Finite Formulae & Theories of Chance

Wioletta Greg (b. 1974), poet, writer and translator from Southern Poland has been active on the Polish literary scene since her first publication in the 1990s, and despite her move to the Isle of Wight at the beginning of the new millennium, has remained so. She has published several volumes of poetry, a collection of short prose poems and, most recently, a debut novel Guguly (2014), which has already been hailed as the "discovery of the year" by critics and readers alike.

Finite Formulae and Theories of Chance was recently shortlisted for the Griffin Poetry Prize, 2015. "These poems, as translated from Polish into English by Marek Kazmierski, retain the force of first experience and, equally, a collection of history's remains. Greg's thoughts include the catastrophe of the 20th century whose marks still wobble before her eyes, and into the experience of living in post-Communist Poland. This stunning collection shows us (mostly through the eyes and memories of childhood) a world of objects transported across years. 'Tossing satin bulbs into wicker baskets,' the child poet is at ease with the earth and the hardy objects made from it. Greg grants us the privilege of seeing what she saw before she saw more." Judges Comments for the Griffin Poetry Prize; "These poems are riddled with overlapping tenses, places and intentions. New life is organised into being, memories are set in order, life on something as uncertain as an 'island' is attempted, as is the writing, 'mid-flight', rather than at rest." Karol Maliszewski "The poetess moved to the UK in 2006 and settled on the Isle of Wight: 'Take me away from this paradise, where I feel as tepid / as tea with milk. Take me, before I evaporate.' She seduces the reader with her childhood memories and the glimpses of post-Communist Poland. But it's the everyday woman's experience portrayed with great maturity and tenderness that makes this book so exceptional." A. M. Bakalar, Wasafiri

• Part I 10 / Dziadek na moscie, lipiec 1914 Grandfather on a bridge, July 1914 / 11 12 / Dziadek jedzie do Warszawy - Grandfather on his way to Warsaw - / 13 16 / Dziadek ucieka ze stalagu - Grandfather escapes a stalag - / 17 18 / Trzynastoletnia w gulagu Thirteen in a gulag / 19 20 / Z puchem With down / 21 22 / Wykopki The digs / 23 24 / Zabawa obreczami Rolling hoops / 25 26 / Ferie Half-term / 27 28 / W szafie babci In grandma's wardrobe / 29 30 / Wszystko o mojej babce All about my grandmother / 31 32 / Pamiec Smieny Smena's memory / 33 34 / Wiersz wielkanocny An Easter verse / 35 36 / Zaginiona Missing / 37 38 / Wiosna, 1986 Spring, 1986 / 39 40 / Ruchy Browna Brownian motion / 41 42 / Majowe fikcje, 1989 May fictions, 1989 / 43 44 / Spoznione dokarmianie pszczol The late feeding of bees / 45 46 / Wszystko o moim ojcu All about my father / 47 48 / Gwiezdne Stargate / 49 50 / Zwijanie Wrapping up / 51 52 / Polowanie na pizmaki Hunting muskrats / 53 54 / Ojciec iluzjonista My father the magician / 55 56 / Pestki Pips / 57 58 / Lekcje plywania Swimming lessons / 59 60 / Iskry Sparks / 61 62 / Bajka o smierci A fairytale about death / 63 64 / Weselne rondo A wedding party / 65 66 / Kolysanka Lullaby / 67 68 / Oczy szerzej zamkniete Eyes shut wider / 69 70 / Narzeczeni wedkuja Lovers angling / 71 72 / Zawiazki Buds / 73 74 / List do kolezanki z Chin A letter to my friend from China / 75 76 / Czasy zespolone Complex times / 77 78 / Lektorzy Readers / 79 80 / Bajka o zyciu A fairytale about life / 81 82 / Bezsennosc w Ryde Sleepless in Ryde / 83 Part II 87 / Notatnik z Wyspy Notes from an island / 87