The stories collected in the 1997 Blue Menagerie speak of return - actual return after years of emigration, and mythical return understood as acceptance of the world, as calm and reconciliation. Calm is possible through love. The protagonist and narrator returns to Poland with the man she loves. She wants him to learn to like her country. This is important to her. She herself sees her surroundings in a new, more positive light. She is not a rebel, but a sensitive observer of life. As a participant in the ceremony of existence, she is comprehensible to the organizers of that ceremony. Filipiak's prose hides an unfathomed wealth of images and words. It sounds like a concerto played on many instruments under the direction of a faultless conductor.
There are more than 31,000 publishers registered in Poland. However, the market is highly concentrated. The 300 largest publishing firms still hold almost 98 per cent of it. More »
