Festiwal Góry Literatury
7–16 lipca 2023

Mountains of Literature Festival 2023

Almost 35 thousand people participated in person in this year’s Festival, and almost 220 thousand watched or listened to online transmissions on Facebook and YouTube. We streamed live over 60 most important events, and their recordings are still available on our channels in social media (Facebook, YouTube). They are still being played and the number of viewers is constantly growing.

All this confirms the position of the Mountains of Literature Festival as the biggest literary-social event in Poland.

The most popular among the audience was the public reading of “Empuzjon” by Olga Tokarczuk, with guest participation of the author herself. The reading, directed by Irek Grin and entitled “Men’s Talk”, performed by Jan Peszek, Robert Więckiewicz, Arkadiusz Jakubik and Maciej Stuhr, had a live audience of 1700 people.

Almost 600 people participated altogether in all the workshops organized as part of the Flying People’s University, which is also a record.

Our partner, the Tymoteusz Karpowicz Foundation, sold c. 4.5 thousand copies of books in their mobile bookshop.

30 volunteers worked at the Festival.

We organized this edition under the slogan “Future | Equality | Creativity | Tenderness”. Those are the four pillars on which the activity of the Olga Tokarczuk Foundation, the organized of the Festival, is based. We are convinced that new ideas and concepts become necessary, and culture cannot yield to political pressures and censorship. We believe in free exchange of thoughts and inspiration. We believe in the causative power of literature.

The most important inspiration for this year’s Festival were the words of our Founder: I’m convinced … that the human being is in fact just a small part of nature, and their greed, ruthlessness and conviction of being unique among other creatures is a strange cosmic mistake. Our conquest of nature, already resulting in the death of hundreds of animal species, paving huge areas of the globe, the climate disaster, a world in which we’re already dying of smog … and soon will be dying from lack of water and deadly temperatures – it’s the human being’s most terrible crime. We commit it on living organisms (I consider them all that surrounds us, including landscape), on animals, trees, all nature, also inanimate, killing it unthinkingly and at the same time committing a mass suicide of lunatics.

For a long time culture’s been speaking up for nature. But too shyly, I guess, although we’ve known for a long time it’s not its antithesis. Or a better, wiser, more civilised version of nature. It’s time it stood up for its sister, destroyed by humans, with more determination. To pay … our and its debt to nature. Time for both culture and nature to find transdisciplinary ways to examine each other more closely, understand better and help each other. To create together questions about reality and unreality, and try to answer them together.

We also believe that culture is not only one of the key human activities, it can unveil and deconstruct the grotesque and caricatural mechanisms of power and their possible consequences, but also, perhaps most of all, it can demythologize and expose the scale of social manipulations, reveal mechanisms of propaganda, show methods of social engineering. The year 2022 and the beginning of 2023 were marked in Poland not only by the attack of Russia on Ukraine (which will also have unimaginable consequences for the climate), but also by the continuation of the shameful procedure of forceful return of Middle Eastern refugees on the Polish-Belarussian border back to Belarus, and the biggest ecological disaster in the history of Poland – contamination of the Oder River. All those events result from political decisions, and that’s why civic education, opposition to growing authoritarianism, fight with exclusions, raising the residents’ competences and activating them to defend democracy is also fundamentally important in long-term thinking about ecology. All those topics simply had to be present at this year’s Festival.

–  The nature of art is to spread around words, images and sounds combined into previously unknown new constellations, and the art of nature – to do it without a beginning and an end, in the cycle of eternal return. Green Art is the art of meanings with which the Planet speaks to us. We try to decode its language and the meanings contained in it, because is speaks more and more quietly. Creating in the Green Art current, we learn to send messages in the same language – the language of that which is alive, pulsates, vibrates – the language of the Earth craving for our care – that’s how Green Art is perceived by Agnieszka Szpila, an artist involved in the project. 

