically.

Also, I know that the ask was about classical books, which I too included in this list.

Let’s start with something approachable — comic books and “normal” books that are so easy and pleasant to read. Except for the two books about war — they’re approachable but the topic doesn’t really make them pleasant.

Pan Samochodzik by Zbigniew Nienacki

A series of books about Pan Samochodzik, who’s an art historian and a detective, and his job is to solve theft, smuggling, and forgery cases. He’s basically a mix of Indiana Jones and Hercules Poirot. The background for the books is life in Polish People’s Republic, but it’s actually shown not as rough as it was in real life. Apart from that, they’re basically children’s books — very light, easy, and funny.

I’d definitely recommend them, I mean, who doesn’t like stories like that? Plus, you don’t need to be God knows how good with Polish to read them.

adaptations: There are 4 movies and a TV show based on the books, each based on a different book from the series.

Podróże z Herodotem by Ryszard Kapuściński

You can read it even when you’re like 10 because it’s a very nice, easy, pleasant story. An autobiography where the author describes his travels to Asia and Africa and compares them to the travels of Herodotus. Very interesting, often funny, it gives you a full view of different people and cultures and how rich the world is. It teaches you a little bit of history, it teaches you a little bit about the modern world (I think the story starts in the 1950s), and the comparison between these two — it’s really fascinating to see that, generally, the world hadn’t changed that much.

I would wholeheartedly recommend it to everyone.

W pustyni i w puszczy by Henryk Sienkiewicz

The only book I cried on and not because it was so beautiful, but because it was so painful to read. Okay, I was like 11 when I read it, but technically it’s a book for kids, so…

It’s a story about two kids who get lost in Africa and they hike through like 5 countries to find their fathers (who worked in Africa and just happened to forget to take their children one day I guess?). Really, it’s about friendship, dedication, love, all the important values in life. But that doesn’t change the fact that it’s painfully boring to read.

It’s a wonderful story, don’t get me wrong, and I loved it as a child — but the movie. The book I hated. So I do recommend it, but the movie.

adaptations: 2 TV shows and 2 movies (the one from 2001 being the most popular).

Tytus, Romek i A’Tomek by Henryk Jerzy Chmielewski

Comic books. Two friends try to humanize a monkey while traveling and exploring different areas of science and history. It’s funny, absurd, educational, and understandable for non-advanced learners of Polish.

Do I recommend? Absolutely.

adaptations: 2 episodes of a short TV show, a video game, and a movie from 2002 titled “Tytus, Romek i A’Tomek wśród złodziei marzeń” — but it’s not based on the comics, only on the characters.

Kajko i Kokosz by Janusz Christa

A series of comic books which is basically a Polish version of “Asterix”. It’s about two Slavic warriors who have all kinds of adventures and fights with Zbójcerze. It’s all fictional and to be honest, I don’t really remember much from the comics, but I know that I loved them as a child. There are also renewals of the old volumes as well as new stories based on the original story and they’re coming out even in 2018.

I wouldn’t say it’s something you absolutely have to read, but if you want to, then it’s worth your time.

adaptations: A TV show that’s still being made and a video game.

Zemsta by Aleksander Fredro

Language-wise, it is pure genius. Not too easy, though. The jokes, the phrases, the sayings — it is the base of common Polish language. Story-wise, it’s basically Polish Romeo and Juliet. Two families live in a castle and hate each other, a girl from one family is in love with a guy from the other family. We also get some more important side characters, they’re very nicely written, iconic even. The whole drama is hilarious, so yes I would calmly recommend it to people who are somewhat fluent in Polish.

adaptations: 2 movies (the one from 2002 being more popular).

Wiedźmin by Andrzej Sapkowski

I think it’s the definition of contemporary classic. It’s a series of short stories, later an actual book, later comics, and finally a movie and a video game. The book is about this witcher and a child of destiny who’s a witcher-in-training. The main character needs to protect her. The stories and comics, however — they’re obviously about the witcher, but I don’t know the details.

If I’m 100% frank, I have not read the stories, the book, the comics, nothing. So I can’t fully recommend it to you, but I can tell you this: everyone who’s into fantasy is crazy about it. I suppose if you like fantasy, Wiedźmin’s a must.

adaptations: A movie from 2001, a TV show from 2002, and a video game.

Solaris by Stanisław Lem

This one’s, on the other hand, is a must if you’re into sci-fi. It’s about contact: with aliens, other civilizations, the unknown — but it’s not specified, which actually makes the book so interesting.

It’s been translated into multiple languages, so I’d say it’s easy to get, and if you’re either into sci-fi or into modern Polish literature — do read it.

adaptations: 3 movies (in 2002 Soderbergh made it a movie, so I suppose it’s worth checking out, but I personally haven’t watched it).

Kamienie na szaniec by Aleksander Kamiński

A story of 3 boys who just graduated from high school when WW2 broke out. It’s an actual story of actual people and it is heartbreaking. If you want to read anything about the WW2 that isn’t very technical or boring, this book is definitely for you. It’s about normal lives in abnormal circumstances and you get very attached to the characters and their stories, and the book actually makes you feel things.

Would recommend.

adaptations: A movie from 1977 titled “Akcja pod Arsenałem”, which is based on the book, and a movie from 2014 under the same title as the book, also only based on it.

Medaliony by Zofia Nałkowska

An omnibus of short stories about WW2. Very short, very shocking, sometimes even disgusting. The stories are about people who survived the war and they are actual things that actually happened. I don’t think I get appalled easily, but those are horrifying, really.

A good recommendation for someone who wants to learn about the more (or less) humane side of the war. I would actually say it’s a must if you want to at least begin to understand the tragedy that WW2 was.

And now we’re moving onto some more… mature books. Those are usually compulsory readings in middle school and high school, and to get what they’re about, you need to have some common knowledge. Nothing too specific, though. And there’s a lot to them that you can enjoy even if you don’t know much about general Polish culture and history, so I would say giving them a shot is definitely worth it. Plus, you can learn a lot if you’re a careful reader.

Lalka by Bolesław Prus

Hands down my favorite Polish book of all times. The best thing they made me read in school and I swear this book made the 12 years of tears and pain that I spent in school worth it. Long story short, it’s about a dude from quite a poor family and he becomes rich for an aristocrat he loves very, very deeply. But she’s a total bitch and uses him like an old rag. Don’t get me wrong, I really don’t like romance but Lalka… I mean, the lengths he went for her, the things he did for her… I don’t want to spoil the book but it’s full of dramatic events, interesting characters, surprises, and most importantly — it’s absolutely exciting for the reader! It truly sucks you in. Not to mention the book in a phenomenal way shows how Polish society of the 1870s functioned and thought. And don’t even get me started on the psychology of single characters. I’ve read only a few books in my life that made me feel so passionate about their characters. Character-building-wise, Lalka is the peak of art.

If you want to read only one book from this list, this is the one.

adaptations: Tons of plays, a movie (1968) and a TV show (1978). Pretty accurate, but I personally didn’t like them.

Potop by Henryk Sienkiewicz

There’s a trilogy: Ogniem i mieczem, Potop, Pan Wołodyjowski — and they tell the history of Poland in the 17th century. For some reason, only Potop is considered an absolute must, but if I’m honest I didn’t read it, so I personally can’t recommend it to you. Potop itself is about a guy who wants to marry this girl but she thinks he betrayed the country, so he needs to clear his name by fighting by the king’s side. It sounds very fairy-tale-like, but the background is actual history and the author himself operates incredibly well with the real and the imaginary.

The thing with Sienkiewicz’s historical books is that they are pretty damn good, so even if you’re not too much into that kinda stuff but there’s a tiny part of curiosity in you, I don’t think it’s a mistake to check it out.

adaptations: A movie from 1974.

Krzyżacy by Henryk Sienkiewicz

Basically when Poland was all… under occupation and non-existent, Sienkiewicz wrote this book to bitch about Germanization, as well as to remind the Polish people about their country. The book is about the great times of Poland, from 1399 all the way to the greatest battle of 1410 when Poland kicked Prussia’s ass. But we also get some romance, some schemes, some awful deaths… The full set if you will. 

A lot of people say it’s a super ass boring book, but in my opinion, it’s absolutely fantastic. The details, the numerosity of threads (that somehow doesn’t confuse you at all), again the imaginary intwining with the real… I do recommend it not only to people who are into history, but to anyone looking for a good read that would explain a bit of Polish nature.

adaptations: A movie from 1960.

