Los días del Cáucaso

by Banine, Regina López Muñoz (Translator)

Banine recuerda las aguas del mar Caspio, su lujosa mansión en Bakú, las espléndidas fiestas, las frutas, los dulces; a su institutriz alemana de rubísima melena, a su imperiosa y estricta abuela musulmana, a sus tan adinerados como nada respetables parientes que, discutiendo y fumando sin tregua, se jugaban a los naipes la inmensa fortuna que el petróleo les había hecho amasar.

Banine recuerda cómo entonces llegaron los bolcheviques, y de pronto lo perdieron todo; cómo en el torbellino de la revolución y el derramamiento de sangre se enamoró apasionadamente de un hombre, pero solo para ser obligada a casarse con otro al que detestaba; hasta que llegó la oportunidad de escapar, a Estambul primero, a París más adelante.

Banine recuerda en esta elegante, irónica y conmovedora mémoire —uno de los más originales y trepidantes libros autobiográficos del siglo XX—, su fascinante y turbulenta juventud en el disputado territorio de Azerbaiyán, en perpetuo equilibrio entre Oriente y Occidente, entre el mundo de ayer y los inciertos días venideros.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Biography, History, Travel, Russia, Asia

316 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1945

About the author

Umm-El-Banine Assadoulaeff (Umm Əl-Banu Əsədullayeva)was a French writer of Azeri descent - a granddaughter of two famous Azeri millionaire Musa Nagiyev and Shamsi Assadullaev, a daughter of Azerbaijani businessman and politician Mirza Asadullayev. She wrote under the penname of Banine.

Reviews

[Rosa · Rating 3 out of 5]

روزهای قفقاز، با نثری ساده و روان و عامیانه، درست مثل نشستن پای صحبت ها و درددل های ی مادر بزرگه که مهم ترین روزهای کودکی و جوونی ش مصادف شده با انقلاب روسیه و تحولاتی که زندگی هیچکس رو بی نصیب نگذاشت.
بانین ام البنین در این کتاب بی توجه به قضاوت ها، از پنهانی ترین احساسات و افکارش نسبت به آدم ها و اتفاقات پرده بر میداره، بطوری که باعث میشه احساس مخاطب کاملا با عواطف خودش در اون برهه همسو و هم تراز بشه تا جایی که وقتی در آخرین صفحات کتاب از " مصلحت ناخواسته ی زندگی ش " رها میشه، این حس رهایی و آرامش به وضوح به خواننده منتقل میشه، انقدری که دیگه کنجکاوی در مورد ندونستن ادامه ی زندگیش رو کنار میذاره و به همون آزادی قهرمان کتابش دلخوش میشه😁
روزهای قفقاز ، مشت نمونه ی خرواری، از زندگی هزاران هزار خانواده ایه که بنا بر شرایط غیر قابل تحمل اون روزها، ثروت و موقعیت و اسم و رسمشون رو از دست میدن و ناخواسته با جدا شدن از عزیزانشون راهی سرزمین های دورتری از جمله ایران برای ادامه زندگی میشن، البته با رویای بازگشت به وطن که اغلب هرگز محقق نشده .....

[Jenny (Reading Envy) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Umm-El-Banine Assadoulaeff was a French writer of Azeri descent - a granddaughter of two famous Azeri millionaire Musa Nagiyev and Shamsi Assadullaev, a daughter of Azerbaijani businessman and politician Mirza Asadullayev. This is her memoir of her childhood in Azerbaijan, in the early decades of the 20th century. Fascinating stuff, and an interesting way to look at some of the history of a region I know very little about.

I'm also interested in the translation history - Banine wrote this in French and published it in Paris in 1945. And guess who "blurbed" or reviewed it - Teffi! If you loved Teffi, you will probably enjoy this. It was only translated into the English much more recently, and was published in the UK in 2019 and only March 2021 in the United States.

From a 21st century perspective, there are some unsurprising problematic elements, from fatphobia to transphobia, anti-Christian and anti-western sentiments, jokes about the Armenian genocide (and a bit of apologist defense since the Azeri view is that the Armenians killed a bunch of Azeris....) The depiction of Islamic practice may also be seen by some to be insulting - Banine converted to Christianity before publishing this book, and she is very critical of her family's observances (or lack there of, or ways they wiggled around the rules.) Still I found it interesting to see a child's eye view of Islam in a very wealthy but not too conservative country.

