Wednesday, September 04, 2019

STONE UPON STONE


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Stone Upon Stone, Wieslaw Mysliwski, Archipelago Books, 2010, 534 pp (originally published in Poland, 1999, translated from the Polish by Bill Johnston)
 
"Stone upon stone
On stone a stone
And on that stone
Another stone" 
-from a folk song

This book was my translated novel for the month. It has sat on my shelves for almost a decade and I kept putting off reading it because it is so long. It turned out to be a mixed blessing.

First of all, it took me 10 days to read, during which I got several wonderful naps. The title comes from the folk song quoted above. Polish peasants, people who have farmed grain and raised animals for centuries upon centuries, are now dealing with rapid change after WWII has left their ancient country under communist rule.

The pace of life went at the speed evoked in the song. A peasant son narrates his life story. I don't know if it is a Polish thing but he and everyone else in the book go on and on, so many words. Like a cow chewing cud, they ruminate about their thoughts, tell tales, and give each other advice.

Gradually I became immersed in a world that only moves as fast as a day from sunrise to sunset, a year from planting to harvest to cold long winter to spring planting again. I moved into the head and heart of a man who rebelled and fought against the tyranny of his father, the monotony of peasant life, the oppression of military invasion, but never lost his sense of himself or became beaten down.

The translation is wonderful. It sings, it sounds modern and almost serves as a metaphor for the wrenching changes these people were put through. The underlying wisdom of such simple folk, derived from their intimate connection with the land and its cycles of life, comes rising up out of all those words. 
 
Like the overwhelming majority of reviews I read, I too ended up loving the book, feeling a transcendence as regards the extremes of which human life is composed. I do not regret one second of the time I spent reading what is a masterpiece of an epic. Life is a mixed blessing.

"Stone upon stone
On stone a stone
And on that stone
Another stone"

17 comments:

  1. Sounds good for an afternoon nap, though I wonder about their change after WWII.

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    1. It was worth the time and the naps were lovely.

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  2. interesting choice... i bit like Proust, maybe? the only Polish author i've read is Stanislaw Lem, sci fi writer... he does tend to go on somewhat, in spite of being brilliant and fascinating...

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    1. I am aware of Stanislaw Lem but have not read him yet. Which of his books have you read (in English, I hope)? I have read and liked a contemporary Polish author Olga Tokarozuk. I read House of Day, House of Night. (https://keepthewisdom.blogspot.com/2016/02/house-of-day-house-of-night.html) Next I plan to read her most recently translated novel: Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead.

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    2. that title sounds ominous (drive your plow...) i think i've read almost of Lem save one or two of his more abstruse ones... to begin, his robot stories are the most accessible... he's very funny in a sort of Polish way... the original cover illustrations are terrific, if you can find them... 50 watts has some i believe... it's a cover collectors blog with extraordinary pictures...

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  3. Sounds like a challenging but ultimately rewarding read. Your specialty!

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  4. Isn't it lovely when a book we put off becomes one we love? But then we kick ourselves for having put it off? Wonderful review, as usual.

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    Replies
    1. It is lovely. Sometimes I think those books just know when I am ready for them.

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  5. This sounds intriguing. I'm glad you ended up liking it!

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  6. Sounds like a bit of a grind ... only kidding. Cheers

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    1. Ha ha. Very perceptive Carole. Life for peasants IS a grind.

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  7. I could've swore I commented on this because I remember reading it but maybe I'm just sleep deprived and losing my mind lol. This does sound like a great book and I'm glad you finally decided to read it after ten years.

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    1. You did comment! I was out seeing the Linda Ronstadt movie and had not approved your earlier comment yet. Your mind is fine!

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    2. Lol that makes me feel so much better! I don't want to loose my mind yet!

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