In this bitterly funny novel a writer finds himself tossed into a chaotic world of schoolboys by a diabolical professor who wishes to reduce him to childishness. Originally published in Poland in 1937, Ferdydurke was deemed scandalous and subversive by Nazis, Stalinists, and the Polish Communist regime in turn and was officially banned in Poland for decades. It has nonetheless remained one of the most influential works of twentieth-century European literature.
"Ferdydurke, among its centrifugal charms, includes some of the truest and funniest literary satire in print."-John Updike
"A wonderfully subversive, self-absorbed, hilarious book. Think Kafka translated by Groucho Marx, with commentaries."-Kirkus Reviews
"The author's exuberant humor, suggesting the absurdist drama of Eugene Ionesco, if not the short fiction of Franz Kafka, is readily apparent in this new translation. . . . Highly recommended."-Richard Koss, Library Journal
Winner of the 2001 National Translation Award given by the American Literary Translators Association
“Winner of the 2001 National Translation Award, given by the American Literary Translators Association "Extravagant, brilliant, disturbing, brave, funny--wonderful. . . . Long live its sublime mockery."--Susan Sontag, from the foreword " Ferdydurke, among its centrifugal charms, includes some of the truest and funniest literary satire in print."--John Updike "This promises to be, at last, the English translation of Ferdydurke that we have all been waiting for."--Stanislaw Baranczak, Harvard University”
Winner of the 2001 National Translation Award, given by the American Literary Translators Association
"Extravagant, brilliant, disturbing, brave, funny-wonderful. . . . Long live its sublime mockery."-Susan Sontag, from the foreword "Ferdydurke, among its centrifugal charms, includes some of the truest and funniest literary satire in print."-John Updike
"This promises to be, at last, the English translation of Ferdydurke that we have all been waiting for."-Stanislaw Baranczak, Harvard University
Witold Gombrowicz is the single most important Polish prose writer of the 20th century. He is best known for his novels Ferdydurke(1937), Pornografia(1960) and Cosmos(1966) and his plays Princess Ivona(1935) and The Marriage(1953). Gombrowicz left Poland in 1939, lived in Argentina for over 20 years, and died in France. In 1967, he was awarded the Prix Formentor. This is Bacacay's first English language publication.
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