Sven Popović | Artists in Residence | Kamov Residency

Sven Popović

Sven Popović (1989) graduated in Comparative Literature, English Language and Literature, and American Studies from the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Zagreb. He writes music and literary reviews for specialized magazines and web portals. He has published his prose in many regional magazines, as well as in “Record Stories” anthology (Aquarius Records), the anthology of young prose writers “Bez vrata, bez kucanja” (Sandorf) and various internet portals.

Popović’s literary debut “Nebo u kaljuži” (Meandarmedia) was published in 2015. His novel „Uvjerljivo drugi“ (Fraktura) came out in 2018. Popović is one the founders of “TKO ČITA?”, a program intended for young authors. He was also one of the editors of “TKO ČITA?” anthology, the editions of 2015/16 and 2016/17. His stories are part of “Best European Fiction 2017” (Dalkey Archive Press) and are translated into English, German, Polish, Catalan, and Romanian. 

His published works include:

the translation of Henry David Thoreau’s essay “Walking”, which came out with “Priručnik za hodače” (Naklada Ljevak, 2010), book by Edo Popović

essay “Bratstvo, jedinstvo i rokenrol“ (“Einheit, Brüderlichkeit und Rock 'n' Roll“), published in Wespennest magazine (159, November 2010)

story “Robbie nije zaljubljen, Joeyju je sve pet, a ja blefiram već dvadeset godina” included in „Record Stories“ anthology (Aquarius Records, 2011)

story “Razglednice s kolodvora“ included in the anthology of young Croatian prose writers “Bez vrata, bez kucanja” (Sandorf 2012)

three stories included in “Best European Fiction 2017” (Dalkey Archive Press, 2017)

collection of stories “Nebo u kaljuži” (Meandarmedia, 2015)

novel “Uvjerljivo drugi” (Fraktura, 2018).

The English translation of “Nebo u kaljuži” will be published by Dalkey Archive Press in 2021.

02.-16.11.2021.

As part of his two-week literary residency, Sven Popović will be working on his novel “Mali i Levijatan” ([Kid & Leviathan], working title). This short novel deals with long voyages and speaks about the power of stories. At the center of the plot is a young man called Mali (Kid) whose long days in a fishing village are filled with play and stories. His mother is a seamstress who creates not only clothes, but also stories. His father is a star cartographer. The dynamics of their lives changes one day when Kid’s uncle, a dark-skinned and tattooed man called Needle, arrives to the island on a black ship with scarlet sails, after a very long voyage. The crew of the ship consists of people who are nothing “like them”. Kid meets a girl from this foreign tribe, a girl barely older than himself, whose name is Arrow. Arrow teaches him stories and values somewhat different from his own. The concept of home, the known and the tradition, as well as the meaning of these notions, are some of the themes discussed in the novel. It is the story of what lies in the depths, not only of oceans, but also of individuals.

The writer will also work on his short stories of a working title “Katalog greške” [the Catalogue of Errors]. The central themes of these stories are violence and capitalism as a system of slavery.

The conversation and get-together with Sven Popović is planned for 9 November 2021, in the Filodrammatica department of the City Library of Rijeka.

Rijeka City Library

Central public library in Rijeka, Croatia. Library which is seen as one of the most innovative, progressive and proactive in the region. Focused on quality of services, new technologies and community resilience.