Lojze Kovačič

Kovačič is one of those rare authors who are completely at ease when narrating. In Newcomers, the author brilliantly describes the rational and emotional development from a 10-year old boy to a recruit, who experiences changes both as a sympathetic observer and a participant and is surprised at what a human is capable of doing, but without accusing anyone or seeking revenge. When the family is expelled from Switzerland, they are Germans in the eyes of Slovenes and Slovenes in the eyes of Germans. As they do not take sides, they are worse than the opponent. Driven down to the lowest social class, they accept poverty, hunger and blows with bewilderment without any revengeful thoughts. What counts is not the crowd but the individual… Kovačič consistently portrays the objective, everyday world, the style is clear and direct, the text flows slowly; the author meticulously describes landscapes, people, the state of mind, feelings, he describes everything boldly and sincerely. His Novel PRIŠLEKI (THE NEWCOMERS) has been translated into various languages: German, French, Spanish and Dutch.
AWARDS Prešeren Award for Life Achievement Novel of the Year Award for the novel Kristalni čas (Crystal Time) Novel of the Year Award for the novel Otroške stvari (Things of Childhood)

Sample translations

English - "Reality" (2004)) / Translated by: Gregor Timothy Čeh German - "Die Zugereisten" (2007)

Translated so far

1965 / Zgodbe iz grada Rič-Rač / serbian / Prosveta Belgrade 1976 / Stvarnost / serbian / Narodna knjiga Belgrade 1982 / Rzecywistoč / polish / Literatura na swietzie, Warshaw 1984 / A valóság / hungarian / Európa knyvkiadó, Budapest 2005, 2006, 2007 / Die Zugereisten / german / Drava: Klagenfurt 1985 / Tri žene / croatian / Zagreb 1971 / Le petit garçon sur un nuage / french / Hatier, Paris / Die Geschichte vom Löwenvater und Löwenjungen / german / Pawlik Verlag 2007 / Los inmigrados / spanish / Siruela, Madrid 2008 / Les immigrés: L’enfant de l’exil / french / Éditions du Seuil 2010 / De Nieuwkomers / dutch / Van Gennep