196 Books: Azerbaijan

Ali and Nino by Kurban Said

Azerbaijan is here: 

Also 10 points to me for being able to spell Azerbaijan correctly, with no spell check! And as always, here's the synopsis:

It has been hailed as one of the most romantic epic novels of all time. Ali and Nino, two lovers from vastly different backgrounds, grow up together in carefree innocence in Baku on the Caspian Sea. Here, where Eastern and Occidental collide, they are inevitably drawn into the events of the First World War and the Russian Revolution. Torn apart by the turmoil, Ali joins the defense of Azerbajan from the onslaught of the Red Army, and Nino flees to the safety of Paris with their child, not knowing whether they will ever see each other again. A sweeping tale, as romantic and gripping as Gone with the Wind or Dr. Zhivago, it portrays, against a gloriously exotic backdrop, the enduring love between childhood friends divided by their separate cultures.

So trying not to give away too many spoilers, the big issue is that Ali is Muslim and Nino is Christian. This is more of a problem for Ali because he thinks "nonbelievers" are dirty and wrong. 

I did really like this story, though there were some parts that made me irate. It was super sexist and, since written from Ali's POV, Christians were the worst. Like it was real fun when Nino got kidnapped and it was expected that Ali kill both the kidnapper and the kidnappee. Because that makes lots of sense. 

Also this part: "a man must marry, preferably the woman he likes. She need not like him in return." Then it went on to say that women have neither souls or intelligence, and they're only use is having children. So...neat. 

There was also the innate and expected hatred for Armenians, which was really interesting after reading Armenian Golgotha. At one point Ali concedes that it doesn't really make sense for them to hate these people just for existing so that's better than nothing. 

The love story, in fact, was really beautiful and innocent. It was basically just two kids so incredibly devoted to each other no matter what. 

This book concludes the A countries, even though they took me quite a long time to finish. I'll try to get back on track and do better with the rest of them. On to the Bs!