New Project Presents the Best of Czech Literature to Readers Abroad

Radio Prague International brings Czech literature to foreign listeners, giving them insight into life in Czechia.

Czech Books You Must Read. This new project by Radio Prague International maps out which books by Czech authors, the famous and the less well-known, get translated into various languages.  

Which books by Czech authors have actually been translated into world languages such as English, German, Spanish, or French? Was it just the big names known all over the world — your Kafka, Čapek, Kundera, or Havel? Or are there also works by contemporary Czech writers on the bookshelves of bookstores in Berlin, Madrid, Moscow, Paris, or New York, right next to classics such as The Good Soldier Švejk?

The project also endevours to acquaint foreign readers with the very best of Czech literature. It aims to introduce them to the most well-known, well-written and well-loved Czech novels and poetry in history, while also drawing their attention to contemporary Czech authors. It offers a unique view into the reality of Czech life through the prism of literature. The Radio Prague International put together a list of sixteen Czech books, presenting each of them to the listeners in radio show of the same name.

Visitors to any of the six language versions of Radio Prague International website will find a short video about each of the books. All language editorial teams shot interviews with either the translators, or the living authors. The station also launched a special podcast in Czech that utilizes existing dramatized radio readings of many of the books. Czech speaking audience can choose to listen to samples of these audio-books or pick an older interview with writers such as Bohumil Hrabal or Ota Pavel.

Listen to the Czech Books You Must Read programme.