- Venue:
- Steiermärkische Landesbibliothek, Graz
Martin Vopěnka (b. 1963) is a Czech-language writer with Jewish roots. He is the author of 29 books for adults, young adults and children, 15 of which have been translated into 14 languages. In addition to visionary novels set in the future, he writes stories from contemporary life, YA fiction, fairy tales, educational works, poetry and philosophical travelogues. A graduate in mathematics and physics, he has drawn on his studies in his work. His books have won numerous awards; one of them, Spící město [The Sleeping City], has been made into a film. His work is characterized by a sensitivity to the inner world of the individual, social problems and threats to the planet.
Works translated into: Azerbaijani, English, German, Greek, Italian, Polish, Spanish, Russian, Bulgarian, Romanian, Slovak, French, Arabic, Macedonian, Serbian.
– prose, trans. Raija Hauck, Drava, 2026
– Czech orig. Můj bratr mesiáš, Mladá fronta, 2017
– novel, trans. Raija Hauck, Práh, 2025
– Czech orig. Pražský golem, rabi Löw a moje židovská duše, Práh, 2025
– novel, trans. Raija Hauck, Drava, 2019
– Czech orig. Moje cesta do ztracena: Putování s Benjaminem, Mladá fronta, 2005
– sci-fi, trans. Anna Bryson, Savage Mind, 2025
– Czech orig. Nová planeta, Mladá fronta, 2015
– sci-fi, trans. Anna Bryson, Barbican Press, 2021
– Czech orig. Můj bratr mesiáš, Mladá fronta, 2017
– novel, trans. Anna Bryson, Plamen Press, 2021
– Czech orig. Moje cesta do ztracena, Mladá fronta, 2005
– children’s book, trans. Anna Bryson, Práh, 2016
– Czech orig. O duši a dívce. Pohádky z hor, Mladá fronta, 2016
– novel, trans. Hana Sklenkova, Barbican Press, 2015
– Czech orig. Pátý rozměr, Kniha Zlín, 2009
– novel, trans. Anna Bryson, Northwestern University Press, 1995
– Czech orig. Balada o sestupu, Rozmluvy, 1992
Masters (2023)
Reading St. Petersburg Award (2017)
Golden Ribbon (2016)
The White Ravens (2016)
Teachers' Award for Contribution to the Development of Children's Reading Literacy (2018)
Teachers' Award for Contribution to the Development of Children's Reading Literacy (2016)