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I humburi
An impassioned indictment of government oppression, this novel follows the fortunes of Thesar Lumi, a laborer living under communist rule in Soviet-controlled Albania. At the center of the story is a crucial decision Lumi makes in the last days of the Second World War: he has a chance to leave Albania on a refugee ship headed to Italy, but at the last moment he disembarks and returns home to his village. As it happens, he has chosen a grim existence. To survive, he is forced to work in a concrete factory, from which he watches friends and family members run afoul of repressive new laws. But even as the book skillfully depicts the slow suffocation of a whole society, it also celebrates the moments of love and hope that sustain the people and holds out the possibility that Lumi may have been right to remain at home.
253 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1992
19 people are currently reading
735 people want to read
About the author
Fatos Kongoli
38 books94 followersFatos Kongoli has recently become one of the most forceful and convincing representatives of contemporary Albanian prose.
He studied mathematics in China during the tense years of the Sino-Albanian alliance.
Kongoli chose not to publish any major works during the dictatorship. Rather than this, he devoted his creative energies at the time to an obscure and apolitical career as a mathematician, and waited for the storm to pass.
His narrative talent and individual style only really emerged, at any rate, in the nineties, since the fall of the communist dictatorship.
He studied mathematics in China during the tense years of the Sino-Albanian alliance.
Kongoli chose not to publish any major works during the dictatorship. Rather than this, he devoted his creative energies at the time to an obscure and apolitical career as a mathematician, and waited for the storm to pass.
His narrative talent and individual style only really emerged, at any rate, in the nineties, since the fall of the communist dictatorship.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
January 5, 2013
If you happen to be writing a dissertation called “Artistic Representations of Life Under Communism,” you definitely want to read this book. If you are just looking for entertainment, you probably don’t.
Thesar Lumi, our narrator, is indeed a loser. At age 40, he’s an alcoholic, still living with his parents, and working dead-end jobs when he works at all. The initial setting is Albania in 1991, but most of the book relates Thesar’s life story: essentially, the story of how growing up under a totalitarian regime turned him into the loser he is.
The story is not an uninteresting one, but it’s told in such a way that guarantees it will be found primarily in university libraries. Mostly it’s narration, including paragraphs that go on for more than a page; characters speak occasionally but there’s not the back-and-forth dialogue common to English-language literature. Consequently, the characters are reasonably distinct, but mostly because Thesar just tells us what they’re like; it would be a difficult for a reader to become emotionally attached to anyone in the story, including Thesar himself. There are some decent visuals and symbolism, although the historical background itself is not explained. Sensible enough, since the book was originally written in Albanian for readers who hardly needed a primer, but for the translation, an introduction would have been appropriate.
As for the translation itself, it is quite readable. There are lots of short sentences and the prose flows well enough. It could have used another read-through by an editor though, as there are a few glaring mistakes (“she consumed me literally body and soul”.... so she’s a cannibal and a Dementor?).
At any rate, this book will be of limited interest: not be a bad choice if you’re looking for a political novel about the psychological effects of living under a repressive regime, particularly if you are already familiar with Albanian history, but not something that is likely to have broad appeal. I don’t regret reading it, particularly since it's quite short, but wouldn’t seek out more of Kongoli’s work.
Thesar Lumi, our narrator, is indeed a loser. At age 40, he’s an alcoholic, still living with his parents, and working dead-end jobs when he works at all. The initial setting is Albania in 1991, but most of the book relates Thesar’s life story: essentially, the story of how growing up under a totalitarian regime turned him into the loser he is.
The story is not an uninteresting one, but it’s told in such a way that guarantees it will be found primarily in university libraries. Mostly it’s narration, including paragraphs that go on for more than a page; characters speak occasionally but there’s not the back-and-forth dialogue common to English-language literature. Consequently, the characters are reasonably distinct, but mostly because Thesar just tells us what they’re like; it would be a difficult for a reader to become emotionally attached to anyone in the story, including Thesar himself. There are some decent visuals and symbolism, although the historical background itself is not explained. Sensible enough, since the book was originally written in Albanian for readers who hardly needed a primer, but for the translation, an introduction would have been appropriate.
