Conrad’s Chapters: Equality
Scandinavian Literature of Identity 10–12 April 2026
Potocki Palace, Kraków
Can literature bring us closer to building a more empathetic and diverse world?
As we await the 18th edition of the Conrad Festival, we invite you to a series of events in which Nordic narratives of equality, diversity, and the search for identity intertwine with universal questions: Who am I? and How can I find my place in the world?
Together, we will reflect on how culture helps shape a language of openness, and how literature allows us to engage with experiences that often remain in the shadows. We will ask our guests how creative practices can influence the ways we think about community, identity, and the direction of social change.
The project is organised by the Kraków Festival Office and the Tygodnik Powszechny Foundation, in cooperation with the Royal Norwegian Embassy, the Royal Danish Embassy, the Embassy of Sweden, the Embassy of Finland, and the Embassy of Iceland. It is funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers and the Royal Norwegian Embassy.
Friday, 10 April
“This Can Only Be Said to Rabbits” – workshop for young people
“Sometimes, when I’m with others, I feel like I’m disguised as someone else—someone who looks like me, but I’m standing next to them,” confesses the protagonist of the award-winning picturebook This Can Only Be Said to Rabbits (Om detta talar man endast med kaniner, published by Rabén & Sjögren; Polish edition: Zakamarki, 2021) by Swedish author Anna Höglund.
The thirteen-year-old narrator feels that everyone is their own worst enemy, yet gradually comes to realise that if everything is also its opposite, one can become one’s own closest ally.
We invite all those who ask themselves who they are; those navigating between a sense of difference and alienation and a desire for belonging and closeness; as well as anyone who has ever felt different—or felt more than others.
The workshop will be led by Anna Jurek.
Audience: ages 14+ and young adults
Anna Jurek is a sex educator and philosopher. Since 2012, she has supported children, young people, and adults in schools, care centres, orphanages, libraries, and community spaces. She is the author of educational programmes and workshops in philosophical, civic, and sexuality education, developed in collaboration with institutions such as Powszechny Theatre and Pinokio Theatre in Łódź, the Dwie Siostry bookstore, and the Alphabet Festival in Lublin. She works using philosophical inquiry and LEGO LOGOS methods.
Saturday, 11 April
17:00–18:30 | Towards the Rainbow
Perhaps at no other time in life does everything feel as intense as it does during adolescence. Emma Rävås and Rakel Helmsdal, authors of queer literature for young readers, will speak with Tomasz Charnas and the audience about the challenges of self-recognition and self-determination, the need for social acceptance, and the search for one’s place in the world.
Rakel Helmsdal is a Faroese writer, born in Tårnby, Denmark, and based in Tórshavn. She is the author of numerous books for children and young adults, as well as poetry and prose for adults. Her novel The Girl Who Rowed Towards the Rainbow (Gentan, ið róði móti ælaboganum, published by Sprotin; Polish edition: Dziwny Pomysł, 2022) has been translated into Polish.
Emma Rävås is a Swedish writer from Lund. Her debut novel It’s Me Who’s the Problem (Det är fel på mig, published by Natur & Kultur; Polish edition: Dziwny Pomysł, 2023) originated from a creative writing programme in her hometown. She is particularly interested in young adult literature and queer themes.
Audience: young people and adults
19:00–20:30 | On Being Together – a conversation with Marie Aubert and Monika Steinholm
Two literary perspectives on the lives of non-heteronormative individuals in Norway. Emotional landscapes, rebuilding relationships after coming out, and negotiating one’s own and others’ identities—these and other nuances of individual life within a community will be explored by Marie Aubert and Monika Steinholm in conversation with Joanna Bernat.
Marie Aubert is a Norwegian writer whose work focuses on everyday life and human relationships. Her debut short story collection Can I Come Home with You (Kan jeg bli med deg hjem, published by Forlaget Oktober; Polish edition: Pauza, 2021) brought her widespread critical acclaim. Her novels Adults (Voksne mennesker, Forlaget Oktober; Polish edition: Pauza, 2020) and I’m Not Like That at All (Jeg er egentlig ikke sånn, Forlaget Oktober; Polish edition: Pauza, 2023) are also available in Polish.
Monika Steinholm is a Norwegian author of young adult fiction. Her works, including Fuck Off I Love You (published by Cappelen Damm), explore themes of identity, relationships, and emotional vulnerability.
Joanna Bernat is a translator and publisher specialising in Scandinavian literature. A graduate of Scandinavian Studies and Polish Philology, she has worked with Norwegian and English for over twelve years, including at Vigmostad & Bjørke. Since 2018, she has also published books under her own imprint, Dziwny Pomysł.
Audience: adults
Sunday, 12 April
17:00–18:30 Facing a New Identity – a conversation with Selja Ahava
Selja Ahava’s deeply empathetic account of confusion, disorientation, and the challenges of understanding a long-term partner’s gender transition offers a powerful and distinctive voice in contemporary narratives of identity.
Her novel Before My Husband Disappears (Ennen kuin mieheni katoaa, published by Gummerus; Polish edition: Relacja, 2024) explores how such a transformation reshapes one’s understanding of reality, past, and future.
Ahava is a Finnish novelist and screenwriter. Her debut novel The Day the Whale Swam Through London (Eksyneen muistikirja, Gummerus) was nominated for the Helsingin Sanomat Literary Prize and received the Laura Hirvisaari Prize. Her second novel, Things That Fall from the Sky (Taivaalta tippuvat asiat, Gummerus; Polish edition: Relacja, 2021), won the European Union Prize for Literature in 2016 and was nominated for the Finlandia Prize and the Torch-Bearer Prize. Her works published in Poland also include The Woman Who Loved Insects (Nainen joka rakasti hyönteisiä, Relacja, 2022).
The author will be in conversation with Agata Komosa-Styczeń.
Agata Komosa-Styczeń is a journalist and editor, author of reportage, children’s books, and poetry, as well as a translator. In her reportage The Island of Unwanted Women (Czarne, 2025), she explores the Danish welfare-state project initiated in the 19th century. She currently lives in Denmark.
Audience: adults