Among the invited artists, there were also: Gosia Baczyńska, Tomasz Frasoński, Michał Ignar, Anna Hupało-Sikorska, Korab, Sławomir Siatkowski vel Dede Van der Roove, Marek Straszewski, Katarzyna Tomaszewska, Antonia Wolff, Anna Wysocka, Monique Chmielewska-Lehman, Art. B. Chmielewski, Ewa Dąbrowska, Hanna Derej, Daniel Fedorczyk, Edyta Jungowska, Kasia Korus, Jarek Koziara, Martha Mulawa, Mariusz Przygoda, Antoni Rychłowski, Jan Sajdak, Grzegorz Sierzputowski, Tomek Sikora, Katarzyna Sobocka, Piotr Sobocki, Tatiana Tokarczuk, Łukasz Woźniak and Anna Maria Kramm.

Curators of the majority of exhibitions were Barbara Siatkowska and Sylwia Krzemianowska.

The artists presented also the action “I collect for hair” with photographs by Andrzej Świetlik, which was created together with the Rak’n’Roll Foundation. They touched upon the subject of stigmatization of women, men and children facing cancer and they collected funds to support them.

Green Art also conducted a workshop on creating zero waste stripes for clothes (Karolina Śmiałek), there was performative painting on fabric (Janusz Gilewicz), word and music performance by Jagoda Jabłonowska, a presentation of “Herbarium” by Jaga Hupało, and the series ended with mapping on Martha Mulawa’s sculptures created by Filip Jarosz.

Within the range of social problems

Marian Turski participated also in the ceremony for the commemoration of Helena and Władysław Grzegorczyk, which took place during the Festiwal. During World War II, that couple saved at least 18 people of Jewish origin, staring the moment the Germans entered Borysław, where Władysław lived, in 1941. In the small attic of their house, according to the statements of the saved ones, there were aways new people hiding.

In 1942, the Grzegorczyk couple took in their care a 6-week-old baby, Lili Fuchsberg, whose parents, after the establishment of the ghetto, decided to join the partisans (they were denounced and put before a firing squad), and older siblings of the girl joined them in the forest. The girl was given new names – Zdzisława Katarzyna. She was adopted by the Grzgorczyks after the war and given their family name.

The Grzegorczyk couple saved also Lili’s 11-year-old sister Minka, who emigrated to Palestine when she was 14. The sisters didn’t see each other for years, but they exchanged letters. In 2021, Lili Fuchsberg’s book was published “Listy do mojej siostry 1947–1973” [Letters to My Sister 1947–1973], about which Marian Turski wrote: What a joy that the letters written in Polish for decades were not thrown out. Collected in an old shoe in an Israeli kibbutz, they got a new life. It is the best novel I’ve read recently, the best drama I’ve seen. The author was our guest and spoke about her book during the last year’s edition of the Festival.

In 1965, Helena and Władysław Grzegorczyk received the title of Righteous Among the Nations, awarded by the Israeli Yad Vashem to people of non-Jewish origin who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust. Posthumously, they were also awarded the Commander Cross Order of Polonia Restituta for the heroic conduct and extraordinary courage in saving the lives of Jews during Worl War II, for outstanding achievements in the defence of human dignity and human rights.

Now, Helena and Władysław Grzegorczyk were commemorated in Nowa Ruda, where they lived and were buried in the local cemetery. Their name, in accordance with the resolution of the Nowa Ruda City Council, was given to a park in Nowa Ruda which was revitalised last year, located at Strzelecka Street. The name of the park will allow to preserve in the memory of the society unique persons, ready to sacrifice their lives to save the lives of others. 

Olga Tokarczuk Foundation put forward a motion to honour the Grzegorczyks, as according to its statute, it wants not only to promote the region, but also to remind of unique personalities, determined to provide aid to the weaker and threatened ones, regardless of the time and circumstances in which they live.

Marian Turski spoke during the ceremony, movingly describing both the Jewish and the Polish parents of Lili Fuchsberg, their unimaginable sacrifice and courage. Right after him spoke Olga Tokarczuk, an honorary citizen of Nowa Ruda. – The history of the Grzegorczyks shows us how important it is to do good in the face of all the evil which is outside, to go against the tide, as our conscience commands. And that it works – she said.