As for the translation itself, it is quite readable. There are lots of short sentences and the prose flows well enough. It could have used another read-through by an editor though, as there are a few glaring mistakes (“she consumed me literally body and soul”.... so she’s a cannibal and a Dementor?).
At any rate, this book will be of limited interest: not be a bad choice if you’re looking for a political novel about the psychological effects of living under a repressive regime, particularly if you are already familiar with Albanian history, but not something that is likely to have broad appeal. I don’t regret reading it, particularly since it's quite short, but wouldn’t seek out more of Kongoli’s work.
November 23, 2021
"...te uroja qe bashke me mua, ne gjumin tim me endrra apo pa endrra, te ngrinte edhe koha."
September 23, 2023
"Para todo el mundo y desde todos los puntos de vista soy un incapaz, una nulidad de hombre"
"Porque mi vida ha sido mediocre, la vida de un hombre que nunca fue nadie y nunca hizo nada, una vida anónima disuelta en el anonimato de un barrio perdido de una pequeña ciudad perdida, aunque cercana a la capital"
Fatos Kongoli es el hijo bastardo de Camus y Cioran: lo digo como elogio. Al igual que en El extranjero, Thesar Lumi recibe la vida sin inmutarse; una especie de estoicismo negativo; la vida, como la muerte, le da igual; no se suicida por la misma razón. En ese sentido su espíritu es balcánico, pues decía Cioran no vale la pena suicidarse, pues uno siempre se suicida demasiado tarde.
La tensión espiritual de Thesar Lumi es la contrapartida de Novecento de Baricco; si en Novecento un ser humano no puede bajar de un barco, en Nulidad de hombre, un ser humano no puede subir a un barco, así sea para huir de la dictadura comunista de Enver Hoxha. En este sentido, he leído reseñas que asocian este libro a un retrato político de la época y me parece un error. Kongoli habla de algo particular y universal a la vez: la indiferencia ante la vida por haber comprendido que todo es fútil.
"No sentía nada y mi alma estaba más vacía"
"por desgracia, como toda mi generación, he crecido sin sentimientos religiosos"
En este sentido, la muerte de Dios no es una profecía gozosa. Dios estaba muerto, sí, pero ahora no había salida posible. Como dice Sartre: si Dios está muerto, el ser humano no sólo es culpable de lo que hace, sino que también es culpable de lo que no hace. Y nuestro protagonista, Lumi, no se sube al barco, no ayuda a sus amigos, no recibe el amor que se le ofrece; lo que sí hace es embriagarse y recordar, pero no a la manera de Proust, para recuperar el tiempo en la narración estética sino para condensar la desesperanza.
"El coñac debe de actuar como un lubricante que, a través de los vasos sanguíneos, consigue penetrar en el cerebro, engrasando mi oxidada red subcortical. Entonces, algo se activa. Tras la primera copa comienza el desplazamiento. Comienza igualmente mi dolorosa liberación"
"(…) pedí el quinto doble. Entonces sentí bajo la piel una suavidad de terciopelo. Quien no la haya sentido no podrá entender de qué se trata. El mundo se equilibra, los razonamientos se clarifican. En el alma triunfa la justicia o, más exactamente, el sentimiento de justicia y te encuentras en una situación en la que juzgas con claridad, sin complejos o, mejor dicho, sin miedo"
Esta novela es básicamente la narración de un hombre, un hombre que se baja de un barco porque algo le impide abandonar su pequeño pueblo. Nos narra la decepción de ver a su padre sometido, lo cual es traumático para cualquier niño; un padre siempre debe inspirar respeto y nunca lástima: el niño decide vengarse y en el proceso (crueldad animal), lo cual parece ser el único remordimiento o mejor dicho el remordimiento que partió su vida. De ahí en fuera, su vida se desarrolló de manera normal y hasta tuvo una novia bonita. Pero se enteran de que un familiar de Lumi está en contra de la dictadura y corren a Lumi de la universidad y la familia de su novia cae en desgracia. Todo se va al carajo; es la narración de la vida de un hombre simple, me recuerda a Stoner en ese sentido, la narración de una vida casi insignificante y que hace una novela brillante, humana, demasiado humana.
"en la pequeña ciudad los niños se hacían hombres con rapidez"
"Lo único que anhelaba era desentrañar hasta dónde podía llegar el inconcebible grado de la degradación humana"
"En momentos como aquellos nadie se sentía seguro. Ni los felices en su dicha ni los infelices en su desdicha. Ni los torturadores ni los torturados. Ni los sensatos ni los necios. Ni los honestos ni los deshonestos. Todos temían al tigre, todos tenían miedo los unos de los otros"
"para alcanzar la frialdad filosófica necesitaba continuar bebiendo, a sorbitos, hasta que el equilibrio fuera proporcional al hueco que iba quedando en mi copa"
"La dictadura del proletariado es la imposición de la verdad por medio de la violencia"
"el garrote te deja marcas que ni la sepultura consigue borrar"
"has cometido un pequeño error: has olvidado que al igual que tú yo también soy hijo del extrarradio y que con la leche he mamado polvo de cemento"
October 28, 2016
Unë kam lindur në 1992 dhe fatmirësisht nuk kam jetuar asnjë vit në komunizëm. Kam lexuar libra të Kadaresë, Vehbiut, Petro Markos etj në përpjekje për të parë disa këndvështrime ndaj komunizmit por ky libër ishte surprizë ! Fatos Kongoli më ka mahnitur. Me një stil që mu dukte herë si Dostojevski, herë si Bukowski, me një lloj ironie të thellë qoftë dhe ndaj vetes nuk ka sesi ky libër mos të të duket një thesar. E humbur isha edhe unë faqeve të librit. E humbur në përfytyrimin se ku mbaronte realiteti dhe ku fillonte imagjinata, edhe pse e bindur që mizoritë në komunizëm kanë qënë aq të rënda sa brezi ynë nuk mund ti imagjinojë dot. Sado të lexojë e të kërkojë, mund ti afrohet shumë, por asnjëherë plotësisht, aq sa ata që e jetuan. Sapo "ta përtyp" këtë libër do lexoj Dragoi i Fildishtë sepse e kam blerë. Kush nga ju që ka lexuar Kongolin di të më sugjerojë ndonjë libër tjetër që duhet patjetër ta kem?
June 17, 2024
Ngjarjet zhvillohen ne dy kohe, ate komuniste dhe post-komuniste. Libri te le nje shije tipike Kongoliane, ku personazhi kryesore eshte i ndjekur nga romanticizmi dhe depresioni ne te njejten kohe. Ne shume pjese te librit duket thirrja e autorit kundrejt sistemit te athershem. Packa se mesazhi i librit kuptohet lehte, ngjarja dhe kreativiteti i Kongolit te ben ta shijosh akoma me shume si liber.
Me pelqeu jashte mase, fillimi i librit me Xhoden dhe mbarimi i tij serisht me te. Pjeset e reflektimit ndaj Sonjes dhe Vilmes, jane ajo cka me bejn ta lexoj si autor. Di ta perkthej ndjenjen ne fjale mjaft mire dhe natyrshem.
Personalisht mendoj se, Lekura e Qenit eshte nje liber akoma me i mire i autorit. Prandaj dhe nuk vura 5 yje librit aktual.
Me pelqeu jashte mase, fillimi i librit me Xhoden dhe mbarimi i tij serisht me te. Pjeset e reflektimit ndaj Sonjes dhe Vilmes, jane ajo cka me bejn ta lexoj si autor. Di ta perkthej ndjenjen ne fjale mjaft mire dhe natyrshem.
Personalisht mendoj se, Lekura e Qenit eshte nje liber akoma me i mire i autorit. Prandaj dhe nuk vura 5 yje librit aktual.
