#ReadAroundTheWorld. #Azerbaijan

Set between 1914 and 1920 in Baku (Azerbaijan), Tbilisi (Georgia) and Tehran, this is an historical fiction and romance. Written by the mysterious Kurban Said in 1937, initially thought to be an Austrian Duchess but later thought to be the Jewish writer Lev Nussimbaum who converted to Islam and wrote under the pseudonyms Essad Bey and Kurban Said or alternatively Yusif Vazir Chamanzaminli, an Azerbaijani statesman and writer who died in the Gulags under Soviet Russia accused of producing “counter-revolutionary” works. It was first translated into English in 1970. This book chronicles the turbulent love story between Ali Khan Shirvanshir, a Shi’ite Muslim of Iranian descent, and the beautiful Nino Kipiani, a Georgian Christian.

The book teases out the vast differences between the two, the cultural divide between East and West and the religious divide between their faiths. This was a fascinating read, giving an insight into the country of Azerbaijan, straddling Asia and Europe, and bordered by Russia, Iran, Turkey and Armenia. Some of the attitudes and actions towards women are hard to read, particularly those coming from Ali’s family. Ali is given the advice, “A man must marry, preferably the woman he likes. She need not like him in return. A wise man does not court a woman. The woman is just the acre, on which the man sows. Must the field love the farmer? Enough that the farmer loves the field. Marry, but never forget: the woman is just an acre.’ ‘So you believe that a woman has neither soul nor intelligence?’ He looked at me pityingly: ‘How can you ask, Ali Khan? Of course she hasn’t. Why should a woman have either? It is enough for her to be chaste and have many children.”

He himself seems less wedded to the idea of inferiority, and the feisty Nino challenges his views and traditions, however there is still the subconscious bias towards the wife as property that comes through. She says of her time in the harem in Persia, “You like it here, but I am dishonoured every day.” “What do you mean, dishonoured?” “Everybody treats me like a very expensive and fragile thing. I don’t know how expensive I am, but I am neither fragile nor a thing.” I felt the writer has a somewhat ironic and satirical tone at times, and certainly highlights the plight of women. This book was well worth reading for those interested in other places, eras and cultures. 4.5 stars. ( )

Could not finish it, so many horribly sexist passages.
I know it was written in a different time and period but it hurts my soul to read of women being described as « the woman is just the acre, on which the man sows. Must the field love the farmer? » to which the main character is « touched by his answer. It proved again that he was honest and wise », and there are countless more references, such as women being rightful preys to men, and the main character saying unpleasant misogynistic things about his supposed love interest etc
On top of that, the main male character is boring, pedantic, really feels important, and generally is quite unlikeable.
The writing style is odd, it rambles a lot, sometimes I wondered if I had actually accidentally read the same sentence three times? But definitely hadn’t. It jumps a lot from topic to topic and can be quite confusing, especially in dialogues.

I’m so disappointed because this the first book I have chosen not to finish, I am usually very patient with books because I know a bad start can end up turning into a pleasant surprise, but not this time. I’m also disappointed because I was very very eager to read and learn more about the region in which it is set, the Caucasus, I will have to keep looking. ( )

Excerpt:

Originally Posted by Kurban Said in Ali and Nino - excerpt
"Dadiani looked at me thoughtfully: You have the soul of a desert man,' he said. 'Maybe that is the one real division between men: wood men and desert men. The Orient's dry intoxication comes from the desert, where hot wind and hot sand make men drunk, where the world is simple and without problems. The woods are full of questions. Only the desertdoes not ask, does not give, and does not promise anything. But the fire of the soul comes from the wood. The desert man-I can see him--has but one face, and knows but one truth,and that truth fulfills him. The woodman has many faces. The fanatic comes from the desert, the creator from the woods. Maybe that is the main difference between East and West.

'That is why we Armenians and Georgians love the wood' Melik Nachararyan interrupted, a fat man from one of the noblest Armenian families. He had protruding eyes, bushy eyebrows, and was inclined to philosophy and drinking. We got on well together. He drank to me and cried: 'Ali Khan! Eagles come from the mountains, tigers from the jungle. What comes from the desert? 'Lions and warriors,' I answered

I just finished reading Ali and Nino by "Kurban Said." The book is momentously good, and is one of the few times I have read a "novel.' The book itself purports to be a novel about a doomed love affair between Ali Khan Shirvanshir, a Muslim and Nino Kipiani, a Christian. On the surface, without creating a spoiler, they fall in love as students, they marry, and he is killed in battle. The deeper story is about the implosion of Baku, Azerbaijan's unique fusion of East and West. The excerpt above, from the book, summarizes the conflicting nature of the Oriental world and Europe.

My path to reading this novel is almost as complex. A friend turned me on to reading The Orientalist: Solving the Mystery of a Strange and Dangerous Life. This book culminated an investigation by , its author, as to the roots of Ali and Nino. Mr. Reiss concluded that the author was Lev Nussenbaum, a Jewish author from Baku. Mr. Nussenbaum was apparently quite a prolific author, under the name of Essad Bey,including Blood and Oil in the Orient: My childhood in Baku and my hair-raising escape through the Caucasus and Stalin: The Career Of A Fanatic by Essad Bey a/k/a Lev Nussenbaum, I consider Ali and Nino to be a novelistic rendition of much of the material in Blood and Oil in the Orient.The destruction of Azerbaijan was an example of the destruction of the antebellum, i.e. pre-1914 world by World War I. While the Czar, Kaiser Wilhelm and the Hapsburgs were not wonderful, what followed was far, far worse. I'll leave that story to Stalin: The Career Of A Fanatic.

This novel is intense enough. ( )

Exceptional ( )

A marvellous story that takes the reader to Azerbaijan, where Asia meets Europe. From 1937 thie book was written by an Azerbaijan exile and is set in World War One. Ali Khan is a Muslim Azerbaijani of Persian origin, Nino a Christian Georgian who looks to Europe. Here is the first tension in the book, between these two cultures which eventually their parents accept. There are idyllic happy scenes of their life in the mountains but cultural tensions resurface when they have to escape to Persia. Returning to Baku and Azerbaijan they settle into a life that tries to straddle Asia and Europe but this is eventually confounded. A moving novel full of colourful imagery and passion. A great read. ( )