Thanks to the publisher for providing access through Edelweiss. It comes out in the USA in March 2.

[Sergio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Voto = ⭐⭐⭐ 1/2
Questo interessante libro autobiografico scritto da Banine [1905-1992], scrittrice nata in Azerbaigian e in età adulta emigrata in Francia dove divenne famosa e apprezzata, racconta l’infanzia e l’adolescenza dell’autrice fino al suo esilio in Francia per sfuggire a un marito impostole dal padre e alla nazionalizzazione dei beni di famiglia che seguì alla rivoluzione di ottobre in Russia: nata a Baku in una famiglia arricchitasi con la scoperta del petrolio nei propri terreni, Banine racconta l’infanzia dorata e spensierata nella comunità azera in una famiglia chiassosa e litigiosa ma fortemente unita, la difficile adolescenza con i piccoli problemi di accettazione personale, la scoperta e le sofferenze dell’amore, la rivoluzione russa e il matrimonio imposto che sconvolgono una vita serena e agiata fino all’agognato trasferimento in Francia dove proverà a ricostruire una vita più aderente alle proprie aspettative. Un libro che si legge d’un fiato, una lettura piacevole e interessante condita da una sottile ironia e un umorismo che contagia e irretisce.

[Bahador Jafari · Rating 4 out of 5]

روایتی تلخ و شیرین، خاطرات کودکی و جوانی ام‌البنین اسدالله‌اف دختر یکی از بزرگان و ثروتمندان آذربایجان

خاطرات خیلی روان شرح داده شده،
بدلیل نزدیکی فرهنگ منطقه آذربایجانِ قفقاز به فرهنگ ایران بیشتر ماجراها و نکات برای ما جالب و ملموس هست،

نکات و داستان‌ها در دوران کودکی خیلی ریز و با جزییات گفته شده،
به یک سری عادات مردم منطقه و بخصوص اهل خانواده اشاره میشه که جالب و خواندنیه،

((یه مقدار اسپویل))
و خب طبعاً بعد از انقلاب ۱۹۱۷ سرگردانی و آوارگی نصیب این خاندان شد،

اونطور که در نوشته‌ها میشه برداشت کرد، بانین به زندگی معمولی علاقه‌ی بیشتری داشت،
عناصر طبیعی، ادبیات و خیال‌پردازی بیشتر سرگرمش میکرد، اون برای زندگی ثروتمندانه ساخته نشده بود…

نحوه‌ی بیان نویسنده ساده و شیرینه، طوری که یک نفس میشه کتاب رو تا انتها رفت،

کتابهای روایی از زندگی نویسنده و سفرنامه‌ها کلاً برای من جذابیت خاصی داره و به همین دلیل امتیازی که به اثر میدم شاید بیش از حدِ خود کتاب باشه !

[Lauren · Rating 2 out of 5]

"We all know families that are poor but 'respectable'. Mine in contrast, was extremely rich but not 'respectable' at all."

▪️DAYS IN THE CAUCASUS by Banine, translated from the French by Anne Thompson-Ahmadova, 1945/2021.

#Readtheworld21 📍 Azerbaijan

Was looking forward to this one quite a bit, so it's unfortunate to say: I didn't like it.

Umm-El-Banine Assadoulaeff was the daughter of an Azerbaijani oil magnate and from day one, had a silver spoon in her mouth. The youngest of 4 daughters, her mother died in child birth, and she was raised by a German nanny, an overbearing grandmother, and her largely absentee father.

The memoir describes Banine's childhood in Baku, Azerbaijan before and during the Russian Revolution, and her family's short exile in Persia before returning to Baku.

My biggest complaint about the book is Banine's narrative voice, which is really the whole deal with a memoir, isn't it?

Also according to the notes, Banine revised her memoir in 1985, and that made me question: Who revises a memoir - and why? Did you re-discover a memory 70 years later?

There are several racist and prejudiced descriptions - even if "acceptable" at the time - and I was tempted to DNF a number of times. I kept going as it does read pretty swiftly, and was largely unrewarded by the 2nd part of the book, which was Banine complaining about her stepmother, FOMO for her family living in Paris, and not liking her betrothed husband's red hair. It was shallow and melodramatic. Granted, she was married off at 15 years old to a 35-year old, so yeah, that's an issue too.

So.... While there were some interesting notes inside, this one didn't sit well with me overall.

