Stefan Grabiński (1887–1936)
Author of The Dark Domain
About the Author
Image credit: Stefan Grabiński, październik 1919 r. Fot. ze zbiorów p. Joanny Staręgi.
Works by Stefan Grabiński
Niesamowite opowieści. 1 2 copies
The White Wyrak 2 copies
狂気の巡礼 2 copies
Fantasmagorier 2 copies
Hareket Iblisi 1 copy
Publicystyka 1 copy
Manowiec 1 copy
Ciemne Siły / Zaduszki 1 copy
Cień Bafometa. T. 3 1 copy
Racconti spettrali 1 copy
Zwidy wieczorne 1 copy
Czad. Cykl płci i miłości 1 copy
Tragedia na wieży 1 copy
Associated Works
Diabli wiedza co... — Contributor — 4 copies
Maska Śmierci 2 — Contributor — 2 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Grabiński, Stefan
- Legal name
- Grabiński, Stefan
- Other names
- Żalny, Stefan
- Birthdate
- 1887-02-26
- Date of death
- 1936-11-12
- Gender
- male
- Education
- Lviv University
- Occupations
- teacher
writer - Awards and honors
- Nagroda literacka miasta Lwowa (1931)
- Short biography
- Stefan Grabiński urodził się w 1887 roku w Kamionce Strumiłowej nad Bugiem. Studiował literaturę polską i filologię klasyczną na Uniwersytecie Lwowskim. Po złożeniu egzaminu nauczycielskiego w 1911 roku rozpoczął pracę w państowych i prywatnych gimnazjach lwowskich. W latach 1914-1915 przebywał w Wiedniu, w 1927 roku odbył podróż do Włoch, a w 1929 do Rumunii nad Morze Czarne. W ostatnich latach życia, z powodu zaawansowanej gruźlicy został zwolniony na emerturę. Zamieszkał w miejscowości kuracyjnej Brzuchowice pod Lwowem. Zmarł w 1936 roku we Lwowie.
Debiutował w 1909 roku pod pseudonimem Stefan Żalny wyborem nowel "Z wyjątków. W pomrokach wiary". Opublikował zbiory opowiadań "Na wzgórzu róż. Nowele" (1918), "Demon ruchu" (1919), "Szalony pątnik" (1920), "Księga ognia" (1922), "Niesamowita opowieść" (1922), "Namiętność. Opowieść wenecka" (1930). Autor dramatu scenicznego "Ciemne siły (Willa nad morzem)" (1921), oraz misterium dramatycznego "Zaduszki". Także autor powieści "Salamandra" (1924), "Cień Bafometa" (1926), "Klasztor i morze" (1928), "Wyspa Itongo" (1936) oraz pozostawionej w rękopisie powieści "Motywy docenta Ponowy". Pisał również prace teoretyczne m.in. "Z mojej pracowni. Opowieść o maszyniście Grocie", "Dzieje noweli", "Przyczynek do psychologii tworzenia".
Uznwany za klasyka i najwybitniejszego przedstawiciela polskiej fantastyki grozy. - Nationality
- Poland
- Birthplace
- Kamionka Strumiłowa, Poland
- Places of residence
- Lviv, Ukraine
Przemyśl, Poland - Place of death
- Lviv, Ukraine
- Burial location
- Lviv, Ukraine
- Associated Place (for map)
- Poland
Members
Reviews
A magnificent collection of post-WW1 stories by the Polish master of the weird and macabre. These loosely inter-connected tales with events from one story subtly referenced in the next, form a colourful imagining of the railways and its railwaymen in a state of high motion and energy.
The stories themselves are excellent, ranging from manic travellers who can never stop travelling no matter the cost, to ghostly engines and wily trickster spirits that inhabit the soul of the trains and send show more people mad. All of these are told with some of the most manic, colourful prose that bring life to the stories in a way that only the very best of the classic weird writers ever could.
This has become one of my all time favourite short story collections. The theme and overarching story of the collection is perfectly crafted and the expert translation superbly captures Grabinski’s evocative spirit in his words
Superior to Lovecraft in my opinion and essential reading for fans of Edgar Allen Poe and Arthur Machen show less
The stories themselves are excellent, ranging from manic travellers who can never stop travelling no matter the cost, to ghostly engines and wily trickster spirits that inhabit the soul of the trains and send show more people mad. All of these are told with some of the most manic, colourful prose that bring life to the stories in a way that only the very best of the classic weird writers ever could.
This has become one of my all time favourite short story collections. The theme and overarching story of the collection is perfectly crafted and the expert translation superbly captures Grabinski’s evocative spirit in his words
Superior to Lovecraft in my opinion and essential reading for fans of Edgar Allen Poe and Arthur Machen show less
Stefan Grabinski’s The Dark Domain, an anthology of stories first published in Poland between 1918 and 1922, is an uncommonly chilling collection, often with unrelenting ferocity. These stories are beautifully descriptive, exhibiting a unique energy, with frequent anthropomorphic undertones imbuing life everywhere — into snowstorms, trains, houses, fires, city streets, and more... an underlying theme of powerful and mysterious life forces at work throughout the material world, with show more trains are a particular favorite of Grabinski in this regard. And the theme of dueling forces within an individual pops up more than once. These are some of the most intense, eerily dark, and otherworldly stories you’re likely to encounter in the realm of weird fiction.
Fumes - Ozarski, a traveler lost and stranded in a snowstorm finds unusual hospitality in a secluded cabin.
The Motion Demon - Szygon routinely finds himself on strange train excursions, not knowing where he came from, where he’s going, or why all this is happening.
The Area - A dormant writer, whom the public assumes has simply run out of ideas, has instead been working on an enhanced form of expression. A relentlessly intense classic!
