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Dogs and Others
The heroine of Dogs and Others is ahiled as the first openly lesbian character in modern Serbian literature, but she is so much more than that, as she encapsulates the Zeitgeist of her generation. Coming of age in 1970s Belgrade, then the capital city of thriving, socialist Yugoslavia, we follow Lida and the bohemian life she leads, made more complicated by the trials and tribulations of her eccentric family. The whole novel breathes with a raw sensibility so aptly captured in the voice of the narrator — a striking, rebellious, overtly feminist and somewhat neurotic young woman.
178 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1980
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234 people want to read
About the author
Biljana Jovanović
8 books4 followersBiljana Jovanović je rođena 28. januara 1953. godine u Beogradu. Umrla je 11. marta 1996. godine u Ljubljani.
Završila je filozofiju na Filozofskom fakultetu u Beogradu.
Objavila je zbirku pesama Čuvar (1977), romane: Pada Avala.(Prosveta, 1978 i Nezavisno izdanje Slobodan Mašić, 1981), Psi i ostali (Prosveta, 1980) i Duša jedinica moja (BIGZ, 1984), drame: Ulricke Meinhof (osnova za predstavu “Stammheim”, SKC, Beograd, 1982, reditelji Ljubiša Ristić i Nada Kokotović), Leti u goru kao ptica (Atelje 212, Beograd, 1983, reditelj Zoran Ratković), Centralni zatvor (Naroden teater Bitola, 1922, reditelj Vlada Milćin) i Soba na Bosforu (objavljena u ProFemini br.1, Beograd, 1996).
Objavila i zajedničku antiratnu prepisku Vjetar ide na jug i obrće se na sjever, sa Marušom Krese, Radom Iveković i Radmilom Lazić (nemačko izdanje za Suhrkamp 1993. i 1994. u ediciji Apatridi, Radija B92 u Beogradu).
Bila je potpisnica svih peticija 70-ih i 80-ih protiv represije i mitova komunistickog režima - među prvima je bila kada je trebalo braniti šestoricu u Beogradu i četvoricu u Ljubljani, Šeksa ili Paragu u Zagrebu, Šešelja ili Izetbegovića u Sarajevu, ali i sve druge koji su odgovarali zbog zloglasnog člana133. - krivično delo poznatije kao delikt mišljenja ili verbalni delikt..
Bila je članica prvog Odbora za zaštitu umetničkih sloboda osnovanog 1982. u odbranu pesnika Gojka Đoga u sedištu Udruženja književnika Srbije u Francuskoj 7.
Među branjenima, prvi put je tada bio i Adem Demaći iz Prištine, za koga je Odbor tražio oslobađanje iz zatvora, u kome je ležao već 28 godina.
Biljana Jovanović je bila predsednica prve nevladine organizacije - Odbora za zaštitu čoveka i okoline, osnovanog 1984. godine takođe u Francuskoj 7.
Tokom 90-ih godina bila je među osnivačima UJDI-ja, Helsinškog parlamenta, Beogradskog kruga, Civilnog pokreta otpora. Bila je inicijator i učesnik svih mirovnih i antiratnih akcija u Beogradu: Paljenja sveća, Crnog flora, Poslednjeg zvona, a 1992. osnovala je LUR (Leteća učionica, radionica) za kulturno i intelektualno povezivanje nekadašnjeg jugoslovenskog prostora.
Bila je protiv getoiziranja država, naroda i ljudi, ne priznajući podele po naciji i veri. Okupljala je oko sebe ljude ili su se oni okupljali oko nje.
Pojava Biljane Jovanovic na književnoj sceni kasnih 70-ih bila je osveženje u ambijenut favorizovane takozvane stvarnosne proze.
Malograđanskom miljeu i predrasudama suprostavila je odvažnost, ironiju, cinizam, nekonvencionalnost, intelektualnu britkost i slobodu izricanja onoga sto je predstavljalo tabu za društvene, ideološke, seksualne konvencije.
Nagrada „Biljana Jovanović“ je ustanovljena 2006. godine, povodom obeležavanja 10 godina od smrti te književnice i dodeljuje se za prozu, poeziju i esejistiku koja je u poetičkom ključu bliskom preminuloj spisateljici.
Završila je filozofiju na Filozofskom fakultetu u Beogradu.
Objavila je zbirku pesama Čuvar (1977), romane: Pada Avala.(Prosveta, 1978 i Nezavisno izdanje Slobodan Mašić, 1981), Psi i ostali (Prosveta, 1980) i Duša jedinica moja (BIGZ, 1984), drame: Ulricke Meinhof (osnova za predstavu “Stammheim”, SKC, Beograd, 1982, reditelji Ljubiša Ristić i Nada Kokotović), Leti u goru kao ptica (Atelje 212, Beograd, 1983, reditelj Zoran Ratković), Centralni zatvor (Naroden teater Bitola, 1922, reditelj Vlada Milćin) i Soba na Bosforu (objavljena u ProFemini br.1, Beograd, 1996).
Objavila i zajedničku antiratnu prepisku Vjetar ide na jug i obrće se na sjever, sa Marušom Krese, Radom Iveković i Radmilom Lazić (nemačko izdanje za Suhrkamp 1993. i 1994. u ediciji Apatridi, Radija B92 u Beogradu).
Bila je potpisnica svih peticija 70-ih i 80-ih protiv represije i mitova komunistickog režima - među prvima je bila kada je trebalo braniti šestoricu u Beogradu i četvoricu u Ljubljani, Šeksa ili Paragu u Zagrebu, Šešelja ili Izetbegovića u Sarajevu, ali i sve druge koji su odgovarali zbog zloglasnog člana133. - krivično delo poznatije kao delikt mišljenja ili verbalni delikt..
Bila je članica prvog Odbora za zaštitu umetničkih sloboda osnovanog 1982. u odbranu pesnika Gojka Đoga u sedištu Udruženja književnika Srbije u Francuskoj 7.
Među branjenima, prvi put je tada bio i Adem Demaći iz Prištine, za koga je Odbor tražio oslobađanje iz zatvora, u kome je ležao već 28 godina.
Biljana Jovanović je bila predsednica prve nevladine organizacije - Odbora za zaštitu čoveka i okoline, osnovanog 1984. godine takođe u Francuskoj 7.
Tokom 90-ih godina bila je među osnivačima UJDI-ja, Helsinškog parlamenta, Beogradskog kruga, Civilnog pokreta otpora. Bila je inicijator i učesnik svih mirovnih i antiratnih akcija u Beogradu: Paljenja sveća, Crnog flora, Poslednjeg zvona, a 1992. osnovala je LUR (Leteća učionica, radionica) za kulturno i intelektualno povezivanje nekadašnjeg jugoslovenskog prostora.
Bila je protiv getoiziranja država, naroda i ljudi, ne priznajući podele po naciji i veri. Okupljala je oko sebe ljude ili su se oni okupljali oko nje.
Pojava Biljane Jovanovic na književnoj sceni kasnih 70-ih bila je osveženje u ambijenut favorizovane takozvane stvarnosne proze.
Malograđanskom miljeu i predrasudama suprostavila je odvažnost, ironiju, cinizam, nekonvencionalnost, intelektualnu britkost i slobodu izricanja onoga sto je predstavljalo tabu za društvene, ideološke, seksualne konvencije.
Nagrada „Biljana Jovanović“ je ustanovljena 2006. godine, povodom obeležavanja 10 godina od smrti te književnice i dodeljuje se za prozu, poeziju i esejistiku koja je u poetičkom ključu bliskom preminuloj spisateljici.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
August 11, 2021
I discovered Biljana Jovanović through Ellen Elias-Bursac's afterword to Asja Bakić's 'Mars'. Ellen Elias-Bursac mentioned Slavenka Drakulić, Daša Drndić, Dubravka Ugrešić, Biljana Jovanović as some of the great women writers from the region formerly known as Yugoslavia. I knew of the first three, but Biljana Jovanović was new to me. When I looked for her books, only 'Dogs and Others' was available in English translation.
'Dogs and Others' starts with an introduction which has this passage.
"Dogs always believe that they belong to Others (whom they consider to be, for unknown reasons enduring right up to our day, better than they are). The Others are not always convinced that they are not themselves Dogs. Still, though, Dogs are Others and Others are Dogs. The one thing that actually distinguishes them from each other, now and again (and something that justifies singling them out for participation in this story), is the level of their...social adaptation."
The story starts after this interesting page. The narrator Lidia lives with her grandmother Jaglika and her brother Danilo. Her mother Marina lives elsewhere but occasionally visits. Lidia tells us that she can't remember anything about her childhood. So she spins her own yarns and then tells a little bit of them to her grandmother Jaglika and Jaglika takes that and makes it into a realistic story and this becomes part of Lidia's memory and past. Lidia then tells us more about Jaglika, Marina and Danilo, Milena her lover, and other people who are part of their lives and who occasionally step into the story.
There are two things about the book which stand out. One is that it is written in a stream-of-consciousness style. I am wondering if this is one of the first Serbian / Yugoslavian books to be written in this style. If that is the case, then it is pioneering. Also, if, as a reader, you are not used to this style or you are not comfortable with it, it will be a challenging read for you. It was challenging for me. The second thing is that the main character Lidia is a lesbian. This book was published in 1980, more than forty years back. This was probably one of the first Yugoslavian / Serbian novels in which the lead character was lesbian. So Biljana Jovanović was breaking new ground here. The description of the relationship between Lidia and Milena is one of the most beautiful parts of the book and gives a very modern contemporary feel to the book.
There are some fascinating literary references in the book – there is Marina Tsvetaeva, there is Dostoevsky, and there is a mysterious person who writes letters to Lidia, who resembles Constance Chatterley's husband Clifford. It was fun spotting all these literary connections. There is an insightful afterword at the end of the book by the translator John Cox, which is fascinating to read.
'Dogs and Others' is a fascinating, pioneering book. I wouldn't call it an easy read, but I am glad I read it.
Have you read 'Dogs and Others'? What do you think about it?
'Dogs and Others' starts with an introduction which has this passage.
"Dogs always believe that they belong to Others (whom they consider to be, for unknown reasons enduring right up to our day, better than they are). The Others are not always convinced that they are not themselves Dogs. Still, though, Dogs are Others and Others are Dogs. The one thing that actually distinguishes them from each other, now and again (and something that justifies singling them out for participation in this story), is the level of their...social adaptation."
The story starts after this interesting page. The narrator Lidia lives with her grandmother Jaglika and her brother Danilo. Her mother Marina lives elsewhere but occasionally visits. Lidia tells us that she can't remember anything about her childhood. So she spins her own yarns and then tells a little bit of them to her grandmother Jaglika and Jaglika takes that and makes it into a realistic story and this becomes part of Lidia's memory and past. Lidia then tells us more about Jaglika, Marina and Danilo, Milena her lover, and other people who are part of their lives and who occasionally step into the story.
There are two things about the book which stand out. One is that it is written in a stream-of-consciousness style. I am wondering if this is one of the first Serbian / Yugoslavian books to be written in this style. If that is the case, then it is pioneering. Also, if, as a reader, you are not used to this style or you are not comfortable with it, it will be a challenging read for you. It was challenging for me. The second thing is that the main character Lidia is a lesbian. This book was published in 1980, more than forty years back. This was probably one of the first Yugoslavian / Serbian novels in which the lead character was lesbian. So Biljana Jovanović was breaking new ground here. The description of the relationship between Lidia and Milena is one of the most beautiful parts of the book and gives a very modern contemporary feel to the book.
There are some fascinating literary references in the book – there is Marina Tsvetaeva, there is Dostoevsky, and there is a mysterious person who writes letters to Lidia, who resembles Constance Chatterley's husband Clifford. It was fun spotting all these literary connections. There is an insightful afterword at the end of the book by the translator John Cox, which is fascinating to read.
'Dogs and Others' is a fascinating, pioneering book. I wouldn't call it an easy read, but I am glad I read it.
Have you read 'Dogs and Others'? What do you think about it?
February 18, 2023
Bas cudna knjiga, godinama nisam procitala nesto ovako cudno. Wlw reprezentacije ima ali ne bih rekla da je nesto revolucionarno ili znacajno prikazana.
Nema mnogo recenzija za ovu knjigu a bas me zanima sta drugi misle, tako da ako je procitate napisite ahah
- „Jedna od onih knjiga koje su značajnije za istoriju književnosti nego sa samu književnost" recenzija sa kojom se slažem
sve sto mi se svidelo izlistala sam ovde:
„Tako sam pocčela da izmišljam vlastito detinjstvo; bez pakosti, bez taštine; s praznim prostorom u sebi, ispred sebe, okolo, naokolo, svuda...“
„moglo bi se reći da sam patila od uobičajenih bolesti, samo sam im pridavala poseban značaj“
„Odustala sam od pričanja bilo kome, izuzev sebi, uveče, u mraku, otvorenih očiju; pored svih, stekla sam novo uobraženje: verovala sam da je svaka priča neopozivo istinita.“
„Ja o snovima bolje znam nego svi vi tamo s one bande da se iskupite i sve da saznate i ništa drugo da ne činite, a posle da divanite pa jopet da sanjate i sve tako, jopet, bolje, bolje ja znam o snovima."
„Muž i u njegovoj ruci jedna plavo ukoričena Njetočka, a druga ruka na pravom mestu [Marininoj zadnjici], što se knjige i literature tiče i života naravno, obe ruke na pravom mestu.“
„Danilo se, mislim, istog časa kada je ugledao žutu kosu, belo okruglo lice i velike grudi Milenine, zaljubio u nju. Meni je, međutim, mislim bilo potrebno nekoliko dana (taman onoliko, koliko je Milena dolazila s Čedom, da piju kafu, pričaju, i bog će sveti znati šta još rade njih dvoje i svi mi u Svetosavskoj!) da otkrijem, ugledam kako se Mileni ivice usana zadižu visoko naviše kad se smeje (isto tako se crta dečijom rukom polumesec vodoravno i sa šiljatim krajevima) i da mi se dogodi isto što i Danilu.“
„a ja pomalo gubim vazduh, kao i sve budale u sličnim situacijama, tačnije sve budale koje su imale posla s Milenom.“
„Lidija, znam da ti je žao, baba nije umrla, tek da znaš, spava kao da se malopre rodila."
„imala sam jednu olaku predstavu o njoj: ravnodušna, ustaljenog ponašanja, malko melanholična, sasvim uravnotežena, znači i takva Milena mi je godila, ništa više nego dobar ručak i čvrst, gvozdeni san!“
„Ako sam mislila na nečiji vrat, onda je to bio Milenin; na nečije telo ili lice, onda je to bila Milena.“
„i jagodicama prstiju opipa linija kičme, oprezno i sasvim, sasvim polako, kao kad se dodiruje ivica neobrađenog stakla.“
„Milena je dolazila samo da bi imala nekog u čijem će prisustvu moći sama sa sobom da razgovara.“
„Pitam... voliš li me?" (Derem se; umirućeg treba naterati da priča o ljubavi.)
"A što? Voliš li ti mene?" (To samo tako izgleda: umirući ima veću potrebu za ljubavlju od onog koji ostaje, bilo koji pol da je posredi.)
„Maj je mesec, ne baš najbolje vreme za umiranje, a sahranu naročito; Jaglika je cele noći umirala, užasno sporo.“
„Jaglika je na prste obe šake prebrojavala grehe, kao da prebrojava pazar od prethodna dva sata u radnji u Nikšiću;“
„Nisam umela najjednostavnije stvari, koje su umele i Milena i Marina: kad ti je hladno obučeš se, kad si gladna pojedeš nešto, kad otvoriš oči ustaneš; međutim, ni jedna ni druga nisu razumevale komplikovanost i mučninu najobičnijih radnji: pomeriti nogu kad je utrnula, popiti aspirin za zubobolju, ustati uopšte iz kreveta, ili leći uopšte ikad u krevet, i tako redom.“ (tuga)
„S obzirom na to da Biljana Jovanović svoje junakinje gradi kao pobunjenice spremne da se suprotstave svim oblicima socijalnih zabrana, bilo je neke unutrašnje logike u potrebi da barem jednu od njih prevede i preko te ograde koja se postavlja u domenu seksualnosti, vezane za ljubav sa osobom istog pola. [...]“ Jasmina Lukić
Nema mnogo recenzija za ovu knjigu a bas me zanima sta drugi misle, tako da ako je procitate napisite ahah
- „Jedna od onih knjiga koje su značajnije za istoriju književnosti nego sa samu književnost" recenzija sa kojom se slažem
sve sto mi se svidelo izlistala sam ovde:
„Tako sam pocčela da izmišljam vlastito detinjstvo; bez pakosti, bez taštine; s praznim prostorom u sebi, ispred sebe, okolo, naokolo, svuda...“
„moglo bi se reći da sam patila od uobičajenih bolesti, samo sam im pridavala poseban značaj“
„Odustala sam od pričanja bilo kome, izuzev sebi, uveče, u mraku, otvorenih očiju; pored svih, stekla sam novo uobraženje: verovala sam da je svaka priča neopozivo istinita.“
„Ja o snovima bolje znam nego svi vi tamo s one bande da se iskupite i sve da saznate i ništa drugo da ne činite, a posle da divanite pa jopet da sanjate i sve tako, jopet, bolje, bolje ja znam o snovima."
„Muž i u njegovoj ruci jedna plavo ukoričena Njetočka, a druga ruka na pravom mestu [Marininoj zadnjici], što se knjige i literature tiče i života naravno, obe ruke na pravom mestu.“
„Danilo se, mislim, istog časa kada je ugledao žutu kosu, belo okruglo lice i velike grudi Milenine, zaljubio u nju. Meni je, međutim, mislim bilo potrebno nekoliko dana (taman onoliko, koliko je Milena dolazila s Čedom, da piju kafu, pričaju, i bog će sveti znati šta još rade njih dvoje i svi mi u Svetosavskoj!) da otkrijem, ugledam kako se Mileni ivice usana zadižu visoko naviše kad se smeje (isto tako se crta dečijom rukom polumesec vodoravno i sa šiljatim krajevima) i da mi se dogodi isto što i Danilu.“
„a ja pomalo gubim vazduh, kao i sve budale u sličnim situacijama, tačnije sve budale koje su imale posla s Milenom.“
„Lidija, znam da ti je žao, baba nije umrla, tek da znaš, spava kao da se malopre rodila."
„imala sam jednu olaku predstavu o njoj: ravnodušna, ustaljenog ponašanja, malko melanholična, sasvim uravnotežena, znači i takva Milena mi je godila, ništa više nego dobar ručak i čvrst, gvozdeni san!“
„Ako sam mislila na nečiji vrat, onda je to bio Milenin; na nečije telo ili lice, onda je to bila Milena.“
„i jagodicama prstiju opipa linija kičme, oprezno i sasvim, sasvim polako, kao kad se dodiruje ivica neobrađenog stakla.“
„Milena je dolazila samo da bi imala nekog u čijem će prisustvu moći sama sa sobom da razgovara.“
„Pitam... voliš li me?" (Derem se; umirućeg treba naterati da priča o ljubavi.)
"A što? Voliš li ti mene?" (To samo tako izgleda: umirući ima veću potrebu za ljubavlju od onog koji ostaje, bilo koji pol da je posredi.)
„Maj je mesec, ne baš najbolje vreme za umiranje, a sahranu naročito; Jaglika je cele noći umirala, užasno sporo.“
„Jaglika je na prste obe šake prebrojavala grehe, kao da prebrojava pazar od prethodna dva sata u radnji u Nikšiću;“
„Nisam umela najjednostavnije stvari, koje su umele i Milena i Marina: kad ti je hladno obučeš se, kad si gladna pojedeš nešto, kad otvoriš oči ustaneš; međutim, ni jedna ni druga nisu razumevale komplikovanost i mučninu najobičnijih radnji: pomeriti nogu kad je utrnula, popiti aspirin za zubobolju, ustati uopšte iz kreveta, ili leći uopšte ikad u krevet, i tako redom.“ (tuga)
„S obzirom na to da Biljana Jovanović svoje junakinje gradi kao pobunjenice spremne da se suprotstave svim oblicima socijalnih zabrana, bilo je neke unutrašnje logike u potrebi da barem jednu od njih prevede i preko te ograde koja se postavlja u domenu seksualnosti, vezane za ljubav sa osobom istog pola. [...]“ Jasmina Lukić
June 9, 2023
This was not an easy book to read. A stream of consciousness from Lidia whose life is replete with problems and dysfunction. The people in her life include her brother, her grandmother, her mother and Milena who she us in love with but frustrated. This is the first lesbian novel from Serbia.
Written by Biljana Jovanovic, Dogs and Others was published in Serbia in 1980 and in English translation by John K. Cox in 2018. Jovanovic was a very popular writer in her country. Part of the difficulty is in understanding the context of Yugoslavia in the 1970s. While I am familiar with the context I never lived there and didn’t experience it. The brutality of life, the sexual harassment and the fast paced jeans prose made it challenging for me as a reader. Nevertheless Biljana Jovanovic is an important writer and I appreciate her woman centered writing. Both the translator’s preface and the afterward were very helpful to read.
Written by Biljana Jovanovic, Dogs and Others was published in Serbia in 1980 and in English translation by John K. Cox in 2018. Jovanovic was a very popular writer in her country. Part of the difficulty is in understanding the context of Yugoslavia in the 1970s. While I am familiar with the context I never lived there and didn’t experience it. The brutality of life, the sexual harassment and the fast paced jeans prose made it challenging for me as a reader. Nevertheless Biljana Jovanovic is an important writer and I appreciate her woman centered writing. Both the translator’s preface and the afterward were very helpful to read.
February 21, 2022
Ova proza pleni svojom autentičnošću; razigranost i maštovitost ovog sugestivnog, ali i nepouzdanog i nedorečenog pripovedanja - zajedno s humorom, erotičnošću, ali i mržnjom - tako izvorno pripadaju priči o drami Lidijine egzistencije. Žustrina pripovednog tona, njegova gonjenost živom unutrašnjom silom, baca u senku izvesnu labavost kompozicije pa čak i povremena preterivanja i rasplinjavanja. Svetu romana (Lidijinom svetu) skladno pripada i razlika u stepenu diferenciranosti ostalih ličnosti, nedoumice o pravoj prirodi nekih od njih (stvarne ili imaginarne?) kao i udvajanje šefovog lika. Podsticajan je i aktuelen misaoni sloj romana, koji tematizuje verodostojnost sećanja odnosno udeo fantazije u sećanjima, sa oštroumnim zapažanjima o psihoanalizi.
October 20, 2021
Dogs and Others by Biljana Jovanović
Translated by John K. Cox
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I don't think this is much of a review for this book, and I do not want to put you off. However, I have to say that this is a hard book to read. It is hard not only because of the subject matter that it covers and for that it comes with quite a lot of trigger warnings (sexual assault, child abuse, and some more ), but it is also hard because of the way it is structured.
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Dogs and Others is a book that is written in fragments of stream-of-consciousness heavy on the parenthesis. It tells the story of Lidia, the narrator, and the people around her. We get to meet her ill-grandmother Jaglika with whom she has a conflictual relationship, her brother Danilo who suffers from a mental illness and is never far from her, her selfish lover Milena and her absent mother that she calls Madame Marina who pops here and there. This book felt like a portrait of neglect, with Lidia and Danilo at the center of it.
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After reading this, you might think that this might not be your cup of tea, but it is a unique book that is worth giving a chance to. Who knows you might like it?
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"If I didn’t know that I was dreaming when I’m dreaming, I could with total presence of mind state that dreams were definite, in the way that reality is; that they are a parallel world and how it’s in point of fact my personal dichotomy (in the back, by the occipital bone); I could even rejoice at the lack of necessity of subsequent connection, of the subordination of dreams to reality or of reality to dreams, which is actually what Jaglika and the whole world do, or the whole world and Jaglika: what harmony!"
