Caucasian
by Olga Grjasnowa
Description
Akhulgo, 1838: Jamalludin grows up in the Caucasus, the son of a powerful imam. When Tsar Nicolas I inflicts war on the region, he demands the boy as collateral. And so young Jamalludin ends up in Saint Petersburg, at the tsar’s sumptuous court. The despot intends to raise his adversary’s son as a Russian, aiming to send him back to the Caucasus as an ally. Jamalludin is torn between longing for his parental home and the possibilities offered by Petersburg. Only fifteen years later Jamalludin is allowed to return to his family – but also there he remains a stranger.
In eloquent and urgent language, Olga Grjasnowa tells us a story from a world unknown, yet one directly related to our own. A tale of a holy war and a child caught between two cultures, who must find his own way.
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“A great novel. Compelling and full of wisdom” is ARD TV’s verdict on Olga Grjasnowa’s novel Caucasian. Set against the backdrop of the Caucasian War, the novel tells the story of a boy torn between two cultures, who has to find his own path.
Marketing Information
Selected for New Books in German.
English sample translation available.
Reviews
»The precision and consistency with which Olga Grjasnowa tells this story is impressive. A great novel, gripping and full of wisdom.« ttt/ ARD
“Uprooting, power-grabbing, anti-Semitism – Olga Grjasnowa touches on many contemporary issues. Writing in her uniquely sensitive yet matter-of-fact style, she stays very close to her protagonist, driving the story relentlessly onwards to the bitter end. For Jamalludin loses everything for a second time when he returns to his family after fifteen years, and no longer understands the culture or the language.” NDR Kultur
“Sharply written, the book manages to interweave a thrilling period in history with the fate of a human life.” Hamburger Abendblatt
“Nobody should talk about Chechnya, Dagestan or the general situation in the Caucasus without having read Olga Grjasnowa’s The Lost Son. The novel is a great read and utterly compelling. The main character, Jemalludin, is convincing and draws readers under his spell.” Die Presse
“The Story of a someone who is torn out of his setting and cannot finger out where he truly belongs.” Deutschlandfunk Kultur
“A compelling book which reads very well. It’s core question: What has a stronger impact – origin or education, upbringing or encounters?” RBB Inforadio
“Uprooting, power-grabbing, anti-Semitism – Olga Grjasnowa touches on many contemporary issues. Writing in her uniquely sensitive yet matter-of-fact style, she stays very close to her protagonist, driving the story relentlessly onwards to the bitter end. For Jamalludin loses everything for a second time when he returns to his family after fifteen years, and no longer understands the culture or the language.” NDR Kultur
“Sharply written, the book manages to interweave a thrilling period in history with the fate of a human life.” Hamburger Abendblatt
“Nobody should talk about Chechnya, Dagestan or the general situation in the Caucasus without having read Olga Grjasnowa’s The Lost Son. The novel is a great read and utterly compelling. The main character, Jemalludin, is convincing and draws readers under his spell.” Die Presse
“The Story of a someone who is torn out of his setting and cannot finger out where he truly belongs.” Deutschlandfunk Kultur
“A compelling book which reads very well. It’s core question: What has a stronger impact – origin or education, upbringing or encounters?” RBB Inforadio
»Writing in her uniquely sensitive yet matter-of-fact style, she stays very close to her protagonist, driving the story relentlessly onwards to the bitter end.« NDR Kultur
»Sharply written, the book manages to interweave a thrilling period in history with the fate of a human life.« Hamburger Abendblatt
»The novel is a great read and utterly compelling. The main character, Jemalludin, is convincing and draws readers under his spell.« Die Presse
Author Biography
Olga Grjasnowa was born 1984 in Baku, Azerbaijan and is one of the most admired young German authors. She has spent many years living abroad in Poland, Russia, Israel and Turkey. Her celebrated debut novel All Russians Love Birch Trees was awarded the Klaus-Michael Kühne Prize and the Anna Seghers Prize. Her most recent and bestselling publication was God Is Not Shy. All her novels have been adapted for the stage and translated into several languages. Olga Grjasnowa lives with her family in Berlin.
Aufbau Verlag GmbH & Co. KG
Aufbau Verlag GmbH & Co. KG is an independent publishing house with a broad program of fiction and non-fiction titles. Each year, about 200 new titles are published by its four imprints Aufbau, Rütten & Loening, Blumenbar and aufbau taschenbuch. Aufbau Verlag was founded in 1945 with the motivation to create a new cultural orientation for the people in post-World War II Germany. It soon became the leading cultural and literary publishing house in East Germany. Today Aufbau publishes a strong literary fiction program with German and international voices as well as an outspoken non-fiction list. Aufbau is successful with literary re-discoveries from its comprehensive backlist of modern classics, exile and resistance literature and GDR literature.
View all titlesBibliographic Information
- Publisher Aufbau Verlag
- Orginal LanguageGerman
- ISBN/Identifier 9783351037833
- FormatHardback
- Pages376
- Publish StatusPublished
- Original Language TitleDer verlorene Sohn
- Original Language AuthorsGerman
- Copyright Year2020
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