And Catherine Ravet – i.e. Lili Fuchsberg – during a special session of the City Council, received the title of the Honorary Citizen of Nowa Ruda for her activities in the area of promoting the town, including the promotion of patriotic attitudes on the local and international level by commemorating activities of Polish people who saved people of Jewish origin during World War II, and the propagation of Polish culture and history in the world.

– Turning your eyes away is nothing new – said Anna Dąbrowska about the reaction of the Polish government to the pushbacks. They also spoke about the role of artificial divisions in a transborder and capitalist world, as well as about media, information and the idea of money. And about the outcomes of the militarisation of states parallel to globalisation. They speculated if it is possible to save multiculturalism in the face of the recurrence of xenophobia and ethnic resentments. And whether, as the climate crisis increases, the ‘fortress Europe’ – or its smaller counterpart: ‘fortress Poland’ – has any future at all.

– The fight for human life goes on at the Polish-Belarussian border. It’s an absolute disgrace for our country that we allow such situations. Today, we are writing the history of Poland. If we don’t acknowledge this impotence, we’ll end up in a tragic situation. Let’s keep an eye on the authorities. Activists – they are the ones who save human lives and they need our support – appealed Hanna Machińska from our stage.

The same problem was discussed during the meeting with Mikołaj Grynberg, writer, photographer and psychologist, which focused on his latest reportage “Jezus umarł w Polsce” [Jesus Died in Poland] (published by Agora). In the book, he documents the situation on the border, speaks to those who provide help and those who guard the borderline. Most of all, he portrays those who do not turn their eyes away, but go to the forest and give help. – There are those who still have the strength to do it and those who are psychologically overwhelmed. Some lost their families and jobs. But the executioners always explain their actions in the same way, like in Nuremberg: those were the orders – he said.

The pretext for the meeting with Adam Bodnar, former Polish Ombudsman, was the book “Nigdy nie odpuszczę” [I Will Never Give Up] (published by Agora). It is more than a memoir, but also an analysis of the current situation, including the dramatic events related to Russia’s attack on Ukraine and the very important role to be played by the Polish society in this context. The meeting was moderated by Robert Karpowicz.

For most of the Festival, in various locations, we were accompanied by the educational initiative Tour de Constitution. It is a continuation of the civic educational and information activity conducted by the Congress of Civic Democratic Movements Foundation for two years now. The goal of the project is to explain the nature of the rule of law and principles of democracy and to motivate citizens to participate in elections. Creators of the initiative emphasize that the current political situation and considerable impairment of democracy in Poland demand resolute civic actions. They accompanied us in their bus, they encouraged to read the Constitution thoroughly, and they gave away copies of it. They also handed out the Constitution in the version for children, as well as numerous educational materials. Among them, there was Danuta Przywara from the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights and judge Igor Tuleya.

We also hosted lawyers from the #freecourts initiative: Maria Ejchart-Dubois, Sylwia Gregorczyk-Abram, Paulina Kieszkowska-Knapik and Michał Wawrykiewicz. They are not only a group of very active and effective defenders of the rule of law. They also document lawlessness, which slowly robs us of the guarantee that we live in a country where democratic standards are observed. #freecourts for years have been making us aware that, in Poland, the guardians of the constitution break it all the time, and the idea of the separation of powers, trias politica, becomes fiction and a meaningless phrase used by politicians and not the foundation of the functioning of the state.  

We spoke about the institution of the Catholic church with the authors of books devoted to this subject, Artur Nowak and Stanisław Obirek. After the renowned book “Gomora. Władza, strach i pieniądze w polskim Kościele” [Gomora. Power, Fear and Money in the Polish Church] they returned with a new publication, “Babilon. Kryminalna historia kościoła” [Babylon. The Criminal History of the Church], in which they explore yet another rather unpleasant face of the Catholic church. Staying true to facts, the authors paint a criminal history of the church, which robbed and murdered victims of the colonial oppression in Canada, taught women in Ireland the culture of rape, cynically persuaded through the mouth of ‘saint’ Mother Theresa that suffering sanctifies, so it shouldn’t be eased. The authors present a corrupt church, entangled in political wars, afraid of the vision of the synod during which the faithful would decide its future together with the priests. – The church preserves a certain system which is pathological in nature. It is an institution which tolerates no criticism. We are sometimes accused of waging a war on the church. It is not a war. It is catharsis. A help for the society to become a civic society, and not a terrorized one – said Artur Nowak during the meeting moderated by Waldek Mazur.

