Thu 27 Aug 2026 | 12:00 – 13:00

Prepare to have your literary reality frozen and rewritten. We are thrilled to highlight one of the most anticipated adult fiction events at this year’s Edinburgh International Book Festival.

Join visionary Polish author Jacek Dukaj and acclaimed translator Ursula Phillips as they dive into the chilling world of Ice, a masterpiece of alternate history.

Photo by Albert Zawada

The Story

In Dukaj’s mind-bending epic, the 1908 Tunguska asteroid crash plunges the Earth into a permanent, freezing winter. History itself stops moving forward. Follow a young Polish mathematician sent deep into a radically altered, dreamlike Siberia where he must navigate a deranged reality suspended between Polish and Russian tensions.

The Event

Dukaj and Phillips will take the stage to discuss the immense challenge and artistry of translating this audacious, complex world into English. The conversation will be expertly guided by chair Uilleam Blacker.

Learn more information and book tickets HERE