Olga Tokarczuk; trans. Antonia Lloyd-Jones
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk, translated by Antonia Lloyd-Jones, is a murder mystery told in the very original and authentic voice of a feisty woman in her 60s. She prefers the company of animals to humans, talks to ghosts, believes astrology governs our lives, and suffers from a series of ailments. Her name is Janina Duszejko.
Janina Duszejko (she hates her first name and constantly has to correct the mispronunciation of her last name) is an eccentric, elderly woman living in a remote Polish village near the Czech border. She is dismissed by many as a batty old woman with a penchant for traipsing around the countryside, spouting weird notions about astrology and horoscopes, claiming animals have souls and are capable of avenging themselves for the atrocities perpetrated on them by humans. She reserves her special brand of anger for hunters, accusing them of murder. She is a constant thorn in their sides, heckling them and destroying their animal traps. Her passion and advocacy for animals is fearless.
Janina is never happier as when she is outdoors surrounded by the flora and fauna of nature. She reads the signs in nature with a meticulous eye for detail. It is due to her astute observations in nature that when a neighbor is found dead in his home, she is convinced she knows who the culprit is. But the neighbor’s death is just the beginning. Three other bodies turn up mysteriously. The police are baffled. Janina’s hilarious letter-writing campaign announcing the killers and citing historical precedence of animal revenge as evidence is summarily dismissed. After all, who is going to pay any attention to a dotty old woman who scours the countryside talking to animals?
Janina has many admirable qualities. She willingly trudges in the cold and snow to help an animal in distress. She imbues nature with an ethic and generosity of spirit she finds sadly lacking in humans. Much of her philosophical pronouncements and observations of human behavior ring true, giving one pause. She is capable of great civility and literary prowess, discussing translations of William Blake over cups of tea with Dizzy, one of her former students. The connection to Blake is reinforced since the title of the book and the opening epigraph of each chapter are taken from his works. And although suffering from many ailments, Janina never hesitates to help a neighbor in need. Her quirky narrative voice is an absolute delight. Janina is funny in spite of her craziness—or, perhaps, because of it.
Olga Tokarczuk has created a lovable, crazy, quirky, eccentric, and hilarious figure in Janina. Her prose is lyrical and elegant, with a distinctive eye for detail and for juxtaposing seemingly unrelated objects in refreshing and enlightening ways. In Janina she has created an unforgettable character.
A brilliant story unfolding in lyrical prose through the endearing voice of a memorable narrator. Olga Tokarczuk’s consummate skill as a writer makes her a truly deserving recipient of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Literature.
Highly recommended.