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Czech BooksDickens and the Good Soldier Švejk
Here is a question for the Dickens bicentenary. What is the connection
between the great 19th century English novelist and the best-loved Czech
literary anti-hero? The answer is, surprisingly enough, that without
Dickens we quite possibly wouldn’t have Švejk at all. David Vaughan
looks at this and some other Czech links with Dickens in this week’s
Czech Books. More
Czech HistoryJaroslav Foglar and his “Rapid Arrows”
Writer and youth movement activist Jaroslav Foglar left a deep trace in
Czech popular culture. Besides more than 25 novels for children, Jaroslav
Foglar is also the father of Rychlé šípy, or “Rapid Arrows”, a
legendary comics that has earned a following with generations of Czech
readers. Persecuted by the Nazis and the communists, the writer also
single-handedly founded his own youth organization which, in its heyday,
had tens of thousands of members across the country. More
Czech BooksHana Andronikova: mourning a powerful Czech literary voice
It seems very strange to be talking about the Czech writer Hana Andronikova
in the past tense. When she died of cancer on December 20th last year, she
was only 44, and until the last months of her life had been at the height
of her creative powers. Author of two successful novels, several plays and
numerous short stories, she was one of the most versatile younger Czech
writers, and will be hugely missed. David Vaughan looks at her life and
work. More
ArtsJosef Škvorecký – Part 2 – ’68 Publishers and writing in Canada
In this week’s Arts enjoy Part 2 of our look at the life and work of
renowned author Josef Škvorecký, who died at the age of 87 earlier this
month. I continue my discussion with respected Czech critic, translator,
and specialist in Czech studies Petr Onufer, who talks about how Miloš
Forman almost made a film version of The Cowards, Škvorecký’s style as
an author and his role as co-founder of ‘68 Publishers. More
Czech BooksFrom Karel Čapek to Graham Greene: a Scottish poet’s memories of Prague
In a recent edition of Czech Books we looked at the Prague-inspired poetry
of the Scottish poet, Edwin Muir. But it was not just in his poetry that
Muir evoked the atmosphere of the Czech capital. David Vaughan finds out
more in this week’s Czech Books. More
ArtsJosef Škvorecký – Part 1 – The Cowards
In this week’s Arts we will be looking back at the remarkable life and
work of renowned writer, essayist and translator Josef Škvorecký who died
earlier this month at the age of 87. The author of novels such as The
Engineer of Human Souls was one of the most important in Czech 20th century
literature, first making his mark in 1958 with The Cowards. To discuss that
book and much, much more in the first of a two-part programme, I met with
respected Czech critic, translator, specialist in Czech studies and
Revolver Revue contributor Petr Onufer. In Part 1, we look largely
Škvorecký’s debut, The Cowards. More
Czech BooksJan Novák: the man who lived Miloš Forman
When Jan Novák describes himself as Miloš Forman’s autobiographer, he
is not entirely joking. He really did co-write the most famous
Czech-American film director’s memoirs, and Forman himself has spoken of
the book as “my life as lived by Jan Novák”. But Jan Novák is a great
deal more than a biographer. More
ArtsHow the Velvet Revolution overturned the literary landscape
Writers were at the forefront of the Velvet Revolution. But when the dust
settled on the political changes they found a fast changing publishing
revolution underway that left some of them sidelined. We look at the
changes in the publishing and literary world over the last two decades. More
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