Májky a totemy (Maypoles and Totems)

How to beat a two-years older Slamák and become a member of the Apache tribe? How to earn one’s classmates’ respect? Is it possible to forgive betrayal and restore friendship? How to save a friend from a rabid dog without getting hurt? What is worth sacrificing your hair for? How to impress a girl? What to do when others make decisions for you?

Maypoles and Totems is a semi-autobiographical novel for older children and young adults, in which the writer takes the reader to his childhood in the Podkrkonoší region in the 1970s. This journey is aided by illustrations by Petr Polák, the resident artist of Deník N. It brings to life the spirit of boys' gangs and games of cowboys and Indians, the poetic everyday life in a small town in the foothills during the normalization period, and the transformation of a Romani boy into a young man.

The book was nominated in the youth fiction category in the Zlatá stuha / Golden Ribbon 2024 children's book competition and was shortlisted for the Magnesia litera 2024 award in the children's and young adults’ literature category. In 2023, it was listed as one of the 30 Best Books of the Year for Children and Young Adults.

This book has been published thanks to the kind financial support of the Ministry of Culture and the State Culture Fund of the Czech Republic, and Bader Philanthropies, Inc.