If you want to scratch the itch of gossipy bourgeoisie life during in Russian Revolution by one-named woman writers, I'd reach for Teffi over Banine any day. 😬

[Andy Weston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many memoirs are of tough upbringings and poverty, but for Azeri émigré Banine, her’s was of luxury and wealth. Also though, this is the story of a city, which was little know to me, and the close-by Caucasus mountains.
Banine’s father was one of Baku’s overnight millionaires due to the discovery of oil on his farmland in the mountains. While quarrels are commonplace in her family and provide interest to her coming of age story, it is the Caucasus that takes centre stage; set between the Christian west and Muslim east, transitioning between the folklore and tradition of its past and the automation of the new world, and dealing with the effects of the Bolshevik revolution.
The descriptions of the family’s vacations in the mountains are particularly vivid, and the language throughout makes it read like an adventure story. This, due as much to Anne Thompson-Ahmadova’s translation as to Banine’s writing, in making the narrative originally published in France in 1945 have such a fresh feel to it.

[Pedro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Banine (Umm-El-Banine Assadoulaeff) nació en 1905 en Azerbaiyán, en el seno de una familia musulmana de clase alta, cuyo padre era partidario de adoptar los beneficios de la cultura europea. Azerbaiyán forma parte, junto a Armenia y Georgia, de la región del Cáucaso.

"A mi juicio, esta última (la niñez) se define de una forma muy sencilla: creencia en la estabilidad, en la bondad del mundo. Una vez desechada esta creencia, se acabó la infancia".

Los días del Cáucaso es un libro de memorias sobre los años vividos en su país natal. No suelo ser afecto a los libros de memorias, pero en este caso la calidad narrativa de Banine, la cuidadosa descripción de los hábitos de su familia ampliada, y los hechos históricos ocurridos en la región, me resultó atrapante y muy enriquecedor.

*****

Hoy, a tres días de haber terminado la novela, no he podido comenzar con otra lectura, ya que no puedo sacarme de la cabeza a los personajes, el entorno y las circunstancias descriptas magníficamente por Banine.

[Peter Tillman · Rating 2 out of 5]

A major disappointment. I was really looking forward to this book, but I kept stalling. I would jump ahead, read a bit more, and stall again. I didn't like the people, the writing style, or the history. A book that deserved its long obscurity, I think. Oh, well. I even convinced our library to buy a copy. I hope others enjoy it more. I sure didn't. 2.5 stars, rounded down for repeatedly failing me. Now it's overdue, saving me from trying again. The old family photos are pretty cool, and I think Banine had fun when she got to Paris. Maybe she should have written about that instead? Actually, she did: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banine

Excerpts from the rave review in the WSJ of this 1945 memoir of her girlhood in Baku, in a new translation from the French: https://www.wsj.com/articles/days-in-...
(Paywalled. As always, I'm happy to email a copy to non-subscribers)

"When Umm El-Banu Assadullayeva, later called Banine, was just 12 years old, she became a multimillionaire. But “only for a few days,” she wryly recalls, “for I was soon woken at dawn by ‘The Internationale’ sung in the street.” The year was 1917 and the Red Army had arrived in Baku, Azerbaijan....
....Reflecting an era of bloodshed and terror, it should be a grim read. Instead, however, this account is an effervescent and irreverent feat of recollection and imagination—epic in sweep yet intimate in tone—that introduces the reader to an exotic, antique world and to characters so vividly drawn that their raucous voices seem to echo long after they have vanished from sight.

“We all know families that are poor but ‘respectable,’ ” the memoir begins. “Mine, in contrast, was extremely rich but not ‘respectable’ at all.” Playfully mirroring Tolstoy, Banine could be ushering us into a capacious 19th-century novel. And in a way she is. For what follows is a captivating drama of family, money, marriage and disaster that unfolds with deceptive ease and irresistible charm, thanks to the agility of a narrator who is both innocent girl and ironic observer. ...

It's such a tempting review that I just want to keep quoting it! And (once again) I'm happy to send you a copy. OK, just a bit more:
"Above all, it is Banine’s portrait of her family and of her homeland that makes “Days in the Caucasus” such a radiant jewel of a book. Her fiery, mustachioed, poker-playing aunts; her devout, foulmouthed grandmother; her uncle who builds a townhouse with an inner courtyard for elephants—each materializes here in a swirl of color and noise. "

A townhouse with an inner courtyard for elephants! I'm in. Wealthy oilmen, I guess, are the same the world over. And there are some cool stories of the American oil booms of this era -- though lacking the Arabian Nights flavor.
No elephants, it turned out, in one of the many disappointments in the book. . . .

