The Books of Jacob

The Books of Jacob (Polish: Księgi Jakubowe[lower-alpha 1][lower-alpha 2]) is an epic novel by Olga Tokarczuk, published by Wydawnictwo Literackie in October 2014.[4] It is Tokarczuk's ninth novel and is the product of extensive historical research, taking her seven years to write.[5]

The Books of Jacob
First edition cover (Wydawnictwo Literackie, 2014)
AuthorOlga Tokarczuk
Original titleKsięgi Jakubowe
TranslatorJennifer Croft
CountryPoland
LanguagePolish
GenreHistorical fiction
PublisherWydawnictwo Literackie
Publication date
October 2014
Published in English
March 2021
Media typePrint (hardcover)
Pages912
AwardsNike Award (2015)
ISBN978-83-08-04939-6
OCLC898158997
891.8538
LC ClassPG7179.O37 K75 2014
Websitewww.wydawnictwoliterackie.pl/ksiazka/3076/Ksiegi-Jakubowe---Olga-Tokarczuk

The Books of Jacob is a 912-page novel divided into seven books. It begins in 1752 in Rohatyn and ends in Holocaust-era Korolówka.[6] Its title subject is Jacob Frank, a Polish Jew who claimed to be the messiah. The novel combines dozens of third-person perspectives of those connected to Jacob Frank. Upon publication, it was an instant best-seller and won the Poland's most prestigious literary prize, the Nike Award.[7]

In regard to the historical and ideological divides of Polish literature, the novel has been characterized as anti-Sienkiewicz. It was soon acclaimed by critics and readers alike, but its reception has been hostile in some Polish nationalistic circles and Olga Tokarczuk became a target of an internet hate and harassment campaign.[8][9] Its depicition of the 18th-century Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth is in stark contrast to the idealized version popularized in Sienkiewicz's Trilogy.[10]

By October 2015, the novel's circulation had reached 100,000 copies.[11] An English translation by Jennifer Croft is scheduled to be published by Fitzcarraldo Editions in March 2021.[12][13][6] Croft won a 2015 PEN/Heim Translation Fund Grant for The Books of Jacob.[14]

Reception

Writing for Gazeta Wyborcza, Przemysław Czapliński wrote that the novel "revolutionizes the image of religious life in the 18th century, but also changes the perception of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth."[10]

Writing for Polityka, Justyna Sobolewska wrote that "Tokarczuk proved that it is possible to write an over 900-page novel, full of pictorial descriptions, religious disputes and letters, which keeps you in suspense" and called it an "extremely interesting panorama of 18th-century Poland."[15]

Awards

The Books of Jacob was awarded the 2015 Nike Award Jury prize, Poland's most prestigious literary prize.[8] It also received Nike's Audience award for 2015.[16]

The novel was shortlisted for the 2015 Angelus Award.[17][18]

The Swedish translation by Jan Henrik Swahn was awarded in 2016 with the first international prize awarded by the Stockholm institution Kulturhuset Stadsteatern.[19]

The French translation by Maryla Laurent was awarded the 2018 Jan Michalski Prize for Literature,[20][21] the 2018 Prix Transfuge for Meilleur roman européen[22] and the 2019 Prix Laure Bataillon.[23] It was also longlisted for the 2018 Prix Femina étranger.[24]

Audiobook

In 2020, an audiobook adaptation was released ISBN 978-83-08-06994-3. It has a runtime of 40 hours and 44 minutes. The novel's seven books are narrated by seven Polish actors and actresses: Danuta Stenka, Wiktor Zborowski, Jan Peszek, Agata Kulesza, Maja Ostaszewska, Adam Ferency, Mariusz Bonaszewski.[25][26]

Footnotes
  1. Full title: Księgi Jakubowe albo Wielka podróż przez siedem granic, pięć języków i trzy duże religie, nie licząc tych małych. Opowiadana przez zmarłych, a przez autorkę dopełniona metodą koniektury, z wielu rozmaitych ksiąg zaczerpnięta, a także wspomożona imaginacją, która to jest największym naturalnym darem człowieka. Mądrym dla memoryału, kompatriotom dla refleksji, laikom dla nauki, melancholikom zaś dla rozrywki.[1][2]
  2. Full stylized title: KSIĘGI JAKUBOWE albo WIELKA PODRÓŻ przez siedem granic, pięć języków i trzy duże religie, nie licząc tych małych. Opowiadana przez ZMARŁYCH, a przez AUTORKĘ dopełniona metodą KONIEKTURY, z wielu rozmaitych KSIĄG zaczerpnięta, a także wspomożona IMAGINACJĄ, która to jest największym naturalnym DAREM człowieka. Mądrym dla Memoryału, Kompatriotom dla Refleksji, Laikom dla Nauki, Melancholikom zaś dla Rozrywki.[3]

