Gāv-i āhanat rā barān bar ustukhān-i mardagān Persiska (Farsi) 2022

“Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead” (Prowadź swój pług przez kości umarłych) is a mystery novel by Olga Tokarczuk, originally published in Polish in 2009 by Wydawnictwo Literackie. The English translation by Antonia Lloyd-Jones was published in 2018 by Fitzcarraldo Editions and later released in the United States by Riverhead Books in 2019. The novel was shortlisted for the 2019 International Booker Prize and the translation was longlisted for the 2019 National Book Award for Translated Literature.

The novel follows Janina Duszejko, an elderly former teacher who lives in a remote village near the Czech border in Poland’s Silesia region. Living a quiet and unconventional life, Janina looks after her neighbors’ holiday homes, studies astrology, and works with her friend Dizzy on translating the poetry of William Blake into Polish. A passionate defender of animals and nature, she strongly opposes hunting and questions humanity’s right to dominate the natural world.

When her neighbor Big Foot, a local hunter, is found dead under mysterious circumstances, Janina begins to suspect that animals may have taken revenge against those who harm them. As a series of strange deaths follows among members of the local hunting community, her unusual theory is dismissed by the authorities, who view her beliefs with skepticism. Yet Janina continues to investigate the events and uncover the hidden connections behind them.

Blending crime fiction, philosophical reflection, environmental themes, and social criticism, Tokarczuk creates a story that challenges conventional ideas about justice, morality, and the relationship between humans and nature. Through Janina’s distinctive and unreliable narration, the novel explores questions of violence, compassion, aging, loneliness, and the value of all forms of life.

The title of the novel comes from William Blake’s “Proverbs of Hell”, reflecting the book’s deep engagement with Blake’s poetry and its themes of rebellion, imagination, and moral questioning.

“Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead” is not only a suspenseful mystery but also a profound meditation on humanity’s place in the natural world, offering a powerful critique of cruelty, social exclusion, and the ways societies define whose lives are considered valuable.