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HomeShop at BookSurgeFictionHistoricalThe Last Kosovo Serb Won't Leave (Balkan War Novel) |
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0 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Another Perfect Deal May 25, 2008
This is just another time I have bought something Great through Amazon.
It even arrived Ahead of Schedule.
Thanks!
3 of 4 found the following review helpful:
An important and sad tale Apr 05, 2008
This important poignant and tragic story takes place between March 24th, 1999 and June of the same year. It is the story of Kosovo seen through the eyes of some of its oldest inhabitants, an elderly Turkish man named Bayram and an elderly Serb couple named Petar and Leposava. It is set in the spring when the weather is still wet and the mountains full of mist. It is set in war, during the Nato bombardment which lasted seventy-nine days and captures perfectly the evils of war, the horrors of terrorism and occupation and ethnic-cleansing and how the international community always misunderstands local culture and by supporting youthful nationalistic fascism brings the destruction of ancient cultures.
Kosovo was once such an ancient place. Full of lore and history with ancient monasteries and a history stretching back to Roman times. In the 20th century it saw the retreat of the Serbian army in 1914 and the invasion of the Nazis in 1941. It saw the reign of Tito and Nato bombardment. Finally it saw the imposition of foreign occupation at the hands of German and Italian KFOR troops and a UN colonialism that led to the ethnic-cleansing of all the minorities in the area, specifically Jews, Gypsies, Turks and Serbs. Once a place full of history it was catapulted brutally into the 21st century.
But this story ignores the macro view and focuses instead on the micro. This is a book ostensibly about five characters. The elderly Turkish man, the Serbian couple, an American historian of languages named Donald and Serb policeman named Bogdan. Donald wanders into Kosovo without realizing that terrible events are being unleashed up above. He is interested in the history of the Albanian language and is trying to connect it to Illyrian. Instead he learns that it has many connections, perhaps even to Iranian. When he sets off for a bicycle ride he finds himself caught in the mountain fastness and transported to the past, figuratively, when he spends a month with the elderly couple, witnessing their rituals, their religious devotion, their hospitality and brandy. In Prizren he witnesses the old Turkish city with its churches and minarets and coffee shops. This is a story the evokes nature and the beauty of forests and mountains. It is an excellent tale, a cautionary tale for every internationalist who styles themselves an expert and who believes outlandish tales of `human rights violations' and insists that modern weapons be brought to bear on ancient places. This is a brutal tale of reality coming face to face with humanities weakest people and a tale that shows the evils of extremism.
Seth J. Frantzman
2 of 3 found the following review helpful:
PURCHASED FOR SOMEONE ELSE - NOW I'LLHAVE TO BUY MY OWN Aug 01, 2007
I bought this for my grandfather, he keeps telling me how good it is & how real it seems, how thoroughly researched. He is very excited about it.
1 of 2 found the following review helpful:
a beautifully rendered portrait of a conflicted landscape May 12, 2007
Susan Southworth's detailed and beautifully rendered descriptions of the landscape of the Balkans show a deep understanding of the physical environment that only an architect can have. The book is the result of rigorous research as a historian and a social scientist, which resulted in thick descriptions of the lives and struggles of the minorities that suffered the consequences of the infamous was.
This book tackles a subject that is as controversial as it is timely, given the imminentr discussion within the UN security council of Kosovo's future political status.
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