Newcomers, the first volume of Lojze Kovacic’s three-part autobiography, opens in 1938 with the expulsion of the Kovacic family from their Swiss home and their eventual resettlement in Slovenia. Kovacic, writing as a 10-year-old, describes his family’s journey with uncanny naiveté and in a style that is clear, direct and moving. Translator Michael Biggins and Gabriel Sanders join us at Community Bookstore to celebrate the first English-language publication of this pivotal Slovenian epic.

Michael Biggins has translated works by a number of Slovenia’s leading contemporary writers, including works by Drago Jančar, Tomaž Salamun, Vladimir Bartol, and others. In 2015 he was the recipient of the Janko Lavrin Prize, which is awarded each year for lifetime distinguished contributions to furthering Slovene literature abroad. He currently curates the library collections for Russian and East European studies and teaches in the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, both at the University of Washington in Seattle.

Gabriel Sanders is a founder of Tablet Magazine and currently serves as Director of Business Development there. From 2011 through 2015 he directed the public programs department at New York’s Museum of Jewish Heritage. His writing and reviews have appeared in the Forward, Bookforum, Time Out New York,The New York Times Book Review, and other outlets. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin and master’s in European history from the University of Chicago.

We are grateful for the support of the Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia.