Country of Red Azaleas
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
A riveting novel about two women--one Serbian, one Bosnian--whose deep friendship spans decades and continents, war and peace, love and estrangement, in the vein of Elena Ferrante and Julia Alvarez.
From the moment Marija walks into Lara's classroom, freshly moved to Serbia from Sarajevo, Lara is enchanted by her vibrant beauty, confidence, and wild energy--and knows that the two are destined to be lifelong friends. Closer than sisters, the girls share everything, from stolen fruit and Hollywood movies as girls to philosophies and even lovers as young women. But when the Bosnian War pits their homelands against each other in a bloodbath, Lara and Marija are forced to separate for the first time: romantic Lara heads to America with her Hollywood-handsome new husband, and fierce Marija returns to her native Sarajevo to combat the war through journalism behind Bosnian lines.
In America, Lara seeks fulfillment through work and family, but when news from Marija ceases, the uncertainty torments Lara, driving her on a quest to find her friend. As Lara travels through war-torn Serbia and Bosnia, following clues that may yet lead to the flesh-and-blood Marija, she must also wrestle with truths about her own identity.
Told in lush, vivid prose, Country of Red Azaleas is a poignant testament to both the power of friendship and our ability to find meaning and beauty in the face of devastation.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Amid the disintegration of Yugoslavia in the last two decades of the 20th century, a Serbian girl, Lara, chronicles her obsession with Marijaher, her beloved Bosnian friend. Lara meets "the girl from Sarajevo" at school in Belgrade when they are seven. The two girls grow up sharing everything, from summer holidays to student protests. Marija is the charismatic leader, Lara the adoring follower. As the political situation becomes grave, the two friends part when Lara leaves for Washington, D.C., with her American husband. Lara loses touch with Marija as war destroys their homeland. When the conflict subsides and Marija finally surfaces, she's suffered unspeakable tragedy she has been raped, and her family slaughtered. Lara's sheltered life unravels too, possibly because she is so far removed from her true self. Finally reunited with the damaged Marija, Lara embarks on a journey of healing with her cherished friend. Radulescu's (Train to Trieste) subject matter demands a writing style and tone to match its gravity; instead this book is awash with overwrought, overwritten sentimentality. As a result, Lara and Marija's story never really comes together for the reader.