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

#ReadAroundTheWorld. #Azerbaijan

Umm-El-Banine Assadoulaeff was an Azeri writer who moved to France at age 18. Her father was Azerbaijani businessman and politician Mirza Asadullayev, and her grandparents were extremely wealthy oil magnates. This is the memoir of her childhood in Azerbaijan, in the early decades of the 20th century. The book was written in 1945 but only translated into English much more recently.

Banine was brought up by a German nanny and her pious grandmother, having lost her mother at birth. Banine and her family definitely lead a life of opulence and privilege, which changed with the onset of the Russian Revolution. She was married off at 15, to a 35 year old man she despised to secure her father a much coveted passport. She later fled to Persia, then France.

Despite the terror of the Red Army arriving in Baku in 1917 and the Bolshevik Revolution, the tone of Banine’s memoir is mostly light and witty. She makes fun of her family and those around her, the hypocrisies and idiosyncrasies she sees. She is fairly critical of both Islam and communism and has a humorous ironic tone. She describes big family gatherings at country dachas in the Caucasus. The women in her story were surprisingly open, some of them determinedly having affairs and living their own lives. There is a sense of the dichotomy between the traditional and the modern, between Islam and Christianity, between Azerbaijan and Russia. I admit my attention did wander at some points during listening to the audio narration but overall it was an interesting story, with quite a different tone than I had expected.

[Kathrin Passig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ich dachte, ich lese mal was aus einem nichteuropäischen und islamischen Land, in dem Fall Aserbeidschan. Wie mich das weiterbilden wird! Aber dann ging es so viel um das schöne blonde Kindermädchen vs. die dunklen bärtigen fetten Frauen der Verwandtschaft, das Kinderspiel "Massaker an den Armeniern", das Leben in einer Multimillionärsfamilie und die Rückständigkeit des Islam wie nie zuvor. Die Autorin ist am Ende des Buchs 18, aber aufgeschrieben hat sie alles mit 40, man kann das also nicht vollständig mit "das Kind kennt es halt nicht anders" wegerklären. Aber es hatte schöne Stellen, und wie immer war es interessant, über eine Zeit des radikalen Umbruchs, die von den Erwachsenen als Katastrophe empfunden wird, aus der Sicht einer Jugendlichen zu lesen, die darin vor allem neue Freiheiten sieht.

[Lala Rustamli · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book describing the realities, cultural and traditional framework alongside with political events in Caucasus, especially in Baku in 1910-1920s. The book is full of unexpected events and views of people, as a reader who lived in Baku for ages, I didn't expect that women were so fierce and open minded 100 years ago than they are now. I loved references, as when Banine sees Andrey, she asks him if he is Balkonski, and Andrey asks him if she considers herself Natasha(perfect reference to "War and Peace") I respect Banine, as a bourgeois she lost everything but accepted communism after the revolution. Overall, this is the best book I have read from local literature.

[Lesereien · Rating 5 out of 5]

Banine, die in eine der reichsten aserbaidschanischen Familien geboren wurde, erzählt in “Kaukasische Tage” von ihrer Kindheit und Jugend in Baku zu Beginn des letzten Jahrhunderts. Baku ist zu jener Zeit ein Schmelztiegel der Kulturen, ist sowohl europäisch geprägt als auch orientalisch.

Banines Großmutter ist streng islamisch und hängt alten Traditionen nach. Doch ihre Gouvernante ist deutsch und spätere Erzieherinnen sind französisch und englisch. Ihr Vater reist durch die Welt, heiratet nach dem Tod der Mutter eine junge Russin aus Moskau, die eine Affinität für Frankreich hat und die Banine sich zum Vorbild erkürt. Sie bewegt sich in einer modernen Welt, in der die Frauen sich von Religion und Patriarchat zu befreien verstehen.

