Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk (Book review)

My first from this author, but definitely not my last. A masterful translation as well!

This dark but interesting and entertaining book is set in Poland near the Czech border, in a tiny village that is not much more than a cluster of houses.

A spate of unusual deaths in a small community alarm the local inhabitants and authorities. Is there an organised crime or slightly supernatural angle to it all? How do the animals fit in? Is anyone actually trying to solve this?

I love the discussion of ethics, complicity, and hierarchies. The setting is evocatively painted in its bleakness and you really feel embedded in a specific place and time.

Expect to feel sympathy and empathy for quirky and surprising characters in unusual ways. It’s an emotionally layered story.

I love the forays into astrology, philosophy, and the inclusion of William Blake and the knotty issues of translation. It’s an intelligent and interesting book that’s full of wisdom without pomposity.

Read if you want a meaty but hypnotic read.