# Jerzy Broszkiewicz

Jerzy Broszkiewicz (June 6, 1922 – October 4, 1993) was a Polish prose writer, playwright, essayist and publicist. He is best known for his dramas as well as young adult literature; the latter usually took forms of historical or science fiction novels.

## Biography

He was born on 6 June 1922 in Lviv; his father, Adam, was an officer in the Polish Armed Forces. From 1934, he was a student at the Jan Długosz Gymnasium [pl] in Lviv. In 1940, after finishing secondary school and music school, he entered the Lviv National Music Academy. During the German occupation of Lviv (from 1941 to 1944), he participated in underground cultural activities (literary evenings, concerts); he was also a louse-feeder at the Lviv Institute for Typhus and Virus Research under Professor Rudolf Weigl.
In 1944, he married Ewa Łomnicka and moved to Kraków, where he lived in the famous Literary House [pl] at 22 Krupnicza Street. For some time, he studied at the Academy of Music but discontinued his studies in 1945 (although Stanisław Frycie [pl] and Tadeusz Kwiatkowski [pl] described him as a "promising pianist"). From that year, he was a member of the Polish Writers' Union (from 1957 to 1958, he was vice-president of the main board; from 1973, he was a member of the Kraków branch board of the union, and in 1975, its vice-president). From 1945 to 1947, he collaborated with the editorial office of the weekly Odrodzenie [pl] (including as a proofreader and theater critic) and the journal Teatr [pl]. He also worked with the newspapers Nowiny [pl] and Dziennik Polski (from 1945 to 1946). From 1947 to 1949, he co-edited the magazine Ruch Muzyczny [pl], and later, from 1948 to 1951, he was an editor for the monthly Muzyka [pl].
In 1948, he moved to Warsaw. From 1950 to 1951, he hosted a weekly cultural program on the radio and later was a writer for radio plays. From 1950 to 1963, he published in Nowa Kultura [pl] and Przegląd Kulturalny [pl] (where he was a member of the editorial board from 1953). From 1953 to 1954, he edited the artistic-literary supplement in Sztandar Młodych called Przedpole. In 1953, he joined the Polish United Workers' Party, and in the same year, he became a member of the editorial board of Przegląd Kulturalny, where he was a co-editor until 1963. From 1955 to 1956, he was the artistic director of the Estrada Theatre. In 1959, he returned to Kraków; from that year until 1971, he was the literary manager of the Ludowy Theatre in Nowa Huta. In 1960, he wrote for Gazeta Krakówska. In 1975, he became a member of the Kraków Polish United Workers' Party Committee and a member of the presidium of the Kraków club Kużnica.

### Private life

His wife, Ewa (née Łomnicka), was a doctor in psychiatry and the daughter of the renowned mathematician Antoni Łomnicki. They had one daughter, Irena (1954–2021), the prototype for Iki from the novel Wielka, większa i największa (The Great, Greater, and Greatest), a doctor of mathematics and artist from Piwnica pod Baranami.
He suffered from schizophrenia. He died on 4 October 1993 in Kraków. He was buried in the Alley of Merit at the Rakowicki Cemetery (section LXIX, row B-2-2).

## Career

His literary work was diverse. He made his debut in 1945 as a music critic and simultaneously as a writer with the short story Monika, published in the weekly Odrodzenie (No. 18). His book debut was the novel Oczekiwanie (Expectation), set in the ghetto, for which he received the Kraków Land Award.
Another significant work was the repeatedly reissued novel Kształt miłości (The Shape of Love) about Frédéric Chopin, for which he received the State Award of the 2nd degree in 1951. In 1971, the novel Długo i szczęśliwie (Happily Ever After) won the Association of Trade Unions Award. Kluska, Kefir i Tutejszy [pl] (Dumpling, Kefir, and the Local) was distinguished at the IV Premio Europeo in 1968.
He authored 14 novels for young readers, debuting with Opowieść olimpijska (Olympic Tale) in 1948, although most of his novels for younger audiences were written in the 1960s and 1970s. His earlier works in this genre were often biographical. Many of his later works belong to the science fiction genre, which Frycie considered the most significant part of his oeuvre. Notably, Wielka, większa i największa (The Great, Greater, and Greatest) from 1960 received high praise from critics and became a compulsory reading book for fifth grade. According to Frycie, in his works for young adults, Broszkiewicz exposed moral values such as resourcefulness, wisdom, nobility, and courage, and combined various narrative techniques, genres, and literary conventions.
In addition to this, he also wrote well-received dramas, being a multiple winner of drama competitions. He penned over 20 theatrical, television, and radio plays. He also wrote collections of essays, television and film scripts (e.g., Kopernik [Copernicus]), and publications on music. Some of his plays were produced abroad, including in France, Germany, Switzerland, Mexico, New Zealand, and the US. Broszkiewicz's works have been translated into at least 20 languages, and the total print run of his novels exceeded 1 million copies.
Frycie described Broszkiewicz as an exceptionally talented and versatile writer.
Broszkiewicz also helped in writing the debut novels of Sat-Okh: Ziemia słonych skał (Land of Salty Rocks, 1958) and Biały mustang (White Mustang, 1959). According to Dariusz Rosiak [pl], Broszkiewicz was even their actual undisclosed author based on Sat-Okh's stories.

