To, Co Trwałe (Things That Last) is a massive book about the highlanders (Górale) from Bukowina. Each spread has an absolutely gorgeous photograph along with a description or story in both Polish and English.

Of course, what immediately struck me is how beautiful the book is. It’s larger than most encyclopedias, and the photos take up an entire page. The paper also has a lovely weight and thickness; the whole thing feels like something to be treasured.

Unfortunately, the text left a sour taste in my mouth. Sure, I learned a lot about the highlanders, but it was saturated with a haughty tone, telling me over and over about how highlanders are better than everyone else, that they’re God’s chosen people and so are superior, etc. I’m Góral myself, but this is ridiculous … and quite a bit scary. I know Górale are conservative, but to write on every page about how “Nowadays everyone doesn’t look at each other, too wrapped up in their phones, but Górale …”; “We are not all equal. It is generally understood that we live in an age of democracy. And democracy holds that we are all equal and are entitled to the same things. This is not true …”; “Unlike other people, Górale aren’t afraid of hard work”; “Unlike other people, unlike other people unlike other people, etc.” Nearly every single page.

So I'll appreciate the beautiful pictures of the book, but I probably won’t read it again.