Friday, May 27, 2011

The tiger’s wife, by Tea Obreht

Magical realism in the Balkans. This amazing debut novel mixes the recent history of an unnamed country (the former Yugoslavia, where the astonishingly young author, she’s just 25, was born) with the superstitions and history of its past. A young woman doctor crosses the recent border searching for answers about her grandfather’s (also a doctor) death. Mixing present day with flashbacks to stories the grandfather told about his birthplace and its history and myths, the evolving picture it forms of the region did more to explicate recent Balkan history to me than all the words written in newspapers. The “Tiger’s Wife” is but one memorable character --- not since The book thief has death been so interestingly personified as it is in the recurring appearances of the Deathless Man. Terrific. 352 pp.

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