German readers can meet Petr Stančík twice at the upcoming Leipzig Bookfair:

He will present his children‘s book H2O and The Secret Water Mission in German translation (H2O und die geheime Wassermission) on Friday, 28 April, at 16:30 (hall 3, stand B200). The book’s illustrator Galina Miklínová will also be there to to get the audience of children involved.

Stančík will also present his latest novel Pravomil in German translation (Die Verjährung). This novel is being compared by readers to the worldwide bestseller The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson.
The presentation will take place on Saturday, 29 April, at 14:00 at the Czech national stand E 301 in hall 4.

Both events will be hosted by the translator Raija Hauck.

The children’s book author Marka Míková is touring the USA and Canada in April.

The puppeteer and musician is introducing her books Roches and Jinks and The Coat and the Handbag to an audience of kids. Her stops are: Chicago, Lincoln, Boston, Toronto and Calgary.

Petr Stančík presented his latest novel Pravomil in German translation (Die Verjährung) at the German-Czech Culture Festival in Bremen. Stančík’s picaresque novel is inspired by the true story of war hero Pravomil Raichl (1921-2002).

Pravomil experiences the eventful history of the 20th century, from the interwar years, via Gestapo interrogations, to the hell of the Soviet gulag. As if by a miracle, he survives World War II battles and death sentences, finally emigrating to the USA. At the end of his life Pravomil returns to his homeland to take justice into his own hands.

One more honour for the book Kabát a kabelka (Coat and Handbag), by Marka Míková and Galina Miklínová: it has been included in The White Ravens catalogue 2022, which recommends new children’s and youth books deserving worldwide attention.

The White Ravens is a widely aknowledged annual overview of exceptional and innovative books from all around the world, selected by the specialists at the International Youth Library in Munich with the support of children’s literature experts from many countries.

A coat and a handbag fall in love: this tender and slightly crazy story for children from six years, written by Marka Míková, illustrated by Galina Miklínová, has won the prestigious Czech Magnesia Litera Award for best children‘s literature.

Kabát a kabelka (The Coat and the Handbag) draws readers into an exciting adventure on empty city streets in the midst of pandemic times. The author‘s narration “enchants with poetics, individuality, humor and grabs the heart like any true love story”, the jury has written about this book.

Zuzana Kultánová will be presenting the Spanish edition of her literary debut Augustin Zimmermann, published by La Navaja Suiza, to Spanish readers on 30 March. The presentation in the independent bookstore Tipos Infames in Madrid is supported by the Czech Literary Center and the Czech Center in Spain.

In her novel Augustin Zimmermann the author uses historical events to conjure a timeless parable about the foolish desire to break free from one’s nature and dark passions.

The novel Smrtholka (Deathmaiden) by Lucie Faulerová is the Czech winner of the 2021 European Union Prize for Literature.  The jury appreciated „the brilliantly written and non-linear narrative of the novel, which suggests a musical composition, the sensitive use of dark humour amid the heroine’s painful experiences and the courage of the young writer in presenting a demanding text with sombre and sometimes even morbid motifs.“

The European Union Prize for Literature recognises emerging fiction writers from the European Union and beyond. Engaging the 41 countries participating in the Creative Europe programme of the European Union, the Prize celebrates outstanding new literary talents.

Lucie Faulerová‘s new novel Smrtholka (Deathmaiden) has been shortlisted for the European Union Prize for Literature 2021. The book has also been nominated for Best Work of Prose in the most prestigious Czech literary award, the Magnesia Litera, in 2021.

Martin Vopěnka‘s novel My Brother the Messiah (Můj bratr Mesiáš) has been published in the UK to great critical acclaim. The Times credits the novel with „a gloomy, gripping, spiritual spell of its own“. According to The Lady magazine „Vopěnka created a thought provoking narrative exploring religion, politics and democracy“. The Eurolitnetwork sees in the book „a novel about the spiritual and secular nature of our collective and individual existence“. Last but not least The Jewish Review names Vopěnka a global voice and his prose compelling.

For information about the book and for more reviews please visit

My Brother the Messiah

Author’s website

The author took part in a panel discussion in November that was organized by the Adalbert Stifter Association in Munich. The discussion was conducted in German and took place without an audience. In a conversation about his novels Neptune’s Cave and The Praise of Opportunism, Marek Toman emphasized the close connection between history and the present, one of his favourite literary themes. The event is available on youtube under the name Mitteleuropäisches Erbe in der tschechischen Gegenwartsliteratur (Central European Heritage in Contemporary Czech Literature).