An extraordinary mono-thematic collection by the most respected contemporary Czech poet.

Poetry  |  English sample translation available

Petr Hruška has been publishing collections of poems for 20 years and throughout that time, they have all contained a noticeable motif of a character inspired by his stepson, Adam. Hruška selected these poems, added new ones and compiled a collection. A man “on the periphery”, who is not and cannot be part of our world in its current form, and yet has been yearning for it, takes centre stage in this collection. A tall, old for his age child, as a symbol of our tragicomic, obstinate and always vain efforts to succeed, is a bitter metaphor as well as a central point of these poems.