October 8, 2015
Liber i mrekullueshem, prekes deri ne dhembje. Kongoli di ta perdori gjuhen per te shprehur anet me te errta te mendjes, skutat ku prehet dhembja deri ne perhumbim. Nje nga anet me te zymta e meskine te komunizmit shfaqet ne kete liber e sesi preket e shpernahet si plage ne te gjithe shoqerine e saj ne teresi.
Wonderful book for those who are interested in the effects of communism in Albania. To be read in the orginial language if possible. The choice of words and vocabulary is magnificent. It described the pain in the deepest levels a human can feel. Praise to the author.
Wonderful book for those who are interested in the effects of communism in Albania. To be read in the orginial language if possible. The choice of words and vocabulary is magnificent. It described the pain in the deepest levels a human can feel. Praise to the author.
July 18, 2024
igual la sufrí
August 16, 2018
Jo libri me i bukur ne bote, por eshte historia reale e jetes ne Shqiperi, ku njerezit ishin te humbur te deshtuar, dhe pa integritet. Partia dhe diktatura u kishin marre gjithcka madje edhe deshiren per jete, dhe c'eshte edhe me trishtuese eshte fakti se si shprese shihej vapori i mbipopulluar qe te qonte drejt brigjeve te Italise.
Frika qe s'mund te mbeshteteshe as ne familjen tende e lere me larg, flet per nje intelegjence skizofrene te sistemit qe te mbante ne kontrolle cdo segment jete.
Frika qe s'mund te mbeshteteshe as ne familjen tende e lere me larg, flet per nje intelegjence skizofrene te sistemit qe te mbante ne kontrolle cdo segment jete.
April 1, 2018
Ky roman pasqyron kohen e shoqërisë tiranike në Shqipërinë komuniste. Kongoli perdor nje stil shum interesant te te shprehurit te dhimbjes, jo asaj te dukshmes por asaj qe sherben si motiv i ekzistences tone. Asaj qe nuk na lejon te shkoqitemi nga toka ametare, te harrojme dheun qe mbulon njerzit tane te dashur, e te krijojme paqe me vetveten.
Gjithashtu ikjen e shumedeshiruar nga Shqiperia, shpesh here e pare edhe si krim ndaj shoqerise, sikur te mos ishe kjo nje deshire individuale e cdokujt, autori e pasqyron ne menyre perfekte.
"Ne rriteshim te bindur se ishim femijet me te lumtur ne bote. Keshtu thuhet ne kenget qe mesonim."
Gjithashtu ikjen e shumedeshiruar nga Shqiperia, shpesh here e pare edhe si krim ndaj shoqerise, sikur te mos ishe kjo nje deshire individuale e cdokujt, autori e pasqyron ne menyre perfekte.
"Ne rriteshim te bindur se ishim femijet me te lumtur ne bote. Keshtu thuhet ne kenget qe mesonim."
July 30, 2015
One of the best novels of the post-Communist Albania, from one of the best contemporary Albanian writers.
December 18, 2025
I picked this up in my search for contemporary Albanian fiction in English translation, and found it to be surprisingly readable. The story opens in March 1991, as Albania is in transition from communist rule to a more open society. The titular protagonist has joined his closest friend and hundreds of other desperate Albanians trying to get across the Adriatic to the fabled paradise of Italy. This is based on a real event at the port of Durres, but here the narrator abandons the ship at the last moment in an act emblematic of his passive (and again, titular) nature.
We come to learn that he's in his 40s, living at home with his parents in a tiny apartment, no real job, drowning the days in cheap cognac. The story flashes back to the 1970s to tell of his time as a schoolboy, and then university student, then concrete factory drone. The depiction of life under the Hoxha dictatorship is vividly drawn, as his family lives under the concealed shame of his uncle having fled the country. This secret hovers over his life, as its revelation could end his meager prospects at school, work, etc. His interest in the beautiful daughter of the school headmaster puts him at odds with the town bully and his band of thugs, and then later in university, his relationship with a beautiful older widow puts him at odds with a jealous national policeman. In both cases, the grip of the dictatorship and its effects casually come into the story to crush lives.
