Bernard Jan
Bernard Jan is one of those unexpected gifts that we occasionally find in life. I stumbled upon his writings purely by accident. The cover of his most recent book, Look for Me Under the Rainbow, captivated me.
But it was the story line of another of his books that moved me to buy his books. As my friends know, I am a cat lover. When I saw the cover of his book, A World Without Color, my interest peaked. My heart broke as a I read the true story of the last three days spent with his precious cat.
I wanted to talk to the author. I had to find out what makes him tick. At last, I made contact with him and I knew I had to share him with you.
First of all let me introduce Bernard Jan to those who may not be familiar with him or his books. Although Bernard Jan may not be a household name in America, his work is familiar in his home country of Croatia. The two books of my focus were originally written in his native Croatian language, but he was generous enough to translate them into English for publication.
Life in Croatia has not been easy during the past few decades. The year was 1991. Bernard Jan picked up the pen and put his thoughts to paper. It was the beginning of the Croatian War. The reality of war surrounded him. With his day to day reality filled with air alerts, people and animals suffering, he began his writing. He wanted to believe that life was normal and everything was right with the world. Writing was his escape.
On December 30, 2003, Bernard became a member of the Croatian Writers’ Association. To date, he has written and published five novels, two novellas, one book of poetry and an essay in his native Croatian. He has translated four of his manuscripts and the book of poetry into English, ready for representation and publication.
Jan has been a volunteer and activist for years. His need to help others has always been at the forefront of his activities and is shown in his writings. He actively works for environmental protections and for animal rights, as evidenced by years of volunteering, activism, and advocacy.
He also volunteered in helping refugees. To quote Jan, “Because suffering does not know about the borders, when it comes within your reach, in your yard, you simply have to do something.”
Jan added, “Thing about my writing is that I am not a typical commercial writer, meaning to write just for the sake of writing more and more books. I only write when I deeply feel and experience something, something that touched and moved me in a special way. Then I want to share it with others.”
Anyone who reads Bernard Jan’s work will come away knowing he is an advocate for protection and care of animals. As part of his efforts he translated “Etrnal Treblinka: Our Treatment of Animals and the Holoaust” by Charles Patterson into the Croatian language.
I will be honest, Jan’s writing is not an easy light-hearted read, at least the first one I read. As I read A World Without Color I cried, I hugged my cat, I screamed at Jan, I wanted to hug his father and mother. I closed the book knowing that everyone who owns a cat, a dog, a rabbit, a hamster, or any other beloved creature should read this book.
In Look for Me Under the Rainbow, I fell in love with Danny, the white seal pup. Let me add that this book is written for YA (Young Adults). The mission is to save the seal pup before hunting season begins. I read this book and loved it and will be sure my grandchildren have a copy under the Christmas tree this year.
Jan is not a one dimensional personality. In addition to writing, entertainment and music are among his interests. Jan became a partner of Tom’s Music Place as a nod to his passion for entertainment and music. The establishment was founded in 2009 by Thomas Carley, Jr..