19 July 2012 Esterházy, Winterson, Tulli and Viewegh at the Conrad Festival
Péter Esterházy, Jeannete Winterson, Magdalena Tulli and Michal Viewegh – are the next confirmed guests of this year’s edition of the Conrad Festival. We would like to remind you that the Festival – considered as one of the most important literary events in Europe – will begin in Krakow on the 22nd of October and will last for seven days (until the 28th of October). Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk has also confirmed his participation in the Festival.
Péter Esterházy – Hungarian writer born in 1950. His best known book is Celestial Harmonies: A Novel – a story of the writer’s family history, but also of the history of Hungary and Europe. Winner of the most important Hungarian literary awards, including the prestigious Kossuth Prize. His books have been translated into several dozen languages. Celestial Harmonies: A Novel, Helping Verbs of the Heart, The Transporters, The Book of Hrabal and No Art (Semmi művészet) have been published in Polish.
Jeanette Winterson, OBE – writer born in 1959. She won the Whitbread Prize for her first, autobiographical novel Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit. Several years later, the book was adapted for television, and the adaptation won the BAFTA Award. Winterston's novels are, above all, a study of human imagination, attitudes and the limits of identity, especially sexual identity. Polish translations of her books published to date include: Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit; The Passion; Sexing the Cherry; Written on the Body; Art & Lies: A Piece for Three Voices and a Bawd; Art Objects; The PowerBook; Lighthousekeeping; Weight; Tanglewreck; The Stone Gods; and Gut Symmetries.
Michal Viewegh – born in 1962 in Prague, the most popular contemporary Czech writer. He was the editor of Czech literary magazine Český spisovatel. He wrote a dozen or so books, some of which have been published in Poland, including: The Sightseers, The Blissful Years of Lousy Living, Women’s Novel, Bringing Up Girls in Bohemia, Případ nevěrné Kláry [The Case of Unfaithful Clara] and Zapisovatelé otcovský lásky [Writers of Paternal Love]. The contemporary Czech Republic is the background of his works, which he describes with a large measure of irony and humour. Two editions of a festival dedicated to Michal Viewegh’s works have been held in Prague; his novels have also been adapted for Czech theatre. A film adaptation of one of the writer’s books – Women’s Novel – also premiered in Poland.
Magdalena Tulli – born in 1955, Polish writer and translator, winner of the Kościelski Award, nominated for the Nike Literary Award three times. Her most important books include: Dreams and Stones (the 1995 debut), In Red, Moving Parts, Flaw, and Włoskie szpilki. Translator of the works of: Fleur Jaeggy, Marcel Proust, and Italo Calvino, among others. Her most recent collection of short stories Włoskie szpilki brought her the Gdynia Literary Award this year. Magdalena Tulli’s books have been translated into 12 languages.
