Stone Upon Stone

"Sweeping...irreverent...With winning candor...Pietruszka chronicles the modernization of rural Poland and celebrates the persistence of desire."--"The New Yorker" A masterpiece of postwar Polish literature, "Stone Upon Stone" is Wieslaw Mysliwski's grand epic in the rural tradition--a profound and irreverent stream of memory cutting through the rich and varied terrain of one man's connection to the land, to his family and community, to women, to tradition, to God, to death, and to what it means to be alive. Wise and impetuous, plain-spoken and compassionate Szymek Pietruszka recalls his youth in their village, his time as a guerrilla soldier, as a wedding official, barber, policeman, lover, drinker, and caretaker for his invalid brother. Filled with interwoven stories and voices, by turns hilarious and moving, Szymek's narrative exudes the profound wisdom of one who has suffered yet who loves life to the very core. Wieslaw Mysliwski received the prestigious Nike Literary Award twice. "Stone Upon Stone" is his most celebrated achievement.