2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring

Bill Johnston: Educator Extraordinaire
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Commentary

Bill Johnston: Educator Extraordinaire

A tsunami of honours fell upon Bill Johnston in 2012. CR surfs on that giant wave with a few observations of its own, along with some from Tamara Trojanowska and from students who will never forget him.

Elegant Prewar Poland, Evoked by New Fonts from Graphic Artist Brendan Ciecko
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Features

Elegant Prewar Poland, Evoked by New Fonts from Graphic Artist Brendan Ciecko

During his brief stays in Warsaw and Kraków, American artist Brendan Ciecko came across interwar Polish typography – and that led him to discover the elegance and beauty of pre-WWII Poland. We can hardly wait for him to make these typefaces available to us.

Bill Johnston: Translator Extraordinaire
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Features

Bill Johnston: Translator Extraordinaire

“Bill Johnston… was from another world. When many of us were dreaming about leaving Poland, here he was, settling right in!” – So recalls Tamara Trojanowska of her early encounter with an English teacher who mastered the Polish language.

Chatting with Katy Carr
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Interviews / Music

Chatting with Katy Carr

The singer/songwriter of Kommander’s Car – Katy Carr – had not met the “Kommander” until after her song about him became a hit. It was a thrill when she finally did. That said, her spiritus movens was always her Polish/British identity, and the history behind that. Justine Jablonska talks to Katy Carr.

Reculturing Designs
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Features

Reculturing Designs

Designer Oleńka Lisiecka blends old time folk and city chic to great effect. Original and fun. Justine Jablonska casts a fashion eye on Lisiecka’s enterprise.

Cabaret Liberation
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Features / Music

Cabaret Liberation

Getting the vote is all well and good. But what if women want more than that? Beth Holmgren looks at Poland’s interwar cabaret culture.

Spring 2013 Bulletin Board
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Bulletin Board

Spring 2013 Bulletin Board

Lots of honors and awards for books – all reviewed in CR. Plus: An artist comes home; Elgar for the musically inclined; Manya, the Living History of Maria Skłodowska-Curie; and a beer named for Wojtek the Soldier Bear.

Created by Stalin, Embraced by Emigrants? Mazowsze, Śląsk and the Polish Folk Dance Movement in America
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Features

Created by Stalin, Embraced by Emigrants? Mazowsze, Śląsk and the Polish Folk Dance Movement in America

Mazowsze is arguably the most beautiful folk dance troupe in the world. Maja Trochimczyk poses the question: Does authenticity matter?

Unvanquished:  Joseph Piłsudski, Resurrected Poland and the Struggle for Eastern Europe
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Books

Unvanquished: Joseph Piłsudski, Resurrected Poland and the Struggle for Eastern Europe

Peter Hetheringon’s mammoth biography brings Piłsudski to life on its pages, says reviewer Patrice Dabrowski. And while he’s at it, he provides the reader with a brief but thorough and lively history of Poland, as only a non-Pole can.

Jan Karski: The Story of a Secret State
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Books / Features

Jan Karski: The Story of a Secret State

Jan Karski is a hero not just for our times but for all times, says Irene Tomaszewski as she recalls her first meeting with the modest hero. He represents the best in humanity and the collective will of a nation that would not submit.

“The Driest of Facts:” Witold Pilecki’s Mission in Auschwitz
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Books

“The Driest of Facts:” Witold Pilecki’s Mission in Auschwitz

Michał Kasprzak’s brilliant review cuts to the essence of The Auschwitz Volunteer.

Kaia, Heroine of the 1944 Warsaw Rising
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Books

Kaia, Heroine of the 1944 Warsaw Rising

Meeting a heroine from the “generation of ‘44” is a privilege. Fortunately, Aleksandra Ziółkowska-Boehm kept a record of her friendship with one of the Warsaw Uprising’s great women.

Stone Upon Stone
2013 Vol. 5 No. 1 — Spring / Books

Stone Upon Stone

When the ideology is stripped away, say reviewer Joanna Szupinska about Wiesław Myśliwski’s Stone Upon Stone, all that is left is love for life and respect for the earth. Could one ask for anything more?