Among the Living and the Dead: A Tale of Exile and Homecoming on the War Roads of Europe - Couverture rigide

Verzemnieks, Inara

Couverture rigide

ISBN 10 : 039324511X ISBN 13 : 9780393245110

Editeur : W W Norton & Co Inc, 2017

A propos du livre

Revue de presse

'Verzemnieks does not shirk from confronting the extremities of human behaviour; but she also gives us the rich textures of a world in which poetic mythology coexists with sophisticated modernity, the dead mingle with the living, and the hardships of a traumatic past are countered by the strength of memory and of lasting attachments' -- Eva Hoffman

'This is an exquisite book. The writing is beautiful. The people - the living, the dead - are extraordinary. The ambition of the book is breathtaking, and the story becomes one for the ages as it unfolds from its first mysterious sentence into a masterpiece about war, survival, memory, and, most movingly of all, human need' -- David Finkel, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of The Good Soldiersand Thank You For Your Service

'Extraordinarily tender and finely wrought' -- Eliza Griswold, author of The Tenth Parallel

'The astute reportorial sensitivity of a master Eastern European historian like Timothy Snyder, as filtered through the lyric sensibility of a Garcia Marquez and suffused in the aching nostalgia of a latter-day Proust' -- Lawrence Weschler, author of A Miracle, a Universe and The Passion of Poland

'Poetic, melancholy, coloured by the dark beauty of the northern landscape Inara Verzemnieks inhabits (much more than merely describes), this memoir of loss and recovery from the tragedies of the 20th century will linger in your imagination, widen your historical perspective, and make you grateful that language has such power' --D. J. Waldie, author of Holy Land: A Suburban Memoir

'Spellbinding and poetic, this is a moving tribute to the enduring promise of home' --Booklist

'A highly polished memoir of enormous heart' -- Kirkus

'Searing . . . important . . . This exquisitely written book shows how recovery can come generations later through rebuilding connections - to people, the natural world, the past' -- Washington Post

'Verzemnieks is poetic, lacing one image over the other until the whole thing astounds, illuminating the past and present in wondrous ways . . . a gracious writer, inviting the readers on her journey into the past . . . masterful and lush' -- Star Tribune

'Lyrical and melancholy, a powerful tale of loss and fortitude with meaningful connections to today's world events' -- Charleston Gazette Mail

'Thoughtful and eloquent . . . intimate and poetic' --David Bezmozgis, New York Times Book Review

Présentation de l'éditeur

"It's long been assumed of the region where my grandmother was born...that at some point each year the dead will come home," Inara Verzemnieks writes in this exquisite story of war, exile, and homecoming.

Her grandmother's stories recalled the family farm left behind in Latvia, where, during WWII, her grandmother Livija and her grandmother's sister, Ausma, were separated. They would not see each other again for more than 50 years. Raised by her grandparents in the USA, Inara grew up among expatriates, scattering smuggled Latvian sand over the coffins of the dead, singing folk songs about a land she had never visited.

When Inara discovers the scarf Livija wore when she left home, this tangible remnant of the past points the way back to the remote village where her family broke apart. Coming to know Ausma and the trauma of her exile to Siberia under Stalin, and her grandfather's own complex history, Inara pieces together Livija's survival through the years as a refugee. Weaving these two parts of the family story together in spellbinding, lyrical prose, she gives us a profound and cathartic account of loss, survival, resilience, and love.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: W W Norton & Co Inc
• Date d'édition: 2017
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 039324511X
• ISBN 13: 9780393245110
• Reliure: Relié
• Nombre de pages: 282
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible