Jaroslava Blažková (15 November 1933 – 20 February 2017) was a Slovak novelist, short story writer, children's writer and journalist.Vo veku 83 rokov zomrela spisovateľka Jaroslava Blažková

Biography

Born in

Velké Meziříčí Velké Meziříčí (; ) is a town in Žďár nad Sázavou District in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 12,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre with the castle complex is well preserved and is protected as an urban ...

in what is now the Czech Republic, she first attended secondary school in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

but completed her schooling in

Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...

. After her studies in the philosophical department of

Comenius University in Bratislava Comenius University Bratislava () is the largest university in Slovakia, with most of its faculties located in Bratislava. It was founded in 1919, shortly after the creation of Czechoslovakia. It is named after Jan Amos Comenius, a 17th-century ...

, in 1954 she worked as a journalist and freelance writer. In the early 1960s, she became one of the most important contributors to ''Mladá Tvorba'', a literary journal for young people. She was also a key member of the so-called Generation 56 group of young authors, publishing innovative short stories in ''Mladá tvorba'', ''Kultúrny život'' and other journals, written in a colloquial style with ironic overtones. Her successful novella ''Nylonový mesiac'' (Nylon Moon, 1961), which later formed the basis of a screenplay, is a good example. Her emphasis on the emancipation of her heroines can be seen in her collection of short stories ''Jahniatko a grandi'' (Lambs and Grandees, 1964). Her novel ''Môj skvelý brat Robinson'' (My Excellent Brother Robinson, 1968) is aimed at a young-adult readership, telling the story of rivalry between two brothers for the heroine and bringing out the tensions between the older generation and the new approach of youth. After the

Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia On 20–21 August 1968, the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was jointly invaded by four fellow Warsaw Pact countries: the Soviet Union, the Polish People's Republic, the People's Republic of Bulgaria, and the Hungarian People's Republic. The in ...

in 1968, she emigrated to Canada, settling in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

. Her books were no longer published in Czechoslovakia but she joined the Slovak service of the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is the Canadian Public broadcasting, public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a Crown corporation that serves as the national public broadcaster, with its E ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, edited ''Nový domov'' (a magazine for émigrés) and worked for

Josef Škvorecký Josef Škvorecký (; September 27, 1924 – January 3, 2012) was a Czech-Canadian writer and publisher. He spent half of his life in Canada, publishing and supporting banned Czech literature during the communist era. Škvorecký was awarded the ...

's publishing house

68 Publishers 68 Publishers, also called Sixty-Eight Publishers, Sixtyeight Publishers, or even Nakladatelství 68 ('nakladatelství' is Czech for 'publishing house'), was a publishing house formed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in 1971 by Czech expatriate Jose ...

. She lived in

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as The Royal City, it is roughly east of Kitchener, Ontario, Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Ontario Highway 6, ...

, Ontario, but frequently visited Slovakia where her books have been republished.

Works

For adults

*1961: Nylonový mesiac *1964: Jahniatko a grandi, short stories and novellas *1968: Môj skvelý brat Robinson, novel *1997: ... ako z gratulačnej karty (prose works) *2001: Svadba v Káne Galilejskej, short stories *2005: Happyendy *2013: To decko je blázon (Zo spomienok rozmaznanej dcérušky)

For children

*Tóno, ja a mravce, educational book *Ostrov kapitána Hašašara, educational book *Ohňostroj pre deduška, humorous work *Daduška a jarabáč, picture book for small children *Ako si mačky kúpili televízor, fairy tale *Rozprávky z červenej ponožky, stories *Minka a pyžaminka *Traja nebojsovia a duch Miguel *Mačky vo vreci, funny stories

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blazkova, Jaroslava 1933 births 2017 deaths People from Velké Meziříčí 20th-century Slovak women writers 20th-century Slovak writers Slovak journalists Slovak children's writers Slovak women children's writers Slovak novelists 21st-century Slovak women writers 21st-century Slovak writers Czechoslovak emigrants to Canada Czechoslovak exiles Slovak short story writers