Birth date

06. 12. 1955  [en] Bratislava  

Fields of interest

próza, poézia, esej, dráma, literatúra pre deti a mládež, scenáristika, preklad

Briefly about author

Daniel Hevier is an almost universal writer: he writes poetry, prose, essays, lyrics and scripts. He is also a dramatist and translator and editor of many anthologies. However, his extensive work bears the mark of top artistic quality, originality of form and appeal to readers. Hevier the miraculous child, by no means enfant terrible, started to write poetry that was playful, light, and rich with metaphors and humour. This was something new during the Seventies, when his first books were published (Butterfly Merry-go-round, In the Garden with My Father, Bird Drinking from the Track). His books from the early Eighties, Non-stop, Electronic Clown, and A Man Seeking the Sea, expressed the spirit of a generation that rejected the ideological clicháland pseudo-poetical ballast of the past, a generation that was enchanted by town life rather than the village and perceived the world with all its smells, tastes and darker aspects of reality. According to critics Hevier was the most remarkable talent in young Slovak poetry. After writing lyrical poems for adult readers he came with original poetry for children. Even his first works show characteristics that would later become typical for all his children`s books: playful lyricism, subdued comicality, masterful use of words, conciseness of expression in both prosaic and poetic forms. The playfulness of Hevier`s poetry has very much in common with children`s playfulness. However, his books for children are well composed and the author always works with an illustrator and typographer. He himself illustrated some of his latest books. Hevier`s texts for children are usually set in reality and shaped by his imagination. After several years spent in the publishing business Hevier made his comeback to poetry in the collection entitled Poems from the Advertising Campaign for the End of the World and also in the collection of song lyrics A Rusty-haired Girl.

Briefly about production

poetry:
Butterfly Merry-go-round (Motýlí kolotoč, 1974), In the Garden with My Father (S otcom v záhrade, 1976), Bird Drinking from the Track (Vták pije z koľaje, 1977), Non-stop (Nonstop, 1981), Electronic Clown (Elektrónkový klaun, 1983), A Man Seeking the Sea (Muž hľadá more, 1984), Movable Shore (Pohyblivý breh, 1984), In Every Door (V každých dverách, 1988), Gone to the Dogs (Psí tridsiatok, 1990), All-night Sale of Hope (Nočný predaj nádeje, 1994), Poems from the Advertising Campaign for the End of the World (Básne z reklamnej kampane na koniec sveta, 1996), A Rusty-haired Girl (Hrdzovlasá, 1997, collection of song lyrics), The White Burns the Longest Time (Biele horí najdlhšie, 2003). The collection of poems, Nenogista roze, published in 2011 in Latvian contains also selected poems by him. 

prose:
Want to Be Happy? Ask Me How (Chcete byť šťastní? Opýtajte sa ma, ako na to, 1995), The Book That Will Happen (Kniha, ktorá sa stane, 2010) 

essays:
Understanding Each Other in One Language (Dorozumenie v jednej reči, 1988)

children's books (a selection):
Dancing Birds (Vtáci v tanci, 1978), Don`t Stick Your Tongue out at the Lion (Nevyplazuj jazyk na leva, 1982), Wonderland (Krajina Zázračno, 1983), Thirteen Marching Teapots (Trinásť pochodujúcich čajníkov, 1984), Where Do the Ice-cream Men Go for Winter (Kam chodia na zimu zmrzlinári, 1984), The King Chasing the Rabbit (Kráľ naháňa králika, 1985), April Hugo (Aprílový Hugo, 1985), Telescopic Umbrella and the Umbrella Composer (Skladací dáždnik a dáždnikový skladateľ, 1986), A Poem Will Help You (Básnička ti pomôže, 1989), We Don`t Want to Sleep Yet (Nám sa ešte nechce spať, 1990), Aladar and Balthasar on the Merry-go-round (Aladár Baltazár na kolotoči, 1990), Our Hedgehogs (Naši ježkovia, 1995), They Call Me HEVI (Volajú ma HEVI, 1997), Scarecrow (Strašidelník, 1999), A Dog that goes to work (Psík, ktorý chodí do práce, 2000), The Land of Agoed (Krajina Agord, 2001)

TRANSLATIONS BY THE AUTHOR
Hevier translated selected poems by W. Stevens, Ch. Bukowski from English and books by J. áček, M. Macourek, M. Lukešová, J. Noha, and V. Vančura from Czech.

WORKS TRANSLATED
Pockets Full of Rhymes (1982 Czech)
Enchanted Cherry Lane (1984 Czech)
We Don`t Want To Sleep Again (1995 Czech)
Where Do the Ice-cream Men Go for Winter (1986 German, Slovenian, Polish, Norwegian, Finnish)
Don`t Stick Your Tongue out at the Lion (1986 Czech)
April Hugo (1988 Polish)
Parachute Falling from the Sky (1991 Czech)

Selected Poems ,,Nenogista roze" (2011, Latvian)

Biography for author

Born 6 December 1955 in Bratislava. After studying Slovak and aesthetics at Comenius University he started working for Slovak Radio and between 1982 and 1989 he was a freelance writer. Then from 1989 to 1992 he worked as chief editor of the Mladé letá publishing house. Since 1992 he has been a publisher living in Bratislava.

about author

Hevier knows what he wants and is able to use everything he knows and wants. It seems that this exceptionally prolific author doesn`t have to search for themes, he simply finds them and gives them to his readers. The impression of spontaneity is enhanced by the use of free verse which can start or end anytime, because the author is not exploring causes, he just lets them flow side by side and the result is
a seemingly invisible higher causality.

The book Don`t Stick Your Tongue out at the Lion is a happy combination of poetry and non-fiction for children. This is perhaps Hevier`s main contribution. Puns and puzzles and other ideas are not his sole invention, many of them are part of children folk games or nursery rhymes. Hevier reorganised them and used them in different ways, creating a very lively and attractive "show", making his young readers use their intellectual as well as emotional abilities.

Hevier is one the most remarkable modern storytellers in the context of Slovak literature. His stories span from symbolic to Andersenian to nonsense, parody, word games, sci-fi stories, parables, moral stories and lyrical-epical studies.

Awards

The diploma of IBBY Honours List (1986)
Threefolded Rose Award (1994), for lifelong achievements in children`s literature

Sample

HAMLET, MAD AS EVER