A story of one family's border-crossing adventure to rescue one another and make peace with the past, set in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, two years after the occupation of South Ossetia by Russia in 2008.
Engaging ... Uses elements of magic realism and a cast of compelling characters to broach themes of civil conflict, exile, homecoming, and grief ...
Vardiashvili’s attempt to capture the unsettling experience of return after exile drives the novel’s vivid evocation of place ...
Woven seamlessly into Saba’s quest, the novel’s description of Georgia’s longue durée and folklore tells the story of a nation forged at the crossroads of empires ... Creat[es] a powerful diasporic opening for national redress and renewal by using the universal human practice of storytelling.
