Raport o książkach – Grażyna Plebanek „Pola”

·1 hr 14 min·5 clips

Grażyna Plebanek wrote a book about her grandmother Apolonia, who was executed for hiding Jews, but focused on her life, not her martyrdom.

The episode is a recorded walking interview through Brussels, conducted by host Agata Kasprolewicz with guest Grażyna Plebanek, a Polish writer living in Brussels for 20 years. They discuss Plebanek's latest book 'Pola', a biographical work about her grandmother Apolonia Machczyńska Świątek, who was executed by Germans in January 1943 for hiding Jews in Kock during World War II. Plebanek explains her motivation to write the book was to free her grandmother's story from being defined solely by her tragic death and the myth of sacrifice that had been built around her in previous reports, plays, and articles. The book combines rigorous historical research with fictionalized sections to imagine Apolonia's inner life and daily experiences. Throughout the walk, Plebanek acts as a guide, pointing out locations like The View, the Palace of Justice, and Sablon Square, linking Brussels' perpetual state of renovation and layered history to her themes of movement, change, and uncovering hidden narratives. She discusses the importance of 'movement' both physically and metaphorically, noting how walking and boxing inspire her creative process. A significant portion of the conversation addresses the ethics of writing about real people, as Plebanek criticizes earlier reportage by Hanna Krall and others for including unsubstantiated claims, such as that Apolonia's father sacrificed her or that she had a romantic relationship with a German officer. Plebanek details her own investigative efforts, including correspondence with American historian Christopher Browning, to challenge these narratives. The dialogue expands to broader themes: the recovery of women's histories, especially ordinary women like servants and mothers; the dangers of 'monumental' memory; and the cultural silence around traumatic pasts, both in her family and in Belgium's colonial history. Plebanek shares personal reflections on how she imaginatively encountered her grandmother at similar life stages, and how the project took about 30-40 years to complete. The episode concludes with thanks to patrons and sponsors supporting the show.

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Raport o stanie świata Dariusza Rosiaka