Flykten till Marstrand by Anna Grinzweig Jacobsson
Maciej Liguziński is a debut translator from Swedish into Polish. He recommends a book that shines light on an untold part of Swedish history.
The Translator's Choice
Flykten till Marstrand by Anna Grinzweig Jacobsson
Anna Grinzweig Jacobsson’s debut book Flykten till Marstrand shines light on an untold part of Swedish history.
In 1969 a few thousand Jewish refugees arrived in Sweden after having suffered an anti-Semitic campaign in their homeland of Poland. Two hundred of these people were placed in a camp on Marstrand, a picturesque but desolate rocky island, which as early as the 18th century had already served as a free haven for Jews. There, during the winter and early spring, they studied Swedish, and then in quick succession left and moved on to further studies and work. The author, who at the time was a six-year-old girl and herself one of the refugees, has interviewed some of the displaced people that stayed on Marstrand. She allows them to recount their stories of escape, their first impressions of and experiences in Sweden, and what became of their lives when they left the island. The result is a touching weave of voices and memories, skilfully interlaced with documents and photographs.
The importance of the book lies in the recounting of stories about people who were driven away from their country because of their Jewish background, but who had the good fortune to find themselves in a hospitable country that helped them start over. We are also presented with the results: all of the refugees eventually became successful in their new environment. The events they recount took place fifty years ago, but they can also be read as universal and very current stories about anyone who is, or has been, a refugee.
About the Translator
Maciej Liguziński
Maciej Liguziński is a debut translator from Swedish into Polish. He lives and works in Oslo, where he is researching digital audio books at OsloMET.
Previous translations: Jonas Karlsson: selected short stories: Du vet inte om du ska säga Familjemeny, som det heter and Han är hungrig, published in Poland in the journal FA-art, 2016. Niklas Kämpargård: Bondens skafferi, published in Poland by Edipresse Książki, 2018.
Anna Grinzweig Jacobsson (born 1963)
Works
Flykten till Marstrand is her debut work
The book
Flykten till Marstrand, memory writing, 2020, 176 pages.
Publisher
Bokförlaget Korpen
Rights
Anna Grinzweig Jacobsson