References
  1. "The Nobel Prize in Literature 2018 – Bio-bibliography". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  2. Rojcewicz, Stephen (6 May 2020). "Olga Tokarczuk: The Right Time and Place". Reviews. Delos: A Journal of Translation and World Literature (Spring 2020: Special Issue on Performance and Translation ed.). 35 (1). doi:10.5744/delos.2020.1009.
  3. Sosnowski, Jerzy (10 December 2019). "Księga totalna". Więź (in Polish). Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  4. "Księgi Jakubowe". Wydawnictwo Literackie. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  5. Tausinger, Rona (14 April 2020). "'I wrote about a charismatic man, a psychopath, a charmer. A fraud'". Israel Hayom. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  6. Croft, Jennifer (March 2020). "Frozen Time". Frieze. No. 209.
  7. Franklin, Ruth (29 July 2019). "Olga Tokarczuk's Novels Against Nationalism". The New Yorker. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  8. Chehab, Milena Rachid (4 October 2015). "Nagroda Nike 2015 dla Olgi Tokarczuk. "Księgi Jakubowe" książką roku!". Gazeta Wyborcza (in Polish). Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  9. Jałoszewski, Mariusz (15 October 2015). "Internetowy lincz na Oldze Tokarczuk. Zabić pisarkę" [Internet lynch on Olga Tokarczuk. Kill the writer]. Gazeta Wyborcza.
  10. Czapliński, Przemysław (21 October 2014). ""Księgi Jakubowe", czyli dwieście lat samotności. Recenzja nowej książki Olgi Tokarczuk". Gazeta Wyborcza (in Polish). Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  11. "Nakład "Ksiąg Jakubowych" przekroczył 100 tysięcy". www.tokarczuk.wydawnictwoliterackie.pl (in Polish). 29 October 2015. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  12. Armitstead, Claire (10 October 2019). "Olga Tokarczuk: the dreadlocked feminist winner the Nobel needed". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  13. Mansfield, Katie (10 October 2019). "Tokarczuk and Handke win Nobel Prizes in Literature". The Bookseller. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  14. Tokarczuk, Olga (22 October 2015). "The Books of Jacob". pen.org. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  15. Sobolewska, Justyna (16 December 2014). "HITY 2014. Literatura – Polska". Polityka (in Polish). Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  16. "Nike 2015 dla Olgi Tokarczuk". nike.org.pl (in Polish). 5 October 2015. Archived from the original on 10 October 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  17. Gajda, Damian (2 September 2015). "Cztery książki z Polski w finale Literackiej Nagrody Europy Środkowej Angelus". kultura.onet.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  18. Talik, Magdalena (2 September 2015). "Angelus 2015. Finałowa siódemka". www.wroclaw.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  19. "Tłumacze o twórczości Olgi Tokarczuk". Instytut Książki. 11 October 2019.
  20. "Edition 2018". Fondation Jan Michalski. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  21. Turcev, Nicolas (21 November 2018). "Le prix Jan Michalski 2018 attribué à Olga Tokarczuk". Livres Hebdo (in French). Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  22. Turcev, Nicolas (10 October 2019). "Olga Tokarczuk, prix Nobel de littérature 2018". Livres Hebdo (in French). Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  23. "Poland's Tokarczuk wins French literary award". PolskieRadio.pl. 10 July 2019. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  24. "Prix Femina : la dernière sélection". France Info (in French). 24 October 2018. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  25. "Księgi Jakubowe – audiobook". Wydawnictwo Literackie (in Polish). Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  26. Nogaś, Michał (30 March 2020). ""Księgi Jakubowe" w 40 godzin i 44 minuty. Peszek, Kulesza, Ostaszewska opowiadają o tym, jak czytają Tokarczuk". Gazeta Wyborcza (in Polish). Retrieved 12 October 2020.
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