Choosing between religion and science, the relativity theory and faith was the topic of a conversation between Jerzy Sosnowski, critic and journalist, and Krzysztof Meissner, eminent scientist, cosmologist and theoretical physicist. The starting point was a book published recently, an extended interview “Fizyk w jaskini światów” [A Physicist in the Cave of the Worlds] (published by Biblioteka Więzi) on physics, its relationship with life and the possible consequences of the contemporary science for our outlook on life. The festival meeting was moderated by Edwin Bendyk, the president of the Stefan Batory Foundation.

Krzysztof Meissner also participated in a debate with Jan Woleński “Science and transcendence”. Katarzyna Kasia asked about the important and not necessarily clear division between physics and metaphysics and whether contemporary science is able to measure and weigh everything. – I believe religion is a form of social control. The existence of evil and good is an embarrassment for God. The fact that a million children were killed during the Holocaust is an embarrassment for transcendence. If I see a sentence on the wall of a concentration camp, written in a child’s hand, ‘Mum, I was good”, I consider God underserving of respect. There’s no theology to explain it – said professor Jan Woleński.

Similar topics were discussed during the conversation between the astrophysicist Marek Abramowicz, a theoretical physicist, philosopher, theologist and active Catholic clergyman Michał Heller and a physicist and politician Ludwik Turko. Katarzyna Kasia asked if the advancing secularisation led to a change in the relationship between science and religion and if there is a possibility to preserve, in the rational world, a space for forms of spirituality falling outside of not only reason, but also institutionalised churches. – It’s worth looking at faith and science as entangled orders. And this entanglement is a riddle we might never understand, but it’s ok. We simply cannot refuse to acknowledge this mystery of being – said Marek Abramowicz.

We devoted two meetings to cancel culture, attempting to recognize and define the problem.

On the legal and social perspective, Katarzyna Kasia talked to social psychologist Michał Bilewicz and a lawyer, former Polish Ombudsman Adam Bodnar. They considered mechanisms working within a culture which constantly attempts to renegotiate its correctness; if cancelling people who do not fit into the canons of what is acceptable results from the need to protect marginalised groups, the oppressed, deprived of access to common goods – including, significantly, culture. They also searched for an answer to the question about legal and social consequences of erasing individuals and groups. They debated if cancel culture can be treated as a finally awoken and rightfully strengthened voice against discrimination, or if that mechanism got out of control and no one can be certain when they would be placed on the side of the oppressors.

The self-censorship perspective was discussed by Amelia Sarnowska with the writer Inga Iwasiów, writer and columnist Wojciech Orliński, ethicist Magdalena Środa and writer Krzysztof Varga. She asked if artists, teachers, institutions and organizations are afraid of statements which can result in ostracism, and as a consequence cancelling by harmed communities or individuals? Are they afraid of becoming victims of cancel culture? Do they start to self-censor, limit themselves not to become an object of cancelling? 

The publication “Cała siła, jaką czerpię na życie” [The Whole Strength I Draw for Life] (published by Karakter) was a starting point for a conversation about coming out. Three authors – Olga Górska, Kamil Pasiecznik, Michał Safianik – whose texts were included in a thousand-page-long anthology of queer diaries and statements from Poland, published last year, talked with the co-editor of the volume Łukasz Mikołajewski and the audience. They provided intimate answers to questions what ‘coming out’ actually is; when it starts, when it ends – and if it ever ends, as well as what is the meaning of its importance in the autobiographical testimonies of LGBTQ+ persons.

Sensitivity and diversity was the topic of a conversation with Ewa Woydyłło, a psychotherapist holding a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and specialist in addiction therapy, a pioneer in neurodiversity research. She writes psychological books in which she focuses less on human problems and more on solutions for them. The starting point for a conversation moderated by Łukasz Pilip was her latest book “Nasz bieg z przeszkodami. O wrażliwości i inności” [Our Obstacle Race. On Sensitivity and Diversity] (published by Literackie). We heard a story on how difficult it is for us to understand someone’s otherness. – Everyone is different from everyone else – emphasized Ewa Woydyłło.

