 2006
INDIVIDUAL ARTIST FELLOWSHIP RECIPIENT
 Aleksandra Ziolkowska-Boehm
Wilmington
Established Professional: Literature - Creative Nonfiction
Born and educated in Poland, Aleksandra Ziolkowska-Boehm began her writing
career as an assistant for Melchior Wankowicz, a prominent Polish writer who
not only dedicated his last book to her but also bequeathed her his
archives. She is the author of at least 17 books, some of them bestsellers
in Poland, and is the recipient of numerous literary awards and
scholarships/fellowships, which have taken her to England, Canada and the
United States. Her English language books include works published in Canada,
as well as translations of her Polish language books. A member of the
Society of Polish Writers, Warsaw, and the PEN American Center, she
currently writes for both Polish and English language publications and has
appeared in documentary films in Poland and in the United States. She has
written historical biographies and autobiographical stories of her
peripatetic life. Her latest book "A Polish Partisan’s Story" is the
biography of Roman Rodziewicz, one of Poland’s World War II heroes. It will
be published this summer by Military History Press. Her next book is about
the current outlook for American Indians.
Poland always was a country open to the West, and I was raised reading the
classics of French, German, American literature and others. Many books
influenced my life. I read a lot, and books are my closest friends. For my
appreciation for animals I give credit to the books of Jack London. My interest
in American Indians was cultivated by the books written by James Fenimore
Cooper.
Each book I have published is different from the others, because each time
I responded to life events near me. I was touched by peoples’ life stories that
they shared with me. I also found my own life full of events with all kinds of
stress and problems, and for me it is a kind of self-therapy, the strong will to
share my feelings of sadness and happiness, my impressions, and thoughts, with
others. In some way, I want to understand life and the world around me. By
writing about it, I make it my own.
Excerpt from the forthcoming book, "A Polish Partisan’s
Story"
…Rodziewicz was ordered outside and taken at gunpoint toward the barn. The
all-wooden structure stood about a hundred and fifty yards away from the
house. One of the Germans, the Gestapo chief of Wolozyn, took a handful of
publications out of his bag. Roman immediately recognized them as copies of
the clandestine newspaper, Biuletyn Informacyjny.1 Waving them in his face,
he asked Rodziewicz where they came from.
"What are they?" asked Roman, putting out his hand as if meaning to look
the papers over.
The Gestapo chief withdrew them quickly.
"Polish newspapers!"
"Oh I buy them at the station from the lame Volksdeutscher who orders
them from Wilno."
"We’re not talking about newspapers you can buy in Wilno," shot back the
German furiously. "We’re interested in your underground newspapers."
"That’s the first time I’ve heard of underground newspapers."
Then the German held up the roll of newspapers at a distance and
Rodziewicz saw that it contained not only the Biuletyn Informacyjny but also
Dziennik Nowogrodzki.2 He disavowed any knowledge of them. The German
barked at him to stand against the wall, then looking at his watch, added:
"I’m giving you three minutes to think it over. If you don’t own up, we
will shoot you on the spot!"
It was a strange moment. Earlier, while in action in 1939, and then many
times later while serving in Hubal’s unit, Roman had always been able to
master his fear. How many times had he been in mortal danger and
miraculously survived? Now he looked around him. Just four or five yards
from the barn stood the harvested rye, each shock capped—as was the custom
in these parts—by a large sheaf. Looking at these even rows of harvested
grain, he thought:
"My God, what more could I wish for? I was born here, on this land, and
now they’re going to shoot me. This is where I’ll be buried."
Instead of terror, which had begun to seize him, he suddenly felt a surge
of joy. He stood with his hands behind his back and his head slightly tilted
to one side. Then, throwing back his head, and with his shock of fair hair
shimmering in the sun—hair which made all the girls swoon, he says—he broke
into loud, hysterical and joyous laughter…
Aleksandra Ziolkowska-Boehm
1 Information Bulletin
2 The Nowogrodek Daily
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