Es ist eine schillernde, flirrende und verrückte Kindheit, die zwischen Hammam-Partys, Sommerurlauben am Kaspischen Meer, lauten Familienzusammenkünften, die oft in Streitereien ausarten und unzähligen Streichen stattfindet.
Banine lebt leidenschaftlich, hat viel Fantasie, träumt und liest schon als Kind heimlich französische und russische Autoren. Sie verliebt sich - meistens gemeinsam mit ihren Schwestern - in Offiziere und Gärtner. Doch es ist die Liebe zu Andrei Masarin, einem russischen Revolutionär, die ihre große Liebe ist und unerfüllt bleiben muss. Denn mit fünfzehn wird Banine mit einem viel älteren Mann verheiratet.

Aber es ist auch eine Kindheit, die vor dem Hintergrund politischer und gesellschaftlicher Umwälzungen stattfindet. Die Familie muss zeitweise aus Angst vor Pogromen nach Persien fliehen. Die Freude über die Republiksgründung ist nur von kurzer Dauer und der Einmarsch der Roten Armee führt nicht nur zur Beschlagnahmung des Vermögens und Eigentums der Familie, sondern auch zur Inhaftierung des Vaters.

Die Autorin erzählt ihre eigene Lebensgeschichte auf eine bewegende, mitreißende und eindrückliche Art und Weise. Wüsste man es nicht besser, so würde man denken, man hält einen Roman zwischen den Händen, so bunt, laut und unbändig ist dieses Leben.

[Jax · Rating 5 out of 5]

This delightfully frank and at times irreverent memoir describes a pivotal period in Azerbaijani history and how one family navigated the upheaval. Umm El-Banu Assadullayeva was born into a wealthy family in 1905, at the height of the oil boom in Baku, Azerbaijan. Her youth also included a period that she calls “the end of a world, our capitalist world,” which occurred when she saw lorries full of Red soldiers arriving in Baku. She will receive a vast inheritance and lose it with equanimity. Perhaps this is because she was a child and had no exposure to the reality of lack. Her view can be summed up in the opening lines.

We all know families that are poor but ‘respectable’. Mine, in contrast, was extremely rich but not ‘respectable’ at all. At the time I was born they were outrageously wealthy, but those days are long gone. Sad for us, though quite right in the moral scheme of things.

The most enjoyable period of this memoir is during her childhood, before she approaches the age when a forced marriage is on the horizon and with it a loss of her world’s animistic loveliness. It is then that we see her imagination take flight, a delightful, expansive one where she made friends with rocks and animals and trees.

Like most children I was an animist and generously ascribed souls to objects and plants. What were inanimate objects to others, to me were full of feelings, and I would run to greet them. They did not play dead with me; they replied in a simple language, sufficient for those who knew how to hear.… Almost all the poplars were my brothers… The elders lavished their friendship and protection on me, and the games my cousins and I played depended on their assistance. Their leaves were our train tickets; when we straddled their branches, we had a horse; the smallest branches became whips used by our redoubtable cousins to frighten us; and we twisted the very smallest twigs into crowns for our coronation as king or queen.

Umm El-Banu will escape Azerbaijan in 1924 and never return. But before she does, she paints for us a world where fortunes spring from a sheep field to die in a revolution. Where a huge extended family gathers at a summer dacha, conversation flowing, food and heat, and hammam parties. Where children wile away their summer days in games and mischief. Where a family blends a conservative past with a more liberal present, a shakeup of culture, religion, and their entire world. This is an immersive, colorful, and entertainingly-told story.

[Reesha (For the love of Classics) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Problematic.

I was so excited to read this. I saw it in an Azeri bookstore in Baku and got myself an English translation from Pushkin Press from Foyles.

This is an autobiography written by a woman who was born to an Azeri Muslim family in the 1900’s and this book covers her life in Baku till she left it forever for France.
The book had a strong start with beautiful prose but the voice of the author with each passing chapter turns sour and hateful. Initially I was cutting her the slack because she is writing from the point of view of herself when she was young, right? But then I realized I was young too once but these were not my thoughts EVER. So basically Banine hated Baku, her family, her cousins, their customs, their facial features, like literally everything about her roots, she thinks is despicable.
It’s a racist, xenophobic, hateful book and I’m not sure who Banine was trying to please in order to paint such a picture of her childhood using such language?
She does not spare her father, her grand mother, her husband: no one was good except people from the “civilized world”. Urgh it was horrible to read.

I’ve read books from earlier times, I read Classics all the time but this level of problematic stuff, I’ve never come across.
So, so disappointing. The 2 stars are for the nice prose even though the stuff written in that prose was crass. May be I should give it a 1 star?

