Literature

A short story set in 2040, when due to global warming Iceland’s climate becomes vastly colder and harsher. A biology teacher disappears during a school trip and her daughter starts to search for her. Birna Anna Björnsdóttir

In this extract from Miha Mazzini’s “Erased”, two Slovenians have an unpleasant surprise when trying to return to an apartment in Ljubljana. Miha Mazzini

We imagine how Captain Nemo might have looked, had he been a Polish aristocrat fighting Russian tyranny, as Jules Verne originally intended in “Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea”. Adam Węgłowski

“The blind view sculptures with their fingers.” A poem by a contemporary Polish poet. Krystyna Dąbrowska

In this extract from Juliusz Strachota’s “A Polish Tourist in the USSR” the protagonist makes his way to Crimea with the help of a childhood guide book. Juliusz Strachota

Our writer imagines a situation in which the world ends – by returning every animate and inanimate thing to its beginning. Tomasz Wiśniewski

“to dust you won’t return / not quite.” A poem by a contemporary Polish poet. Ida Dzik

In this excerpt from Małgorzata Szejnert’s non-fiction book “Ellis Island: A People’s History”, the author recounts the peculiarities of the island’s multinational luggage room. Małgorzata  Szejnert

In this extract from Alice Lugen’s “The Dyatlov Pass Tragedy”, the author describes the events leading up to the trip during which a group of young hikers died in mysterious circumstances in Russia’s northern Urals. Alice Lugen

In this extract from Artem Chekh’s book “Absolute Zero”, the author gives an account of his experiences as a soldier visiting a town in Eastern Ukraine affected by the war in Donbas. Artem Chekh

In the future, people and dogs walk on water. This short story by an award-winning American novelist is the story of a certain beginning. Tommy Orange

In 1980, the Polish science-fiction writer Stanisław Lem was asked by a German publisher to list his three most personal wishes. He reveals them in this exclusive translation. Stanisław Lem

In this extract from Mariusz Szczygieł’s “Not There”, the author visits The Dead People’s Shop in Budapest, Hungary, where he considers making a purchase. Mariusz Szczygieł

“In its crater, instead of magma, / the green chill of a lake.” A poem by a contemporary Polish poet. Krystyna Dąbrowska

“The women cluster at the cathedral,/ hair in careful bouffant helmets/ armored and elegant, poised to herd/ purposefully/ into Mystery.” A poem by a contemporary American poet. Cynthia Hogue