### Young adult novels

* Opowieść olimpijska (The Olympic Tale) – 1948
* Opowieść o Chopinie (The Tale of Chopin) – 1950; adaptation of Kształt miłości (Shape of Love)
* Jacek Kula – 1952
* Powrót do jasnej polany (Return to the Sunny Meadow) – 1953
* Emil! Emil! – 1954
* Wielka, większa i największa (The Great, Greater, and Greatest) – Nasza Księgarnia, 1960; reading for fifth grade during the Polish People's Republic era; based on which a feature film was made
* Ci z Dziesiątego Tysiąca (Those from the Tenth Thousand) – Nasza Księgarnia, 1962; science fiction
* Oko Centaura (The Eye of the Centaur) – Nasza Księgarnia, 1964; science fiction; sequel to Those from the Tenth Thousand
* Długi deszczowy tydzień [pl] (A Long Rainy Week) – Nasza Księgarnia, 1966; sequel to Great, Greater, and Greatest; published in the Biblioteka Młodych [pl] (Young Readers' Library) collection
* Kluska, Kefir i Tutejszy [pl] (Dumpling, Kefir, and the Local) – Nasza Księgarnia, 1967
* Mój księżycowy pech [pl] (My Lunar Misfortune) – science fiction; Nasza Księgarnia, 1970, in the Klub Siedmiu Przygód [pl] (Seven Adventures Club) series and Nasza Księgarnia, 1976, in the Biblioteka Młodych collection
* Mister Di [pl] – Nasza Księgarnia, 1972
* Samotny podróżny (The Lonely Traveler) – 1973; provided the basis for the series Kopernik (Copernicus) with Andrzej Kopiczyński; 19 February 1973 marked the 500th anniversary of the astronomer's birth
* Bracia Koszmarek, magister i ja (The Koszmarek Brothers, the Master, and I) – 1980

### Other novels

* Oczekiwanie (Expectation) – 1948
* Kształt miłości (The Shape of Love) – Part I, 1950, Part II, 1951; based on which the feature film Youth of Chopin was made
* Imiona władzy (Names of Power) – 1957
* Długo i szczęśliwie (Happily Ever After) – 1970
* Dziesięć rozdziałów (Ten Chapters) – 1971–1974
* Doktor Twardowski (Doctor Twardowski) – 1977–1979

### Dramas

* Imiona władzy (Names of Power) – 1957
* Jonasz i błazen (Jonah and the Jester) – 1958
* Dwie przygody Lemuela Gulliwera (Two Adventures of Lemuel Gulliver)
* Dziejowa rola Pigwy (The Historical Role of Pigwa) – 1960
* Skandal w Hellbergu (Scandal in Hellberg) – 1961
* Głupiec i inni (The Fool and Others)
* Koniec księgi VI (The End of Book VI)

### Publications

* Pożegnanie z katechizmem [Farewell to the Catechism] (in Polish). Vol. III. Warsaw: Iskry. 1958.

## Private life

He lived in the Krowodrza district of Kraków. He was married to Dr. Ewa (1920–2000), daughter of Antoni Łomnicki, who was a psychiatrist. They had a daughter, Irena Broszkiewicz (1954–2021), a mathematician associated with Piotr Ferster [pl], the director of Piwnica pod Baranami.

## Orders and decorations

* Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta (1975)
* Officer's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta
* Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta (1954 or 11 July 1955)
* Warsaw Uprising Cross
* Medal of the 40th Anniversary of People's Poland (1984)
* Medal of the 10th Anniversary of People's Poland (19 January 1955)
* Order of the Smile

## Awards

* 1948 – Kraków Land Award – for the novel Oczekiwanie
* 1951 – State Award Badge [pl], Second Class in the field of Literature and Art – for the novel Kształt miłości
* 1960 – Artistic Award of Nowa Huta – for promoting culture and overall dramaturgical activity
* 1961 – Minister of National Education Award in Kraków
* 1961 – Second Prize in the Kraków City Dramatic Competition – for the play Skandal w Hellbergu
* 1962 – Second Prize in the National Council Dramatic Competition in Bydgoszcz – for the play Niepokój przed podróżą (Unease Before the Journey)
* 1964 – First Prize in the Competition for Contemporary Television Drama – for the play Ta wieś, Mogiła (That Village, Grave)
* 1965 – Golden Screen Award for 1964 – for the play Ta wieś, Mogiła
* 1968 – Città di Caorle Award – for the young adult book Kluska, Kefir i Tutejszy
* 1971 – Association of Trade Unions Award – for the novel Długo i szczęśliwie
* 1974 – Prime Minister's Award – for work for children and youth
* 1979 – Prime Minister's First-Class Award for work for children and youth in the field of literature on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the Polish People's Republic – for overall literary output
* 1982 – State First-Class Award for overall literary output
* 1984 – Kraków City Award