The meeting, held on March 29, was attended by many people—the Gallery once again proved too small. A considerable number of the guests were the writer’s school friends. There were stories about the beginnings of her literary work, the art of translating from foreign languages, and, of course, memories of Bolesławiec. All of this created a warm and unique atmosphere. Thanks to the attendees’ familiarity with the author’s work, there was also a difficult—in terms of subject matter—but very interesting discussion.
“The meeting brought me immense joy. I was proud that I am from this city, from this high school, and that I was not speaking to strangers but to my own people,” Iwona Banach said after the meeting. The writer, who returned to Bolesławiec after more than twenty years, has written several dozen short stories published in magazines. She is a winner of literary competitions. She received a distinction for her short story “A Month in the Life of an Unemployed Woman” in a competition announced by the magazine “Twój Styl.” In 2005, Iwona Banach’s moving psychological novel “Chwast” was published. In her works, the writer addresses the problem of domestic violence and the problem of “otherness”—both psychological and physical.