Téa Obreht Livres

The author of THE TIGER'S WIFE returns with a story about a young girl and the mysterious residents of a luxury tower block in a dying world

THE NEW NOVEL BY THE AUTHOR OF THE TIGER'S WIFEA man searching for a home he can't find. A woman bound to a home she can't leave.

Weaving a brilliant latticework of family legend, loss, and love, Téa Obreht has crafted a timeless novel that showcases her as a vibrant, original author of her generation. In a Balkan country healing from conflict, Natalia, a young doctor, arrives at a seaside orphanage on a mission of mercy. As she and her lifelong friend Zóra begin to inoculate the children, age-old superstitions and secrets emerge around them, including those of the cheerful hosts and a strange family digging in the vineyards. Simultaneously, Natalia grapples with a personal mystery: the inexplicable circumstances of her beloved grandfather’s recent death. After telling her grandmother he was headed to meet Natalia, he instead traveled to an unfamiliar settlement and died alone. A renowned physician, he must have known he was too ill to travel, leaving Natalia to unravel the riddle of his departure. Grieving and searching for clues, she reflects on the stories he shared during her childhood, including tales of a “deathless man” and a haunting winter in his village during WWII, where a tiger lurked in the shadows. Ultimately, Natalia discovers that these narratives run like secret rivers through her grandfather’s life, leading her to the answers she seeks.

Sil und ihre Mutter fliehen in die versinkende Inselstadt Island City, wo die Mutter als Bergungstaucherin arbeitet. Im maroden Wohnturm «Morgenlicht» begegnen sie der geheimnisvollen Bezi Duras und einer neuen Freundin. Als die Mutter verschwindet, steht Sil vor der Entdeckung ihrer Vergangenheit. Téa Obreht schildert eine poetische Suche nach Wahrheit und Hoffnung.