What Now, Mr Wolf?

Eva Vezhnavets (Eva Viežnaviec) was born in 1972 in Zahalle, a village south of Minsk. Journalist, translator and writer, she was compelled to leave Belarus and now works at the Katyń Museum in Warsaw, Poland. Historical sections of What Now, Mr Wolf? are based on family stories as well as eyewitness reports and materials from archives and the local press. First published in Minsk in 2020 and reissued in Vilnius, Lithuania in 2024 by Pflaumbaum, the publishing house founded by Svetlana Alexievich, 2015 winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, What Now, Mr Wolf? was awarded the highest prize for prose in Belarus in 2021.

'I read Eva Viežnaviec’s novel and recognised the village where I grew up. She brought it back to life in my soul.' – Svetlana Alexievich'Strong and clear like vodka.' Judith Leister, Neue Zürcher Zeitung'Eva Viežnaviec has created a literary masterpiece in just under 150 pages about the largely unnoticed, unknown history of her country in the twentieth century ... The story is told with poetic force and subtle irony, in the sensual and direct language of the two protagonists.' Sabine Berking , Frankfurter Allgemeine 'In language both visually rich and haunting, Eva Viežnaviec tells of her beloved grandmother and illuminates at the same time a piece of every-day history from Eastern Europe in the 20th century ... A novel that acts as a conversation between the living and the dead, a book full of hope …. highly recommended.' -  Terry Albrecht, WDR5 Bücher'A literary thunderbolt ... An overwhelming novel, a challenge, a study of man, a history lesson, a psychogram of power and powerlessness – grand, important literature!' - Bernd Melichar, Kleine Zeitung'In clear, almost harsh sentences, Viežnaviec’s  densely-woven family story spanning five generations tells of people instead of politics. ... This book is a tribute to the women of Belarus, who are an example of how to survive on scorched earth.' Cornelius Wüllenkemper, Deutschlandfunk Büchermarkt'It hits with the force of a sledgehammer... Powerful and, despite all the brutality, highly poetic. In a concise language, fed with historical details, Viežnaviec succeeds in bringing the monstrous upheavals and darkness in short episodes to life so vividly that the reader becomes dizzy over the course of such a condensed journey through time. ... A powerful homage to Belarusian women, their strength and liberated savoir-vivre.'  Ingo Petz, Standard Album'The reading develops a force that resonates for a long time.' - Roberta de Righi, Münchner Abendzeitung,