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The Peasant Women: A Tale of Our Grandmothers
- Lady Ronit
- Sep 10, 2024
- 2 min read
Updated: Oct 18, 2024
Joanna Kuciel-Frydryszak, 2023
The Peasant Women (Chłopki. Opowieść o naszych babkach) by Joanna Kuciel-Frydryszak is an absorbing and difficult read. At times, it induces nausea, but it's worth it. Moreover, I think this book should be mandatory. Based on official data and the memories of those still among us, living chronicles of history who witnessed the nightmare of the Polish countryside firsthand.
A mere eighty years ago, the daily life of most Poles consisted of conditions so deplorable that today's person cannot imagine them. The extent of ignorance and suffering of the rural population is astounding. How, then, to reconcile this with the peasant mania of the early 20th century? What in this naturalistic, degrading world could evoke notions of pastoral bliss, and how could the same village, a hell for some, be an alluring vacation spot for others?
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