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Thirty-five years ago Edward Puacz (my late husband), a journalist from Warsaw,
a graduate of Ecole des Sciences Politiques (School of Political Science) in Paris,
was a man who led an exciting social, cultural as well as personal life.
He was a social activist courageous in both word and deed who never wavered
in his patriotism. He was a man who thirty-five years ago translated an intangible
pride of Polishness into a well-considered business venture in Chicago,
a bookstore named POLONIA. This was to be a place where bibliophiles could
have access to a wide variety of Polish literary works and English language
publications about Poland and Polish literature in translation.
Success did not come overnight. It took thirty-five years of work – thirty-five years
of knocking on the doors of university libraries, of public libraries and other
institutions that had not yet discovered the beauty of Polish books. During this time
participation in library, academic Slavic and Polish conferences became an annual
activity of the bookstore. Polonia Bookstore also participated in Polish festivals and
artistic and cultural events.
Today, after thirty-five years we can claim the honor of being the largest Polish
bookstore in America. We are the main source of Polish publications and happen to
be one of the most significant suppliers of English language texts on Polish subjects
to university libraries, public libraries and the American public in general.
Eight years ago Polonia Bookstore moved to the new location, a spacious
and meticulously decorated place with a quaint café. It has become a cozy center
for cultural gatherings, meetings and authors’ signings, charmed with a fireplace
and a live piano music.
These successes could not have been achieved without the support of our reading
public. We would like to give special thanks to our patrons, both past and present,
to the writers and academicians who have contributed to our work and to the many
libraries with whom we have established a reciprocal relationship.
Thank you very much for your patronage.
Mira Puacz, President
Polonia Bookstore, Inc.
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Copyright ® Polonia Bookstore, Chicago 2004, All rights reserved. Site rebuilding : J. M. Zamorski |