A Tale of the Gravedigger - Chilling story of the mysterious disappearance of gravedigger Giovanni Tossati and the strange disturbances at the cemetery.
Szamota’s Mistress - Pages from a discovered diary tell the bizarre tale of Szamota’s lusty relationship with Jadwiga, who has recently returned from an overseas trip.
The Wandering Train - A rogue train, not on any register or schedule, appears mysteriously on the nation’s railways.
Strabismus - This is one of Grabinski’s renowned stories, but I found it only minimally intriguing and highly predictable.
Vengeance of the Elementals - Czarnocki, the fire chief of Rakszawa, has a dark obsession with fire, studying fire statistics and plotting fire locations on maps. His studies conclude that fire is actually “a spiteful, destructive essence that had to be reckoned with.” One of Grabinski’s hallmarks: elemental forces are always at work...
In the Compartment - Godziemba, a train fanatic with a usually quiet and phlegmatic disposition, finds that whilst riding on the railway he is imbued with energy and power, transforming him into a dynamic, strong-willed person. This is a riveting tale charged with surprisingly bold eroticism.
Saturnin Sektor - Opposing forces wrestle over the nature and very existence of time itself. One of the weaker stories in the anthology.
The Glance - A powerful story of grief, an ominous premonition, and overwhelming fear. show less
Fumes - Ozarski, a traveler lost and stranded in a snowstorm finds unusual hospitality in a secluded cabin.
The Motion Demon - Szygon routinely finds himself on strange train excursions, not knowing where he came from, where he’s going, or why all this is happening.
The Area - A dormant writer, whom the public assumes has simply run out of ideas, has instead been working on an enhanced form of expression. A relentlessly intense classic!
A Tale of the Gravedigger - Chilling story of the mysterious disappearance of gravedigger Giovanni Tossati and the strange disturbances at the cemetery.
Szamota’s Mistress - Pages from a discovered diary tell the bizarre tale of Szamota’s lusty relationship with Jadwiga, who has recently returned from an overseas trip.
The Wandering Train - A rogue train, not on any register or schedule, appears mysteriously on the nation’s railways.
Strabismus - This is one of Grabinski’s renowned stories, but I found it only minimally intriguing and highly predictable.
Vengeance of the Elementals - Czarnocki, the fire chief of Rakszawa, has a dark obsession with fire, studying fire statistics and plotting fire locations on maps. His studies conclude that fire is actually “a spiteful, destructive essence that had to be reckoned with.” One of Grabinski’s hallmarks: elemental forces are always at work...
In the Compartment - Godziemba, a train fanatic with a usually quiet and phlegmatic disposition, finds that whilst riding on the railway he is imbued with energy and power, transforming him into a dynamic, strong-willed person. This is a riveting tale charged with surprisingly bold eroticism.
Saturnin Sektor - Opposing forces wrestle over the nature and very existence of time itself. One of the weaker stories in the anthology.
The Glance - A powerful story of grief, an ominous premonition, and overwhelming fear. show less
“L’Appassionata” is a sixty page story of a romantic encounter in Venice which begins to have eerie undertones and which gradually builds dread at a pace that draws the reader into mystery, intrigue, and, ultimately, surprise.
Grabinski’s descriptions of Venice bring the city to life and portray not just the glossed tourist image but also the backstreets and filthy water canals of the areas inhabited by the Venetians who do not own palaces.
It is a story that fans of premonitions, show more spirits and unfettered love will enjoy. It certainly has the hallmarks of a good Gothic tale.
Miroslaw Lipinski is tireless in his work translating and promoting the works of his late compatriot, Stefan Grabinski, and author whose work I have always found rewarding. show less
Grabinski’s descriptions of Venice bring the city to life and portray not just the glossed tourist image but also the backstreets and filthy water canals of the areas inhabited by the Venetians who do not own palaces.
It is a story that fans of premonitions, show more spirits and unfettered love will enjoy. It certainly has the hallmarks of a good Gothic tale.
Miroslaw Lipinski is tireless in his work translating and promoting the works of his late compatriot, Stefan Grabinski, and author whose work I have always found rewarding. show less
‘El demonio del movimiento y otros relatos de la zona oscura’ (Valdemar, 2017), del escritor polaco Stefan Grabinski, recoge diecisiete cuentos divididos en dos bloques. En el primero, nos encontramos con los nueve relatos que componen el original Demon ruchu (1919), y en el segundo, ocho obras extraídas de diversos volúmenes.
Los cuentos del primer bloque, que son los que más me han interesado, están ambientados en el mundo del ferrocarril, con trenes, maquinistas, revisores, show more pasajeros, donde se mantiene un toque fantástico y de locura, paranoia y surrealismo. ‘El maquinista Grot’, ‘El embadurnado’ y ‘Señales’, son los que más me han gustado. En cuanto a los relatos de la segunda parte, la verdad es que no han sido de mi agrado, así como el tono general del libro. show less
Los cuentos del primer bloque, que son los que más me han interesado, están ambientados en el mundo del ferrocarril, con trenes, maquinistas, revisores, show more pasajeros, donde se mantiene un toque fantástico y de locura, paranoia y surrealismo. ‘El maquinista Grot’, ‘El embadurnado’ y ‘Señales’, son los que más me han gustado. En cuanto a los relatos de la segunda parte, la verdad es que no han sido de mi agrado, así como el tono general del libro. show less
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Statistics
- Works
- 56
- Also by
- 16
- Members
- 704
- Popularity
- #35,973
- Rating
- 4.0
- Reviews
- 10
- ISBNs
- 88
- Languages
- 9
- Favorited
- 10