My Cat Yugoslavia

Statovci, Pajtim

LGBTQ+ Books

Random House LCC US

ONE OF THE BOSTON GLOBE'S BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR A love story about what it means to be an outsider from the most imaginative new voice in international fiction. In 1980s Yugoslavia, a young Muslim girl is married off to a man she hardly knows, but what was meant to be a happy match goes quickly wrong. Soon thereafter her country is torn apart by war and she and her family flee. Years later, her son, Bekim, grows up a social outcast in present-day Finland, not just an immigrant in a country suspicious of foreigners, but a gay man in an unaccepting society. Aside from casual hookups, his only friend is a boa constrictor whom, improbably--he is terrified of snakes--he lets roam his apartment. Then, during a visit to a gay bar, Bekim meets a talking cat who moves in with him and his snake. It is this witty, charming, manipulative creature who starts Bekim on a journey back to Kosovo to confront his demons and make sense of the magical, cruel, incredible history of his family. And it is this that, in turn, enables him finally, to open himself to true love--which he will find in the most unexpected place.

My Cat Yugoslavia: A Novel

Literature & Fiction

Literary

Vintage

A NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: THE GUARDIAN&nbsp;* LIBRARY JOURNAL Steeped in a rich heritage of bewitching Albanian myth and legend, Crossing is a deeply timely and deeply necessary novel about war, exile, and identity in all its complex permutations. &nbsp; After the death of his father, a young boy named Bujar grows up in the ruins of Communist Albania and of his own family. Only his fearless best friend, Agim--who is facing realizations about his gender and sexuality--gives him hope for the future. Together the two decide to leave everything behind and try their luck in Italy. But the struggle to feel at home--in a foreign country and even in one's own body--will have corrosive effects, spurring a dangerous search for new identities. &nbsp; Award-winning author Pajtim Statovci has crafted a stunning, incandescent new novel about love, betrayal, heartbreak, and the human need to be seen.

Crossing: A Novel

Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group

Bolla: A Novel

From the author of&nbsp;National Book Award finalist Crossing comes an unlikely love story in Kosovo with unpredictable consequences that reverberates throughout a young man's life--a dazzling tale full of fury, tenderness, longing, and lust. "Devastating in the most beautiful ways. From the first pages you realize that&nbsp;you are in the hands of an absolute artist." --Torrey Peters, author of Detransition, Baby April 1995. Arsim is a twenty-four-year-old, recently married student at the University of Pristina, in Kosovo, keeping his head down to gain a university degree in a time and place deeply hostile to Albanians. In a café he meets a young man named Milos, a Serb. Before the day is out, everything has changed for both of them, and within a week two milestones erupt in Arsim's married life: his wife announces her first pregnancy and he begins a life in secret. &nbsp; After these fevered beginnings, Arsim and Milos's unlikely affair is derailed by the outbreak of war, which sends Arsim's fledgling family abroad and timid Milos spiraling down a dark path, as depicted through chaotic journal entries. Years later, deported back to Pristina after a spell in prison and now alone and hopeless, Arsim finds himself in a broken reality that makes him completely question his past. What happened to him, to them, exactly? How much can you endure, and forgive? &nbsp; Entwined with their story is a re-created legend of a demonic serpent, Bolla; it's an unearthly tale that gives Arsim and Milos a language through which to reflect on what they once had. With luminous prose and a delicate eye, Pajtim Statovci delivers a relentless novel of desire, destruction, intimacy, and the different fronts of war.

A New York Times Book Review Staff Pick "A marvel, a remarkable achievement, and a world apart from anything you are likely to read this year." —Téa Obreht, The New York Times Book Review In 1980s Yugoslavia, a young Muslim girl is married off to a man she hardly knows, and what was meant to be a happy match quickly goes wrong. Shortly thereafter, the country is torn apart by war and she and her family flee to Finland, where her son Bekim grows up to become a social outcast—not just an immigrant in a country suspicious of foreigners but also a gay man in an unaccepting society. Aside from casual hookups, his only companion is a boa constrictor that, improbably (he is terrified of snakes), he lets roam around his apartment. Then one night, at a gay bar, Bekim meets a talking cat, who also moves in with him. It is this witty, charming, manipulative creature who starts Bekim on a journey back to Kosovo to confront his demons and make sense of the magical, cruel, incredible history of his family. And this, in turn, enables Bekim finally to open himself to true love—which he will find in the most unexpected place.

