Although Witold Gombrowicz's unique, idiosyncratic writings include a three-volume Diary, this voluminous document offers few facts about his early life in Poland before his books were banned there and he went into voluntary exile. Polish Memories--a series of autobiographical sketches Gombrowicz composed for Radio Free Europe during his years in Argentina in the late 1950s--fills the gap in our knowledge.

Written in a straightforward way without his famous linguistic inventions, the book presents an engaging account of Gombrowicz's childhood, youth, literary...