Małgorzata Szejnert

For forty years, Małgorzata Szejnert (b. 1936) has been one of Poland's most important nonfiction writers and editors, shaping a generation of Polish literary reportage. She began writing about challenging social issues in the 1970s, and was an active member of the opposition during the Solidarity period. After the fall of communism, she cofounded Poland's leading daily newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza and led its reportage division for fifteen years. Since retiring, she has devoted herself entirely to book writing. Her topics range from Poland to America to Zanzibar, always with a warm, personal focus, allowing marginalized people to speak for themselves through her work.