The many figures described here include Czesław Miłosz, Józef Czapski, Jerzy Turowicz, Leopold Unger, Konstanty Jeleński, Gustaw Herling-Grudziński. The book is excellently documented and brilliantly written.
Source of Polish version: Publisher's note - www.swiatksiazki.pl
The Prince of Maisons-Laffitte deserved such a monument. After all, it was especially after 1989 that representatives of the Polish elite tried to outdo one another in assuring everyone that they had been brought up 'on Kultura' ... Despite this, in free Poland we had to wait a long 20 years for the first real biography of Jerzy Giedroyc.
...
Though Grochowska makes no secret of her respect for her hero, she never hesitates to question the justifiability of some of his political diagnoses. In particular, she analyses Giedroyc's belief, recurring during successive breakthroughs in Poland, in a need for sacrifice - prison time and even blood - during the struggle for independence. However, the tormenting question for her - and others with her - is this: What kind of man was Giedroyc really? Even the great editor's closest collaborators admit they aren't sure what gave him the strength to make what were often dramatic choices over the years - including emotional, personal ones.
Krzysztof Burnetko, "Polityka" weekly, May 26, 2009
- Magdalena Grochowska
Jerzy Giedroyc
Publisher: Świat Książki, Warsaw 2009
series: Autorytety / Authorities
130 x 200, 688 + 32 pages with photographs, hardcover
ISBN 978-83-247-0904-5