Quo vadis by Henryk Sienkiewicz

Honey is this one fantastic… It’s a story about a Christian girl in Nero’s Rome and a non-Christian guy who’s in love with her. Of course, at first it looks like a love story, which it is, but there’s so much to it. The book is a knockout of a description of what life was like in ancient Rome. Everything from history, through society, to things like the time of bathing of each social class — there’s everything. And, what’s even better, it’s not boring at all! Actually, the book is unbelievably well-balanced between eventful, not overwhelming, and detailed.

I would definitely, definitely recommend. It’s not exactly a must and if you want to read a Sienkiewicz historical book, then Krzyżacy or Potop would be a better idea since they’re about Poland, but Quo vadis would most definitely not be a waste of time.

adaptations: 6 movies (the one from 2001 is the most popular one), a TV show, and a ton of plays.

Ferdydurke by Witold Gombrowicz

A book you either love or hate. I personally love it, I’m kin with this book, whatever. While reading it, I agreed with every single sentence, with every single opinion, I felt like it was me who wrote it in my past life or something. Just. An. Extraordinary. Book. Remember when I said that Lalka was the reason why I didn’t hate school? It was, but Ferdydurke is the reason I’m alive, kids.

It’s about a 30-year-old man who’s a writer (kinda), but he can’t write. Suddenly, he turns into a kid and is forced to go to school again. That’s just the plot of the book, however, because the story is simple, absurd, inconsistent, weird, and you don’t really read the book for the story. It’s what the story stands for. It’s about how pointless society is. How society creates idiotic rules to standardize people and to take away any creativity or any will to live. How people need to protect themselves and their originality but they can’t because originality doesn’t exist. And our main character explores all those philosophies. It’s a fantastic criticism of society, school, systems, classes, life.

Language-wise, it’s also a very interesting book. Definitely not an easy one. Gombrowicz was the master of language, the words and phrases he came up with, the ideas he hid within them. The language of his books creates, not only describes, the world from the books. His language is a whole different, self-sufficient being. Rare, striking, awe-inspiring.

As I said, somewhat philosophical and very metaphorical. You need to feel from your very heart what Gombrowicz means to understand this book.

adaptations: A theater performance from 1985 that you can watch on Youtube and a movie from 1991. I wouldn’t recommend watching them, though.

Sklepy cynamonowe by Bruno Schulz

Weird, metaphorical, a bit… insane? I love it. It’s an omnibus of short stories that are a description of the adult world through a child’s eyes. It’s like a dream, it’s impossible, it’s very soft and delicate and magical, really. It’s unlike anything. You feel like you’re reading a description of some very sensual dream. The stories make you wonder about the way people think, the way childhood affects your future life, the way the world works, and they make you realize that you don’t understand anything ever. But if you’re not looking for a deeper meaning, you can read the stories just for pleasure because they are honestly so sensual, sexy (but not porny, more like seductive), fascinating, and just strange, you actually read the stories with all of your senses. Makes you enter a whole different world and I will not exaggerate when I say that it changes your perception of everything.

As I said, it’s unlike anything you’ll ever encounter in life. A million out of ten would recommend.

adaptations: There is a short film from 1986 based on one of the stories from the book. It’s called “Ulica krokodyli”.

Cudzoziemka by Maria Kuncewiczowa

One of my top 10. It is a story of the last day of a woman’s life. She knows she’s dying and she knows that all of her life she was in pain. So she recalls her entire life, all the big decisions she ever made, to find the source of her misery and to escape reality. It is a very sad book, but rather that depress the reader, it makes you think. It’s a story about alienation — the main character lived in a foreign country, never got to do what she actually wanted to do, never got to be with whoever she wanted to be with, and so everything she did, everywhere she went, everyone she spent time with, she felt out of place. The book was revolutionary in terms of composition and it explored the main character’s psychology very deeply. A fascinating, thought-provoking, original book.

Definitely would recommend.

adaptations: A movie from 1986.

And finally, books for the strong, books for the advanced, books for the masters. To get these, you actually need some strong background knowledge on Polish history and culture, especially society- and politics-wise. Don’t get me wrong, they’re not bad, they’re just… demanding.

Granica by Zofia Nałkowska

It is about… uhh… society, morality and the lengths a person can go to achieve what they want. Sounds complicated and serious, and it sort of is, but it’s also totally worth your time because it doesn’t really tire you as much as you could think it would. And it’s thought-provoking as well. It’s about this dude who has a wife, a career, and a lover, and he basically ruins his life and the lives of everyone around him — which is quite exciting and somewhat frightening to read. So if you’re into ambitious, psychological stuff, then I say yes! Go for it.

adaptations: A movie from 1938.