[Lilly Minasyan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I believe this is my very first book written by Azerbaijani.
Banine’s memoire was very interesting (to say the least). It was an interesting insight of how people were living in the Caucasus in the beginning of the 1900’s. She was quite an open minded person and overall sounded unbiased for me.
I am also glad she talked about the Armenian-Azeri relation throughout her book and how Dashnaks had affected her life and how a good Armenian family took care of her.
Shows that in every nation there is a group that is just filled with hatred and is doomed by it.
The books is translated from French (I believe), not sure how well she has written in French, but the descriptions in English were very vivid and I did not get bored at all.
Noting, that her life was not a typical one, she was the daughter of one of the richest man in Azerbaijan, then they lost all of it to Bolsheviks and started their lives abroad, in France.
Definitely recommending this book, especially if you are as interested in history as me 📖🧐

[Annalisa Canova · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars! This memoir is so honest, humble, and deeply engaging, with a perfect touch of humor that makes it all the more captivating. The translation into Italian is just brilliant.

Banine paints an intimate portrait of her childhood and family, offering a rich and detailed description of both people and places that I felt like I was there, experiencing it all firsthand, breathing in the fresh air in her family's summer house and navigating the chaotic world of her dysfunctional family.

The book depicts a turbulent and transformative period in history, capturing the rise and fall of the wealthy Caucasian oil magnates (including Banine’s family) after the 1917 Russian Revolution.

Banine’s description of her family's struggle to strike a balance between traditional societal values with the rapid Westernization is very insightful. What truly surprised me was the strong presence and influence of the women in her family, which are portrayed as powerful, complex figures whose impact on the family dynamic is profound.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 rounded up

Days in the Caucasus is a vivid and accessible memoir detailing author Banine's life growing up in Azerbaijan in the early 20th century and her subsequent move to Paris as an adult. Having grown up as the granddaughter of an oil magnate, Banine had a more privileged childhood than most Azerbaijanis and had many experiences which would have been pretty far removed from her peers in the 1900s (and that of most of us now!).

I can't say exactly why I didn't love this as much as I expected to - perhaps I'm just a bit burnt out on memoirs or wasn't in the mood for this when I picked it up - but I wouldn't want to discourage others from reading it if it sounds appealing from the blurb, as the book certainly has its merits and is well-written.

Thank you Netgalley and Pushkin Press for the advance copy, which was provided in exchange for an honest review.

[Addrián · Rating 3 out of 5]

Últimamente han llegado a mis manos varios libros que tratan la infancia de los autores. He de comenzar diciendo que no se trata de mi género favorito, supongo que porque no sucede demasiado en el libro. Sin embargo, al leerlos, me producen buenas sensaciones al evocar recuerdos de mi propia infancia, recuerdos que de otra manera no sé si hubiera llegado a ellos.

Por otro lado, y siguiendo con un conjunto de características comunes de estos libros, tengo muchas dudas de que sean capaces de recordar todo lo que cuentan. No ya los detalles, que tendría sentido crearlos o inventarlos para crear un texto literario agradable, sino las propias experiencias o hechos acaecidos. Eso me genera cierta desconfianza en lo que estoy leyendo y viene en línea con lo primero que he dicho de que no se trata de mi género favorito.
A esto hay que añadir la conciencia de la niña en el texto, casi seguro mucho más adulta que la verdadera protagonista infantil del libro, y que está conducida por la adulta que lo escribe (la autora tenía 80 años cuando terminó el libro, 65 años después del final del transcurso de la novela).

Entrando en el libro en cuestión, es muy interesante conocer cómo era la vida en un lugar tan desconocido (para mi) como es el Cáucaso antes, durante y después de los años de la primera guerra mundial, aunque sea desde los ojos de una niña (quizá eso le da más gracia, como en "La estepa infinita") de una familia bien acaudalada. Los hechos de su vida cotidiana no tienen demasiada importancia y se vienen repitiendo a lo largo del libro, pero lo interesante es el trasfondo que deja entrever, así como los hechos históricos y como llegan a esa zona del mundo.

NOTA: los otros libros de "infancias" son "La estepa infinita" (Esther Hautzig), "El primer pozo" (Yabra Ibrahím Yabra) y "Memoria por correspondencia" (Emma Reyes). También "Pequeño país" (Gaël Faye), aunque algo distinto por se más actual la historia narrada

[Maddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this - my favourite book of the year so far.

[Caro · Rating 3 out of 5]

No soy muy partidaria de leer Memorias o Autobiografías, creo que el paso de los años hace que nuestros recuerdos sean los buenos maravillosos y rodeados de un aura que nos hace añorar esos tiempos y los no tan buenos se magnifican, además pienso que las filias y las fobias se magnifican y temas que en su momento nos dolieron, nos hicieron sufrir con el tiempo se ponen en su justa medida y quizá hasta sabemos más de las razones que llevaron a que esas actitudes puedan no ser tan extremas como las recordamos.
Dicho esto, Los días del Cáucaso me ha parecido algo similar a lo que cuento, son los recuerdos de la autora, niña, adolescente, hija de una familia acaudalada de Bakú gracias al petróleo que de repente se ve pasando de la opulencia a la frugalidad, la familia es una locura, se aman y se odian a partes iguales, los insultos, las peleas, los enfados son estallidos llenos de rencor, de ansias de más dinero, hasta que se produce la revolución rusa en 1917 y todo cambia, Banine, seudónimo de Umm-El-Banine Assadoulaeff, se ve abocada a un matrimonio concertado a los quince años, no podemos olvidar que viene de una familia musulmana donde la niña-mujer es desposada sin haber pasado por la juventud.
La editorial pinta estas memorias casi como una sátira, original, divertido y trepidante, yo debería de estar en otro lugar o en otros pensamientos ya que de eso no he visto nada, original no tiene mucho, divertido pues depende de los ojos con que se lea y de trepidante poco, es más bien algo lenta, muy descriptiva y una protagonista soñadora y bastante inconsciente.
Las memorias solo llegan a cubrir los primeros quince años de Banine, hasta que por fin puede ir a París donde está el resto de su familia más cercana, padre, madrastra y hermanas y cumple su sueño, del resto de su vida no nos cuenta nada y creo que esa sería la parte más interesante.
Está bien escrito, resulta ameno y entretenido pero no mucho más.

[Mandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Umm-El-Banine Assadoulaeff was born in Baku, Azerbaijan in 1905 into one of Baku’s wealthiest families, millionaires thanks to the oil boom. She lived a life of luxury until the Bolsheviks came and her country was later absorbed into the Soviet Union. Banine, the name she adopted after her emigration to France, lived a life of privilege during these turbulent times, until it was all snatched away from her and from her family. But this is definitely not a “woe-is-me” memoir, but an enchanting, vivid portrait of an unfamiliar and now vanished world. The history of Azerbaijan, its customs and culture, come to life in Banine’s recounting. In turns romantic, tragic, comic, it’s an absorbing and wonderfully atmospheric book that takes the reader right into an unknown world. Written in 1945 but only now translated into English, it’s a gem of a book that I read almost at a sitting. Highly recommended.

[Sana Abdulla · Rating 1 out of 5]

When I think of how much I wanted to read this book and how long I waited to find it. I'm doubly disappointed.
This is the early memoirs of the writer, from her childhood till her marriage at the ripe old age of fifteen. Born in a rich Azerbaijani family that loses its fortune when the Russians annexe Azerbaijan to the USSR. She writes more about herself and her family and cousins in respect to herself. Lots of details that are more interesting to her than anyone else. The writing strives to be lighthearted and funny but she portrays her family and herself as spoilt, selfish, argumentative and more materialistic than anything else. They have no loyalty to their culture or country and no kindness among themselves or towards the hoards of servants that adore them. I also got bored with her walks and daydreaming and lolling about in bed. There is a second book about her life in France but of course I learnt the hard way.

[Ellada · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe it is due to poor translation, but most of the episodes of this novel make impression that the author didn't have any devotion to her motherland as well as her family and people around. Banine actually confirms that at some point saying she's never had a feeling of attachment neither to the customs and traditions of Muslim community, nor to people around her. And that's probably not just a tall talk, otherwise I can't explain why nearly everything is presented in exaggeratedly negative context - characters, actions, lifestyle...

All in all, except for this unpleasant 'aftertaste', it's not the most boring and incurious book I've ever read, therefore 2*.

[Amanda Worman Holmgaard · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed Banine's writing style and the colorful descriptions of life in a time and place so vibrantly different than my own- and I know she and her book were products of their time- but the cavalier accounts of numerous instances of sexual assault and abuse turned this book from a four star into a two star for me.

