Šumava… hranici přecházejte po půlnoci – Hrach Vilém (2017)

It would seem that everything has already been written about the fates of the Šumava border crossers across the Iron Curtain, as well as those who attempted to escape themselves. However, this book will convince you that this is not the case. The individual stories are interconnected both thematically and through the intertwining fates of their protagonists. They are depicted not only dramatically but also in an extraordinarily cultivated literary language that rightfully belongs to fictionalized factual literature, yet is relatively rare. There are deeper connections and philosophical reflections on human fate and history. Each fictionalized story is supported and documented by facts and supplemented with factual commentary, sometimes quite extensive. This makes sense, as the author has managed to obtain and utilize previously unexplored archival materials that accidentally escaped destruction. Thanks to them, he presents previously unknown information and sometimes significantly corrects established notions, including those about the activities of the 'King of Šumava,' Kilian Nowotny. Therefore, this book of stories is also factually groundbreaking in many respects. The book includes reproductions of key archival documents, period photographs, and a color supplement with contemporary photographs of 'old places' by the well-known Šumava photographer Vladislav Hošek.