Oživlé tváře - Žili tu bez nás i s námi – Bratršovská Zdena (2023)

The renowned author duo presents this time a book of twenty-five "character sketches" of selected personalities from the literary and artistic world who are no longer with us, but with whom Zdena Bratršovská and František Hrdlička encountered and often established intense contact (to name a few: Jaroslav Foglar, Vladimír Justl, Ester Krumbachová, Alfred Radok, Josef Topol). These character traits defy ordinary historical portraits or studies about the lives and works of these creators. As is characteristic of this author duo, they approach the legacy of both well-known and unjustly forgotten personalities in a distinctive manner, often from a very personal, and thus more interesting angle, where what surprises us or what we would not expect in connection with the discussed creators comes to the forefront. Even in this volume, the authors do not hide their informal approach and attention to detail. Perhaps the most revealing and interesting aspect of their portraits is the concept of the phenomenon of human encounters, depicted against a backdrop that is sometimes more favorable and at other times more oppressive. However, it is precisely time that shapes the human characters on which the authors of this exceptional, and in some ways controversial, book primarily focus.