Historical fiction, Literary fiction  |  English sample translation available

The author’s second work of prose is again a story somewhat absurd in the darkness of the world it depicts, a collection of curios in which the story of Gita Lauschmanová is unfolded on two time scales (1945 and 2005). The girl Gita leaves the concentration camp to the realisation that in fact there is nowhere for her to return to, and that the oppression and savagery are far from over; the elderly Gita Lauschmanová wishes to exact justice as her life draws to its close.

Praise

“Radka Denemarková addresses her theme with great passion and power, as if exposing herself to all the pain this terrible story contains. As if wishing to take the reader by the hand and guide him to the frightful realization of what man is capable.”

— Alena Wagnerová, Neue Zürcher Zeitung

“Denemarková’s books are well-crafted (in the best sense of the word) works of contemporary literature, inclining neither to first-person egoism or similarly confessional tendencies. Nor do they proceed along the high wire of demanding, self-absorbed experimentation. They provide an authentic and liberating reflection on post-war events.”

— Filip Tomáš, A2