Homeland
A Novel
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4.5 • 2 Ratings
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
The basis for HBO's Patria, named one of the "Best TV Shows of 2020" by The New York Times
In the heart of Spain’s Basque Country, two friends, Miren and Bittori, find their worlds upended by violence. When Bittori’s husband runs afoul of the separatist organization ETA, a terrorist group of which Miren’s son, Joxe Mari, is a member, both women must choose between their friendship and their families. Moving back and forth in time and told through the eyes of a rich cast of characters from all walks of life, Fernando Aramburu’s dazzling novel probes the lasting legacy of conflict. A work of nearly unbearable suspense, Homeland is a searing examination of truth, reconciliation, and coming to terms with history.
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With a single broadcast in 2011, the ETA Basque separatist group abandoned its campaign for an independent Basque homeland, ending more than 50 years of armed conflict with the Spanish government. Its legacy wounded families and broken communities is the heart of Aramburu's magnificent novel, his first to be translated into English. The ceasefire allows Bittori, an elderly widow whose husband was assassinated by an ETA gunman, to return to her provincial village, setting off a reckoning with her childhood best friend Miren, a fervent nationalist who distanced herself from Bittori after her eldest son joined the ETA. Bittori is welcomed back by Miren's daughter, Aranxta, who sets out to find them a measure of peace. Aramburu spends decades with the families as the conflict contorts their lives. The cast is sprawling with both matriarchs, husbands, five children, spouses, grandchildren but each's story is realized masterfully, as the characters look to escape violence however they can, be it exile, alcohol, or love. Aramburu's remarkable novel is an honest and empathetic portrait of suffering and forgiveness, home and family.