Chłopi by Władysław Reymont

It’s basically a longass description of one year in Polish countryside in the late 19th/early 20th century. Personally, I think it shows and defines the society of that time extremely well and it surely is admirable that someone wrote almost a thousand pages describing in detail things such as preparing cabbage for dinner or collecting crops. Reymont actually won the Nobel prize for this book.

Would recommend if you’re not looking for anything too thrilling. Even though the book has some iconic moments like taking away Jagna on a wheelbarrow cause she was a slut…

adaptations: A movie from 1922 and a TV show, which was later turned into a movie, from 1972.

Przedwiośnie by Stefan Żeromski

A Polish family in Russia (actually in Azerbaijan but before WW1 it was Russia, so). They live awesome lives until WW1 breaks out and the father has to leave the family. Then, the son goes a little nuts and joins communists and then there’s a revolution, the son gets traumatized and he runs away to Poland (where he’d never been before) where he’s looking for a prosperous life that his father had promised him. And Poland had just regained independence, so everyone hopes that it will be the oasis of prosperity and well-being once it’s renovated. The book is about how hope and gullibility (but mostly hope) are heartlessly crushed by reality. It is also a story about growing up because we follow the main character all the way from his careless youth through his war-and-revolution trauma to a point where he has to decide about his future. But most importantly, I think, it’s a historically important story. It was written when Poland was a new country and it was supposed to remind people that communism is bad and politics, in general, is crap, as well as propose some political solutions for the new country. That’s the general message but there are lighter moments like descriptions of Polish countryside, a lot of flirting with pretty girls, and even a murder.

It’s a good story, it’s a deep story — but not too complicated. And it’s actually very interesting, and I can promise you it’s not as heavy as I made it sound.

10/10 would recommend.

adaptations: Two movies — one from 1928 and one from 2001.

Pan Tadeusz by Adam Mickiewicz

It’s an epic that describes life in the countryside in the 19th century. It was mainly written to remind Poles who had emigrated to France what a wonderful country Poland originally was, even though it was entirely under occupation, completely wiped off of any map. Naturally, everything there is presented through rose-colored glasses but still, if you’re looking for the classic of the classics, I suppose Pan Tadeusz is the book for you. If anyone wants to understand Polish literature, this book is a must.

Would I recommend? Sure if you’re here to sink in Polish culture or if you like quite full of adventure and yet easy reading. Easy as in the story’s nice and pleasant, the language is rather tedious.

adaptations: A surprisingly good and accurate movie from 1999. And the script is actually the text of the epic.

Dziady by Adam Mickiewicz

I think every Polish student hates Dziady. I didn’t, though. It’s a drama, actually, there are 4 parts of the drama, the last one not quite finished. I think the problem with Dziady is that no one really knows what it’s about. It was written in the mid 19th century, so again — Poland’s out of every map. The tzar is a bitch and Adam Mickiewicz disses him in the wildest of ways, but it doesn’t make sense until someone explains it to you. If you asked me what Dziady were about, in my opinion, all 4 parts are about love. Love for your country, love for your lover, love for yourself, love for other people, love for your family — all possible kinds of love. Sounds nice, right? That’s because it is nice. The problem with Dziady is that if you don’t delve deep into it, you won’t get it at all. The words as you read seem just like random words in a random order, no point whatsoever, skipping from topic to topic, all four parts at first seem completely unrelated. But the deeper you dig, the more you see. It is a very rich drama, there’s something in it for literally everyone, but it requires a ton of commitment and probably someone to guide you well through it.

Add it to my recommendations only if you are desperate to read it and if you have all the things above, aka time, commitment, and help. And language skills. The 2nd part, however, is short and it’s the easiest one, so do check it out.

adaptations: “Lawa” from 1989 is based on the second (which, in order, is the first) part of Dziady.

Wesele by Stanisław Wyspiański

It is such a deep drama that you just don’t get it. Kind of like with Dziady, except this one is waaay shorter and basically just disses everyone. In Dziady, the main character’s idea to show people love was to take control of them. Wesele, however, was about motivating people to do stuff by offending them.

Personally, Wesele is one of my favorites because it is just so problematic. Wyspiański attended a wedding in 1900 and then described it. Each guest in the drama (and at the actual wedding) represented an attitude that the general of Polish society had towards the country’s situation (occupation). And after 105 years of occupation, it seemed that the society didn’t really care anymore and just accepted their fate. Wyspiański was very much against that attitude. So basically what he did was he publicly washed the society’s dirty linen by pinning it onto his real-life friends. When Wesele premiered, people were actually chasing Wyspiański down the streets because they hated him so much. Not to mention that in the drama the whole offending thing is actually pretty profound and harsh. So much so that actual real-life guests weren’t enough for him — Wyspiański needed to introduce ghosts from the past, people who played an important role in Poland’s history. Of course, that was the author’s idea of motivating people to fight for their freedom.

The drama is full of references to Polish literature, Polish culture, and Polish history, so unless you’re fluent in these three, I wouldn’t tell you to read it.

I love Wesele with all my heart. If you want to give it a shot, instead of reading the actual drama, I’d suggest reading the story behind it and the summary and interpretations. This way you can enjoy it, which I think anyone should, without knowing much of the background. If I’m honest, you can’t really get much out of the drama itself. But I definitely recommend spending some time on this book, it’s definitely worth it.

adaptations: From 1973, it’s pretty good and quite accurate, but just a bit tiring.

Szewcy by Witkacy

Oh boy. A grotesque, modernist drama about the future of society, where the author basically talks about how people are doomed and headed for inevitable self-destruction. There’s a lot about how mechanic and inhumane people have become and of course tons of criticism towards society, revolution, capitalism, communism, and fascism.

I didn’t like it, I wouldn’t recommend because I didn’t really understand the language. It was a pain in the ass reading this book and if I had read it earlier in life, I assure you that W pustyni i w puszczy wouldn’t be the only book that made me cry from pain.

adaptations: Tons of theater performances that you can watch on Youtube.

Tango by Stanisław Mrożek

It’s a drama about generation gap and some ideas to live by (like conformism or anarchy). Sounds complex, but it actually keeps it very simple and short, a kid would get it, really, and yet the story actually stays with you. It also makes you wonder about a place and meaning of an intellectualist in society. Not to mention the hilarious and absurd situations like convincing your grandma to just die already.

Personally, I enjoyed it. Even though it’s about quite serious stuff, it’s hilarious, so you do read it with pleasure.

adaptations: There are multiple theater performances available to watch on Youtube.

Balladyna by Juliusz Słowacki

The main idea behind the drama is how good and evil both function simultaneously in this world and the fight between the two. A nymph sends a prince to the main character’s house. The main character wants to marry the prince, so she does a lot of awful things. Basically. It’s a nice story, though strange. A story that you would read to a child, except the language of the drama is… complicated. Let’s be honest — it’s Romanticism after all.

I would recommend it, but I wouldn’t die to make someone read it.

adaptations: There is this absolutely awful movie from 2009 (English title: The Bait). It’s loosely based on Balladyna.

Kordian by Juliusz Słowacki

It’s about this guy who plans to kill the tzar. There was a deeper meaning too but don’t ask me about it, I just don’t remember. To be honest, it was surprisingly pleasant to read and sometimes quite funny (I don’t think it was supposed to be, though). But I wouldn’t recommend it unless you know a whole lot about Polish history and culture — or unless you’re dangerously interested in it. And I mean like, you’d kill and die for it.

Nie-Boska komedia by Zygmunt Krasiński

To be honest, it’s a weirdly good story and what surprises me most about it is that it’s actually understandable, even though it’s quite a typical romantic drama. Interesting, huh… 

It’s about a man who is looking for his artistic self, leaves his family to pursue his art, and then there’s him trying to protect his country. It was actually written to criticize this romantic way of thinking and living, so there are a few moments where the author just dissed other authors of the time, but most importantly, the story is a comment on the current (current for them) political and sociological events, as well as religion, and a way for Krasiński to express his opinions.

Recommend? Meh. It’s a good read but it’s not a must and you gotta be in a mood for it. Also, a solid historical and literary background would make the reading way easier.

My advice if you’re planning on reading any of these? Check the time period of the action. I swear if you do that and you pretty much can tell what the background for Poland was at the time, even just like one basic piece of information, it will make reading the book possible.

I think that’s about it. There are hundreds of other great Polish books that I can go on and on about (I can also talk about these for at least a few hours), so again – if you have any questions, opinions, requests, anything, ask away.