Primeval and Other Times

Olga Tokarczuk. Primeval and Other Times. Antonia Lloyd-Jones, tr. Prague. Twisted Spoon (SCB, distr.). 2010. 248 pages. £9.90/$15.50. ISBN 978-80-86264-35-6

Primeval and Other Times, Olga Tokarczuk's third novel, published in 1996 and widely regarded to be her masterwork, won both the Polityka Passport and Koscielski Prizes. These established her as an important voice in contemporary Polish literature. Part novel, part fable, some characters in Primeval are human, some are surreal, and some, like Cornspike, a bit of both. Tokarczuk has drawn on the tradition of magical realism and, indeed, has often cited the Jungian theory of mythmaking as an inspiration in her work.