DESCRIPTION OF Country Of Red Azaleas by Domnica Radulescu
A riveting novel about two women–one Serbian, one Bosnian–whose friendship spans decades and continents, war and peace, love and estrangement, in the vein of Elena Ferrante and Julia Alvarez. Closer than sisters, Lara and Marija share everything, from stolen fruit and Hollywood movies as girls to ideologies 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: romantic Lara heads to America with her Hollywood-handsome husband, and fierce Marija goes to her native Sarajevo to combat the war through journalism.
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, 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.
PRAISE FOR Country Of Red Azaleas by Domnica Radulescu
This exquisite novel celebrates the bonds of female friendship and the spirit of women’s resilience and self-invention. A riveting and beautifully written novel, COUNTRY OF RED AZALEAS sheds light on our transcendent human connections in the face of war, exile, and displacement.—Jasmin Darznik, New York Times bestselling author of The Good Daughter
“A passionate novel of fortitude and friendship . . . With a poetic intelligence and an extraordinary sense of language and history, Radulescu has given us a mesmerizing work, a tribute to the human spirit and its resilience. I loved the novel and did not want it to end.”—Marjorie Agosin, winner of the Gabriela Mistral Medal of Honor & author of I Lived on Butterfly Hill
“COUNTRY OF RED AZALEAS testifies to the resilience of women’s friendships in the aftermath of one of the late twentieth-century’s most horrific conflicts. Well-developed, complex characters, an opulent style, ironic humor, an exotic background brought to life on the page, all contribute to a moving, spellbinding tale of love and survival.”—Linda Álvarez, author of Every Hidden Fear, and finalist for the International Latino Book Award
ABOUT Domnica Radulescu
Domnica Radulescu is a distinguished professor of French and Italian literature at Washington and Lee University, a Fulbright scholar, and an award-winning playwright. She escaped the Communist dictatorship in her native Romania in 1983 and settled in the United States as a political refugee. Radulescu is also the author of Train to Trieste, which won the Library of Virginia Fiction Award.
GIVEAWAY OF Country Of Red Azaleas by Domnica Radulescu
This giveaway is open to the U.S. only and ends on April 22, 2016 at 12 am pacific time. Entries are accepted via Rafflecopter only.
