Henryk Sienkiewicz

Henryk Adam Aleksander Pius Sienkiewicz (pronounce: ) (May 5 1846 - November 15 1916) was a Polish novelist, one of the outstanding writers of the second half of the 19th century. Sienkiewicz was born to a well-to-do family in Wola Okrzejska, a town in Russian-ruled Poland. A Polish patriot to the core, Sienkiewicz created historical novels that extolled the valiant men and brave deeds of the former Rzeczpospolita. Serializing his novels in newspapers, he became immensely popular and beloved in his time and, over a century later, is still highly valued by readers of prose. In Poland he is best known for his colorful historical novels (The Trilogy) depicting the derring-do of Polish heroes in the 17th century Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth; abroad—for his novel, Quo Vadis, set in the reign of the Roman emperor Nero.

Note

• Many commentators erroneusly state that Sienkiewicz received the Nobel Prize for Quo vadis. This is incorrect. He received it "because of his outstanding merits as an epic writer." Sources: NobelPrize.org and http://miasta.gazeta.pl/poznan/1,36037,2521266.html "Za co Sienkiewicz dosta? Nobla" (a Polish newspaper article).