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. ( )

There is perhaps no better introduction to the Caucasus than reading the fictional “Ali and Nino” (1937), by Kurban Said (pseudonym for Lev Nussimbaum). Part touching love story, part description of the contrasting cultures in this part of the world, set against the outbreak of the First World War and the Russian Revolution, and its effects on Azerbaijan. Ali Khan is a Muslim Azerbaijani of Persian origin, Nino a Georgian, thus European, and Christian, but their love for each other seems to overcome the cultural differences, and their parents are modern enough to ultimately accept this. Yet, their live together becomes increasingly difficult because of a treacherous Armenian (of course, in an Azerbijani book), and modernity-opposing habits as blood honour and broader family values rooted in religion. And is ultimately undone by Azarbaijani nationalism. Read this book! ( )

What a beautiful sad story. It's like a chapter from the stories of 'One Thousand and One Nights'. Ali and Nino grow up in Baku. Both come from wealthy 'noble families', although the differences could not be greater. Ali is a Muslim and Nino is a Christian. Ali stands for the Asian, the desert and the traditional, while Nino stands for the European, the modern and the urban. Ali falls in love with Nino during school. They are sure that they want to marry later. But the turmoil of WWI stands in their way for a long time. Baku is conquered by the Russians, then again freed from the English and last but not least it is Russian again. Ali always hopes that the Turks rush to help Baku, which turns out to be a mistake. Nino flees to Tbilisi, where her family is safe, while Ali, later with Nino, seeks protection in Persia.
This story is not only about the love between different religions, but also about the confusion in the Middle East. A fantastic book that I can highly recommend. ( )