Other participants were project coordinator Jana Karpienko, president of the Board of the Foundation Grzegorz Tokarczuk and president of the Foundation Council Irek Grin.

The huge interest in this year’s seminars, lectures and workshops (there were 19 of them altogether) confirmed our conviction that there is a deep need to develop the educational component. Over 600 people registered for the workshops of the main FPU series, but due to limited number of places, we couldn’t accept everyone.

A seminar by professor Magdalena Środa entitled “Defiance, resistance, rebellion – a workshop on being progressive” was hugely popular. The first thing they tell us when we are children, at school, in a state, is to be obedient. Parents, officials, authorities demand obedience, and probably without it families, communities and states would fall apart. But would they develop? Defiance, resistance, rebellion – those are the tools for a change and both a social and moral progress. Tools not easy to use, because you need a strong willpower, vision and courage to use them. Participants in the workshop looked at various forms (literary, philosophical, social) of defiance, resistance and rebellion, as well as the values they defend, the visions they serve.

Jana Karpienko and Robert Rient conducted a workshop entitled “The shamanism of stories”. It was a meeting inspired by contemporary shamanism, its practice in the reality surrounding us, as well as basic notions, phenomena and processes related to the practice of shamanism. The moderators consider shamanism a spirituality needed by the contemporary world – beyond religious paths. Spirituality of freedom, health, discipline and love. Spirituality of considering the spirit, mind and body as important and interconnected. Spirituality accepting the right of people to live in their full diversity and accepting plants, stones, rivers, mountains, fire, wind, earth as alive.

During this year’s edition, we hosted the eminent poet Ryszard Krynicki, one of the best known representatives of the so called New Wave in Polish poetry. The occasion for the meeting, the title of which we took from one of his poems, “waiting in line for bread”, was the poet’s 80th birthday. – When we learn to read and write, we lose our innocence – said the poet in conversation with Ilona Witkowska.

Andrzej Stasiuk talked to Maciej Robert during a meeting entitled “Rivers and borders”. Space is very important in their work – both the real one, and the one being its cartographic reproduction. In each of them a significant role is played by rivers, as they are a borderline location. During the discussion we crossed a river. More than one.  

Supposedly, it is poetry which can react to reality quickly, while prose writers need distance towards the events – that’s at least how eminent Ukrainian writers explained their silence in the face of war. Inga Iwasiów is one of the first Polish prose writers who decided to depict phenomena afflicting Poles in the most recent times – the pandemic and the nearby war. She did it using the convention of dystopia – her novel “Późne życie” [Late Life] (published by Drzazgi) projects a scenario of a near, alternative future after the apocalypse. Iwasiów follows Miłosz’s statement from “A Song on the End of the World” that there will be no other end of the world, other than ours, poor, experienced every day, filled with a surplus of objects (including books, so important for a writer who’s also a literary scholar) produced by our civilisation, with neurotic characters, tired of work or unsuccessful attempts at finding it, failed relationships, toxic families, fighting inner crises with alcohol, drugs and psychotropics. The scenery of “The Late Life” is outstanding – a deserted small resort by the Baltic sea out of season with a towering gigantic, ultramodern, luxurious H’otel. The conversation with the author on various topics from the novel was moderated by Magdalena Rabizo-Birek.

With Julia Fiedorczuk, we spoke about both poetry and prose, on occasion of her two new books: the novel “Dom Oriona” [Orion’s House] (published by Literackie) and a volume bringing together and commenting on her entire poetic oeuvre “Astrostrada z girlandami. Wiersze zebrane” [Astralway with Garlands. Collected Poems] (published by Warstwy). The author herself described “Orion’s House” as the most difficult to write of all her books. Marcin Baniak and Waldek Mazur asked if there are subjects for which prose is not enough and you have to reach for poetry. –Poetry is made of particles of sense and sound – answered the author.