[Ati · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book, specially the latter parts, so much that I didn't want it to end. The life story of Banine was very interesting. I am not sure if the translation in English was the best though.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hugely enjoyable memoir of a young woman coming of age around the time of the Russian Revolution. Although living in Baku it doesn’t take long for events to overtake the nascently independent Azerbaijan and for the life of huge privilege that the author has grown up with to disappear. Most of the novel however concentrates on the kind of spoilt and beautiful lives that rich young women were living at the time - although always with the threat of unpalatable arranged marriages hanging over them. There is a real feel of a clash of cultures but it also gives some unexpected perspectives that did make me see some things in a different way.

This is very different to more contemporary literary memoirs. Amongst the privilege Banine faces a series of real hardships but there is no self pity or self absorption and the narrative maintains a lightness (maybe even flippancy) that felt refreshing. Maybe for some that would (fairly?) suggest a lack of substance but it definitely didn’t diminish my enjoyment at all and in the end her beautifully rich descriptions added Azerbaijan to the list of places I would like to visit!

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well that was a surprise! This is a memoir of an early 20th century Baku childhood. As well as offering a rich historical and cultural perspective (a unique one - Banine was clearly ‘quite a character’ as they say), it’s also an entertaining coming of age story.

Having spent six happy years in Baku I loved revisiting memories of Caucus hospitality, country dachas, hamams, delicious wedding feasts and big Azerbaijani family get togethers. What I didn’t expect was Banine’s humour and the sometimes shocking openness about love, lust, money and family drama (complete with a multitude of feisty female characters and the most memorable sweary insults).

On a serious note, this book has helped me understand the political turmoil of the regime changes between 1917 and 1920, and the impact on individual families and Azerbaijani society.

I’d like to know more about Banine’s adult life in Paris….And I’d be interested to know what my Azerbaijani Goodreads friends make of this book.

[Sarah (sarahanneisreading) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Camilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5
"I legami di sangue? Devo confessare che non li ho mai sentiti per nessuno. Sono un'ottimistica invenzione dell'umanità o sono un mostro io? L'osservazione imparziale sembra dimostrare che nelle famiglie in cui gli interessi divergono, l'odio tra parenti è costante e generalizzato; dove gli interessi non dividono, a volte l'affetto persiste. Ma il più delle volte c'è solo indifferenza attraversata di tanto in tanto da un senso del dovere da compiere nei confronti del clan che si può, con un po' di immaginazione, scambiare per amore. In verità, il regime naturale tra i membri di una famiglia mi sembra l'indifferenza. Se si pensa al numero di persone che bisogna conoscere per trovare qualche amico, il fatto di trovare delle affinità in quel piccolissimo gruppo che è la famiglia sembra piuttosto sorprendente"

[Lena Ka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ein absolut beeindruckendes Buch in vielerlei Hinsicht. Zu Beginn musste ich mich etwas an den Ton der Autorin gewöhnen, der schonungslos alle schlechten Eigenschsften der Menschen um sie herum offen legt. Doch genau dieser macht das Buch aus: Banine ist in der Lage, die Geschichte Aserbaidschan zu Beginn des 20. Jahrhunderts in all seinen Facetten dem Leser zu vermitteln. Es ist sehr spannend, ein Verständnis von den gesellschaftlichen Umbrüchenzu bekommen, die dadurch entstehen, dass durch den Öl-Boom, und später die Oktoberrevolution, immer mehr westliche Einflüsse in das Land eindringen. Doch wird nicht das Bild muslimischer Frauen gezeichnet, die der Rettung bedürfen. Vielmehr zeigt Banine auf, von wie unterschiedlichem und oft sehr widerspenstigen Charakter sie und ihre Verwandten sind. Es handelt sich um ein Buch, dass dringend weiterzuempfehlen ist, um einen Eindruck eines Landes und einer Geschichte zu bekommen, die bei uns nur wenig Aufmerksamkeit bekommt. Hinzu kommen Passagen, die eindrucksvoll das Imnenleben Banines widerspiegeln und philosophische Qualität haben. Leider endet die Geschichte mit der Ankunft Banines in Paris. Mich hätten hier sehr ihre Schilderungen zu der Stadt interessiert, von der sie so lange geträumt und die sie so sehr herbeigesehnt hat.