Ivan Klíma

Is one of the leading Czech novelists and playwrights of his generation. His work, a potent reflection on the liberating power of the word and literature, is strongly influenced by his experience at the Terezin concentration camp (1941-1945). In 1963 he became editor of the prestigious review Literarni Noviny and during the Prague Spring he edited the Czech Writers’ Union journal. His works were banned from publication since the Soviet occupation to 1990. He has published about 20 novels and collections of short stories, among them his most widely acclaimed book Love and Garbage (1990).