Translated by John K. Cox
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I don't think this is much of a review for this book, and I do not want to put you off. However, I have to say that this is a hard book to read. It is hard not only because of the subject matter that it covers and for that it comes with quite a lot of trigger warnings (sexual assault, child abuse, and some more ), but it is also hard because of the way it is structured.
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Dogs and Others is a book that is written in fragments of stream-of-consciousness heavy on the parenthesis. It tells the story of Lidia, the narrator, and the people around her. We get to meet her ill-grandmother Jaglika with whom she has a conflictual relationship, her brother Danilo who suffers from a mental illness and is never far from her, her selfish lover Milena and her absent mother that she calls Madame Marina who pops here and there. This book felt like a portrait of neglect, with Lidia and Danilo at the center of it.
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After reading this, you might think that this might not be your cup of tea, but it is a unique book that is worth giving a chance to. Who knows you might like it?
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"If I didn’t know that I was dreaming when I’m dreaming, I could with total presence of mind state that dreams were definite, in the way that reality is; that they are a parallel world and how it’s in point of fact my personal dichotomy (in the back, by the occipital bone); I could even rejoice at the lack of necessity of subsequent connection, of the subordination of dreams to reality or of reality to dreams, which is actually what Jaglika and the whole world do, or the whole world and Jaglika: what harmony!"
August 4, 2020
I completely respect the importance of this book and that it is a force of its own in terms of style, structure and content. I would be lying if I said I found it easy to enjoy, or at all relaxing to read. It's not just the lack of plot I think but the difficulty in how randomly/unevenly characters pop up e.g. I found Vespasian's letters quite confusing, and I would struggle to tell you where Mira fitted in at all. On the other hand, I was really impressed by the Jaglika piece, learning her back-story, getting a bit more of a sense of her history while appreciating it's only scratching the surface, and feeling the pain she both suffers and inflicts on Lidia.
I was helped a lot by this review by Words Without Bordersand am really impressed by their point about the relentless abuse and fragmentation Lidia's mind must succumb to. Hard to know there'd ever be any closure here, and if I can even try to understand that the wounds are deep and complicated, seems worth the read.
I was helped a lot by this review by Words Without Bordersand am really impressed by their point about the relentless abuse and fragmentation Lidia's mind must succumb to. Hard to know there'd ever be any closure here, and if I can even try to understand that the wounds are deep and complicated, seems worth the read.
June 22, 2019
Okay read for my AtW challenge (Serbia): little plot or character development, fragmentary prose. Essentially too avant-garde for my taste, but the novel was short.
June 5, 2025
Moram priznati da nisam nikad čitao domaće postmodernističke autore i nije loše. Takođe, nema puno domaćih knjiga sa kvir likovima, što verujem da je posebno 1980. u Jugoslaviji bilo šokantno
September 26, 2021
3.5⭐ zaokruženo na 4
October 31, 2018
Retko važan roman u istoriji domaće književnosti, jer obuhvata teme kao što su fragmentarnost ženskog identiteta, mentalna bolest, lezbejski odnos. Scena lezbejskog seksa je uspela i intrigantna, međutim, ona zaista ne izlazi iz stereotipnog lezbofobičnog prikaza i povezivanja lezbejstva sa nedostatkom majčine ljubavi. Jedino gde se ta paradigma preokreće je u tačka u kojoj strada biseksualna junakinja, tj. ona koja ima šansu da bude straight-acting, koja je obično ona "spasena". Upečatljiv stil, ali ponekad previše hermetičan, i pomalo prenaglašen kraj koji odudara od logike same priče.
May 28, 2021
Iskreno previše prepotentno pisano, zbog stila pisanja sam odustala od knjige iako mi se dopadaju teme koje obradjuje. Ali glava me zabolela od pokušavanja da provalim sklop reči u rečenici. Bespotrebno.
January 7, 2025
više 4.5
tužno pretužno sve joj verujem (a ništa ne treba) baš ljuto i lepo lep jezik telo sva tela slobodno britko lucidno nekad naporno i malo guši ali ne smeta
tužno pretužno sve joj verujem (a ništa ne treba) baš ljuto i lepo lep jezik telo sva tela slobodno britko lucidno nekad naporno i malo guši ali ne smeta
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