Pantheon

NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST From the acclaimed author of My Cat Yugoslavia: a stunning, incandescent new novel that speaks to identity, war, exile, love, betrayal, and heartbreak The death of head of state Enver Hoxha and the loss of his father leave Bujar growing up in the ruins of Communist Albania and of his own family. Only his fearless best friend, Agim—who is facing his own realizations about his gender and sexuality—gives him hope for the future. Together the two decide to leave everything behind and try their luck in Italy. But the struggle to feel at home—in a foreign country and even in one's own body—will have corrosive effects, spurring a dangerous search for new identities. Steeped in a rich heritage of bewitching Albanian myth and legend, this is a deeply timely and deeply necessary novel about the broken reality for millions worldwide, about identity in all its complex permutations, and the human need to be seen.

From the author of&nbsp;National Book Award finalist Crossing comes an unlikely love story in Kosovo with unpredictable consequences that reverberates throughout a young man's life--a dazzling tale full of fury, tenderness, longing, and lust. &nbsp; April 1995. Arsim is a twenty-four-year-old, recently married student at the University of Pristina, in Kosovo, keeping his head down to gain a university degree in a time and place deeply hostile to Albanians. In a café he meets a young man named Milos, a Serb. Before the day is out, everything has changed for both of them, and within a week two milestones erupt in Arsim's married life: his wife announces her first pregnancy and he begins a life in secret. &nbsp; After these fevered beginnings, Arsim and Milos's unlikely affair is derailed by the outbreak of war, which sends Arsim's fledgling family abroad and timid Milos spiraling down a dark path, as depicted through chaotic journal entries. Years later, deported back to Pristina after a spell in prison and now alone and hopeless, Arsim finds himself in a broken reality that makes him completely question his past. What happened to him, to them, exactly? How much can you endure, and forgive? &nbsp; Entwined with their story is a re-created legend of a demonic serpent, Bolla; it's an unearthly tale that gives Arsim and Milos a language through which to reflect on what they once had. With luminous prose and a delicate eye, Pajtim Statovci delivers a relentless novel of desire, destruction, intimacy, and the different fronts of war.

In 1980s Yugoslavia, a young Muslim girl is married off to a man she hardly knows, and what was meant to be a happy match quickly goes wrong. Shortly thereafter, the country is torn apart by war and she and her family flee to Finland, where her son Bekim grows up to become a social outcast — not just an immigrant in a country suspicious of foreigners but also a gay man in an unaccepting society. Aside from casual hookups, his only companion is a boa constrictor that, improbably, he lets roam around his apartment.

Platinum Spotlight Series

Crossing

Bujar’s world is collapsing. His father is dying and his homeland, Albania, bristles with hunger and unrest. When his fearless friend Agim is discovered wearing his mother’s red dress and beaten with his father’s belt, he persuades Bujar that there is no place for them in their country. Desperate for a chance to shape their own lives, they flee.\nThis is the beginning of a journey across cities, borders and identities, from the bazaars of Tirana to the monuments of Rome and the drag bars of New York. It is also a search through shifting gender and social personae, for permission to leave their pasts behind, for acceptance and love.

Pushkin Press

La traversée

Genre Fiction

Фоліо

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Statovci, Pajtim. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Statovci, Pajtim

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Statovci, Pajtim. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

My Cat Yugoslavia

My Cat Yugoslavia: A Novel

Crossing: A Novel

Bolla: A Novel

My Cat Yugoslavia: A Novel

Crossing: A Novel

Bolla: A Novel

My Cat Yugoslavia

Crossing

La traversée