It’s impossible to imagine the Mountains of Literature Festival without Karol Maliszewski, who’s been co-creating it from the very beginning. This time he spoke about his latest book “Diabeł z Wilkowca” [The Devil from Wilkowiec] (published by Warstwy), in which he once again unveils mysteries of Lower Silesia. This area, and especially the region around Nowa Ruda, between the Stołowe Mountains in the south and the Owl Mountains in the north, is full of stories, tales and legends. Karol Maliszewski decided to collect them and present them anew. The first part of his work was included in “Czarownica nad Włodzicą” [The Witch by Włodzica] published in 2021. With the help of the illustrator Tatiana Tokarczuk, he returns to the subject, he discovers more sources and tales. In particular, he searches for information and materials in German-language works published by the end of the 19th and in the first decades of the 20th century. The authors of the book – also thanks to the fantastic illustrations – not only draw the readers into the extraordinary world of fairy tales, but also broaden their knowledge about the region and its past. And also encourage everyone to search on their own, to take both literary and outdoor walks and discover Lower Silesian mysteries. – I think there was a reason why my parents, repatriates, got off the train exactly here. There’s something here which defines me – he said about his fascination with the mysteries of Lower Silesia during the meeting moderated by cultural studies specialist Piotr Jakub Fereński. 

Mysteries of the region, especially historical in nature, are the focus of the work of Joanna Lamparska, reporter, writer, regionalist, creator of the Lower Silesian Festival of Mysteries. In her latest book “Ostatni świadek. Historie strażników hitlerowskich skarbów” [The Last Witness. Stories of the Guardians of Nazi Treasures] (published by Znak Koncept), about which she talked during the Mountains of Literature, she takes readers to the world of hunters of secrets, looks into forgotten archives, explores castles and palaces, on the way learning dramatic histories. It’s hard to believe how far some of us are willing to go to discover “lost treasures”. The meeting was moderated by Waldek Mazur.

Boundaries were also the subject of the meeting with Maciej Hen – both imposed in the form of various social norms, and those more private. Amelia Sarnowska asked the author of “Segretario” also about what can make it easier for a person to undertake the fight for the truth, including the truth about one’s own identity. She also looked at the tender tool a letter can be in this situation.  

We also hosted Edward Pasewicz, winner of the Angelus Central European Literature Award for the novel“Pulverkopf” (published by Wielka Litera). It is one of those mysterious texts which take the reader to the difficult, afterwar time, the state of identity, historical and existential loss; a world in which the postwar fates of the characters intertwine – Poles, Jews, Germans, Soviets and their descendants. It is not easy to label this book, which is a good recommendation for demanding seekers of captivating literature. The reader can expect the wonderful language of a well-known poet, an unusually oneiric image and amazingly constructed narrative. The conversation with the author was moderated by Milka Malzahn.  

We spoke about memory with Adam P. Salina, author of the novel “Judej albo Testament Ony” [Judej or Ona’s Testament] (published by Rider). Ona from the title is a Polish woman buried in a German cemetery, where the main character of the book encounters her, who was sentenced to work camp for hiding Jews. The woman speaks about an executed Jewish family and a promise to find a boy who was lost in the ghetto. As a farewell, she leaves the stones which were to be placed on the grave of the victims. Tom discovers a code in Ona’s words and understand them as a testament. To fulfil it, he decides to find the place of the murder and burial of the Jews and solve the riddle of the lost boy’s fate.

Amelia Sarnowska asked the author about the nature of memory (including memory about the most difficult events) and the roads history sometimes needs to take to keep that memory. They also considered together how trauma and crime can influence the grown-up life of the victim – and what can be the place of literature in all of this.  

Jacek Dehnel came with his latest volume of poetry “Bruma” (published by a5), the title of which means winter solstice in Latin. It is a unique book – both in the context of the poet’s oeuvre and the most recent Polish literature. Not only because of a strong presence of sociopolitical issues, which – however – do not transform that poetry into versed journalism. The ‘bruma’ of the title says much about the condition of the world, the human being, and finally – the condition of the ‘I’ speaking to us in those poems and through those poems (and poetic proses). It is dark, that’s beyond doubt. But paradoxically, in “Bruma” the darkness sharpens our vision, it intensifies the suggestiveness of images and the power of the word. And it gives us hope we can come out of the darkness. – It wouldn’t be possible for me to write those texts in Poland, I needed the perspective of emigration – said Jacek Dehnel in conversation with Eliza Kącka.

Weronika Murek, playwright, writer, author of the book “Dziewczynki. Kilka esejów o stawaniu się” [Girls. Several Essays on Becoming] (published by Czarne), talked about her work on the publication. It’s a collection of essays which free the titular characters (including Dorothy from “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” and Lolita from Nabokov’s novel) from poisonous cultural convictions that they are frivolous and mean nothing. The author explains and proves that the life of girls is trying on, pretending, transforming, a game, and there is a huge power hidden behind this constant becoming. In her brilliant and unruly narrative, the author regains that which is the most precious in girlhood: a dream which just a moment before seemed to be a whim.

We asked Murek about digging through piles of cultural patterns, thoughtlessly repeated texts and male prejudices and also how bizarre they are. The meeting was moderated by Michał Nogaś.

Michał Nogaś moderated also a tender and funny conversation with a daughter and a father, i.e. Maria Peszek and Jan Peszek, in relation to Maria’s book “Naku*wiam zen” [I F*cking Load Up Zen] (published by Marginesy). The book, which is a kind of a conversation itself, captures an unconventional and reassuring relationship between a daughter and her father, but also between two artists, experienced and at the same time sensitive. Nogaś asked about family relations, how to speak to each other, how to get down from a barricade and how not to give up when, in the most difficult moment, health problems appear. – Many people asked me to write a biography or an extended interview. I didn’t want to, I was afraid no one would ask me bold questions. When Maria asked me, I instantly agreed to jump into this totally unpredictable abyss. Our conversations, which were very long, had a therapeutic function, although they certainly didn’t give Maria exhaustive answers. That book surpassed my boldest expectations. It means that our relations didn’t go to waste – revealed Jan Peszek.

Tenderness and laughter were present in the meeting with Filip Zawada, who was interviewed by Olga Wróbel, mainly about his work on the latest novel “Weź z nią zatańcz” [Go Ahead and Dance with Her] (published by Znak), a story of accepting death and loss. – Writing books is an unreal thing. You are inside something that isn’t there. For me it’s like peeing. I definitely need to do it. I cannot stop myself. I write even when I don’t write – said Zawada.

Among our guests, there were also eminent authors of reportages and non-fiction.

Wojciech Tochman spoke about his latest book “Historia na śmierć i życie” [A Story for Life and Death] (published by Literackie), in which he pays tribute to the eminent reporter Lidia Ostałowska. She was the first to start documenting the tragedy of “Osa”, the first woman to be sentenced to life imprisonment in Poland. It was one of the most sensational and brutal crimes in the new Poland. Three secondary school students – two boys and a girl – murdered a young woman in January 1996. We talked with the author about fear and violence, but also about revenge and longing. Wojciech Tochman participated in three meetings, one was moderated by Ewa Winnicka, and the remaining ones – by Waldek Mazur.

Mariusz Szczygieł not only talked about his new book “Fakty muszą zatańczyć” [The Facts Need to Dance], but also caused bursts of laughter from the audience with his stand-up vibe. He met his readers twice, and the meetings were moderated by Ewa Winnicka and Maciej Robert.

Filip Springer answered questions prepared by Ilona Witkowska about his new book “Mein Gott, jak pięknie” [Mein Gott, How Lovely] (published by Karater). It’s a partly fictionalized, partly documentary story the main character of which is the landscape. Travelling on a bike around former eastern provinces of Prussia, later called the Regained Lands, the author follows people who – inspired by the vision of progress – joined the industrial revolution, gradually transforming the world around them. A part of that story takes place by the Oder – the first engineered big river in Europe; a part in Prakwice forests, where emperor Wilhelm II, fighting his own demons, killed off the entire population of deer. Springer looks at the landscape in the way it was observed by the 19th century lithographers, builders of the Prussian rail and the father of Polish photography Jan Bułhak. In this way, he tries to understand where he got the feeling, so difficult to ignore, that he was in that place before. We asked him what it means to “discover a place” and if it’s at all possible.

