Describe Out Of Books Stone Upon Stone
| Title | : | Stone Upon Stone |
| Author | : | Wiesław Myśliwski |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Special Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 537 pages |
| Published | : | January 2011 by Archipelago Books (first published 1984) |
| Categories | : | Cultural. Poland. European Literature. Polish Literature. Literature. Fiction |
Wiesław Myśliwski
Paperback | Pages: 537 pages Rating: 4.4 | 726 Users | 98 Reviews
Narrative Conducive To Books Stone Upon Stone
A masterpiece of post-war Polish literature, Stone Upon Stone is Wiesław Myśliwski’s grand epic in the rural tradition—a profound and irreverent stream of memory cutting through the rich and varied terrain of one man’s connection to the land, to his family and community, to women, to tradition, to God, to death, and to what it means to be alive. Wise and impetuous, plainspoken and compassionate Szymek, recalls his youth in their village, his time as a guerrilla soldier, as a wedding official, barber, policeman, lover, drinker, and caretaker for his invalid brother. Filled with interwoven stories and voices, by turns hilarious and moving, Szymek’s narrative exudes the profound wisdom of one who has suffered, yet who loves life to the very core.
Details Books As Stone Upon Stone
| Original Title: | Kamień na kamieniu |
| ISBN: | 098262462X (ISBN13: 9780982624623) |
| Edition Language: | English URL https://archipelagobooks.org/book/stone-upon-stone/ |
| Setting: | Poland |
| Literary Awards: | BTBA Best Translated Book Award for Fiction (2012), PEN Translation Prize for Bill Johnston (2012) |
Rating Out Of Books Stone Upon Stone
Ratings: 4.4 From 726 Users | 98 ReviewsCommentary Out Of Books Stone Upon Stone
A long, slow read, meant to be savored and it is worth it. I read this bit by bit over a few months. It mixes up the present with reflections of the past in stream-of-consciousness passages. There is little dialogue. The main character is a Polish man who fought in the resistance against the Germans and then the Russians in WW II. He was hospitalized for a year with wagon injuries to his leg. Hes mainly a farmer but at times supplement his income as a barber and a clerk in the town hall. We readThe discursive narrative style is a blend of artfulness and artlessness that disarmed me with its power. All of the harrowing, deadly, tender, and memorable events in Szymek Pietruszkas life are revealed to the reader, with many digressions along the way. Some events are sharply told in a single paragraph. Others reveal themselves in small increments that build throughout the novel, as if some memories are too painful to tell all at once. Szymek is irreverent and explosive. He's a drunk, a lout.
Imagine sitting with a great storyteller for over two weeks. His mind is full of stories from rural Poland, from the war before and after, from his adventures as a young wag and an aging but likable man. In no time at all, one thought strand leads to the next and he jumps. He has no problem with time, either, going back many years and then only a few, up to the present and back to wherever. Chronologies are for the history books, not the storytellers!As you might expect, though, some stories are
I very rarely leave a book unfinished and I had wanted to consign Stone Upon Stone to the heap of unreadable books after the first chapter. It took me a very long time to get to the end of the first chapter. But I felt I needed to read some more, so I read another two chapters and still I wanted to ditch it. However, I am thankful I kept on reading because it turned out to be an unusual story that touched me in unexpected ways.I have never before read Wiesław Myśliwski. He is a Polish novelist.
Kinda sorta like 'True Grit' Polish style....that is instead of Whiskey there is Vodka...potatoes and peirogis...and home made bread. At times it kind of reminded me of a Fellini movie with the cast of characters...one character laughs all the time, another cries all the time, yet another never cries. ..the star of the book was a part of the resistance against the Nazi's. After being wounded he returns home (a farm) and immediately his father starts in on him. The son explains he has been out
This is a fascinating book. One man painting an epic tale in a kind of stream of consciousness that is at once engaging and dull. There's very little plot. Instead we meander with him through stories of Polish peasant life around WWII. There is the land, the cemetery, the community, the church and the family. This has all of the ingredients that proves that any life lived is unique and worthy no matter the suffering. The translation is excellent. The language flows so smoothly that I felt like I
Not only is this a great, timeless novel, but it is a very funny one. It won the "Best Translated Novel" Award from Pen, and translator Bill Johnston, who teaches at Univ. of Indiana, deserves ample praise for delivering a novel that should be as well-read or studied as Faulkner. Its associative (digressive?), non-linear structure may bother those who want a traditional plot, but its vocabulary is positively plain. I couldn't find one complex word to add to my Nabokovian word 'wall'. This
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