Katarzyna Bonda, called the queen of Polish crime fiction, this time created a series of books based on facts. She plays in them a kind of a game with the reader, because she doesn’t reveal the line between truth and narrative fiction. We asked the author about “Wiara”, “Nadzieja”, “Miłość” [Faith, Hope, Love], the nature of fascination and tensions appearing during the confrontation with different value systems. And also about if (and when) human weakness can achieve great things. – Evil means lack of good, which means lack of love – she said during the meeting.

And she met the festival audience twice, once talking to Amelia Sarnowska, and then – to Olga Wróbel.

Anda Rottenberg, art historian, critic and curator, came to the Mountains of Literature as the author of the book “Rozrzut” [Scattering]. It is a richly illustrated picture of the culture of the 20th and 21st century – where we meet more and less known artists – and at the same time a captivating guide to the art of those times and the present. This book, opening doors to understanding fundamental issues: what do we need art and artists for, with the author, was discussed by the author with Małgorzata Omilanowska-Kiljańczyk.

Crowds of young readers attended the meeting with three authors of young adult literature – Katarzyna Barlińska, Marta Łabęcka and Weronika Marczak. Those authors are very popular among young readers, debunking the myth about the non-reading youth. It all started with the international Wattpad platform, and ended on Empik bestseller lists. The meeting was moderated by Magdalena Adamus and Katarzyna Czajka-Kominiarczuk, known for their podcast Czytu Czytu.

During this year’s Festival, we wanted to shed strong light on less known Polish literature. Meetings with the invited authors were moderated by Karol Maliszewski and Radosław Wiśniewski.

With Wojciech Brzoska, whose poems are a story of a passionate and painful unity, we talked about his considerable poetic oeuvre. Brzoska is the author of eleven poetry books, including “Blisko coraz dalej”, “Niebo nad Sosnowcem”, “W każdym momencie, na przyjście i odejście”. Last year, Biblioteka Śląska in Katowice published the monography “Poetyka ucha. O wierszach Wojciecha Brzoski”. The poet also sings in, for example, Brzoska Kolektyw and Piksele. For 20 years, he’s been professionally involved with the prison system. He organized many literary meetings and concerts there, he is the creator of the Jean Genet National Poetry Competition, addressed to inmates.

On poetry, living in a niche and cutting off social media we talked to Marcin Zegadło, a poet, columnist, reviewer, whose latest collection of poems “Martwe i Ozdobne” (Instytut Mikołowski) was published last year.

Organizing the Mountains of Literature Festival, we pay attention to details which, even though small, are not less important. We don’t only speak about nature, but we try to promote pro-ecological solutions.

To limit the carbon footprint and make it easier to move between festival locations, we organize and recommend to guests group transport, reaching the most popular festival places. We also encourage to use public transportation services to travel between towns.

We try to limit the production of rubbish. We don’t print entry tickets and we don’t demand it from participants. We don’t use plastic products. Badges for organizers, guests and media are made of cardboard. We also use paper bags and folders for documents.

In festival locations, there was also a shop with this year’s gadgets available for purchase – T-shirts and bags made from organic cotton, with graphic design made by Ewa Mańkowska, and notebooks with the logo of the Olga Tokarczuk Foundation made from recycled materials.

We also gave those objects as gifts to our guests, as well as honey from a local apiary in Krajanów.

In the food area of the Festival, and also in our catering, we don’t serve meat, we propose vegetarian and vegan dishes. We do our best to use local and seasonal products. 

We organize a fair presenting local handicraft, art and food products. All the products are made in the spirit of ecodesign, with respect to plants and animals. In Nowa Ruda, over 20 artists and artisans from the region presented their work. You could see and buy, among others, artistic pottery, tatting jewellery, pictures from flowers, wooden furniture, ecological candles and soaps, vegan preserves and honey from a forest apiary.