The book definitely delivers a strong sense of the heaviness of life under the Hoxha regime. However, in doing so, it spends too much time in the narrator's head, describing his existential angst and depression. The book also fails in delivering a plausible reason for either of these desirable women (as well as a Romany girl, who has sex with him) to be interested in the passive protagonist. Readers with an interest in depictions of life under late communist rule are the most likely to respond to this.
We come to learn that he's in his 40s, living at home with his parents in a tiny apartment, no real job, drowning the days in cheap cognac. The story flashes back to the 1970s to tell of his time as a schoolboy, and then university student, then concrete factory drone. The depiction of life under the Hoxha dictatorship is vividly drawn, as his family lives under the concealed shame of his uncle having fled the country. This secret hovers over his life, as its revelation could end his meager prospects at school, work, etc. His interest in the beautiful daughter of the school headmaster puts him at odds with the town bully and his band of thugs, and then later in university, his relationship with a beautiful older widow puts him at odds with a jealous national policeman. In both cases, the grip of the dictatorship and its effects casually come into the story to crush lives.
The book definitely delivers a strong sense of the heaviness of life under the Hoxha regime. However, in doing so, it spends too much time in the narrator's head, describing his existential angst and depression. The book also fails in delivering a plausible reason for either of these desirable women (as well as a Romany girl, who has sex with him) to be interested in the passive protagonist. Readers with an interest in depictions of life under late communist rule are the most likely to respond to this.
May 2, 2024
"Una nulidad de hombre" de Fatos Kongoli sigue la historia de Thesar Lumi, un residente en una pequeña ciudad cercana a la capital de Albania, Tirana. En marzo de 1991, Thesar toma la decisión de subirse a un barco en Durrës con la esperanza de huir hacia Italia, como miles de otros albaneses. Sin embargo, en el último momento, cambia de opinión y decide bajarse del barco. Este acto altera irrevocablemente el curso de su vida.
Durante su regreso a la capital, Thesar reflexiona sobre los eventos que marcaron su juventud en las décadas de 1960 y 1970. A través de un relato crudo y vívido, Thesar narra la violencia, la delación, el racismo, el amor secreto, el miedo y la corrupción que impregnaban la sociedad bajo la dictadura de Enver Hoxha. La narrativa captura de manera realista y desgarradora la desesperanza y la sensación de claustrofobia que caracterizaban a la sociedad albanesa durante ese período.
Reseña:
"Una nulidad de hombre" de Fatos Kongoli es una poderosa exploración de la vida bajo la opresión de la dictadura de Enver Hoxha en Albania. A través de la historia de Thesar Lumi, el autor ofrece un retrato crudo y realista de una sociedad marcada por la violencia, el miedo y la corrupción. Kongoli utiliza una prosa evocadora y vívida para transportar al lector a la desesperanzada y claustrofóbica atmósfera de la Albania comunista. La narrativa está hábilmente estructurada, alternando entre el presente de Thesar y los recuerdos de su juventud, lo que permite al lector comprender la complejidad de su experiencia y las fuerzas que moldearon su vida. "Una nulidad de hombre" es una obra conmovedora y profundamente humana que ofrece una perspectiva única sobre un período oscuro de la historia albanesa.
Durante su regreso a la capital, Thesar reflexiona sobre los eventos que marcaron su juventud en las décadas de 1960 y 1970. A través de un relato crudo y vívido, Thesar narra la violencia, la delación, el racismo, el amor secreto, el miedo y la corrupción que impregnaban la sociedad bajo la dictadura de Enver Hoxha. La narrativa captura de manera realista y desgarradora la desesperanza y la sensación de claustrofobia que caracterizaban a la sociedad albanesa durante ese período.
Reseña:
"Una nulidad de hombre" de Fatos Kongoli es una poderosa exploración de la vida bajo la opresión de la dictadura de Enver Hoxha en Albania. A través de la historia de Thesar Lumi, el autor ofrece un retrato crudo y realista de una sociedad marcada por la violencia, el miedo y la corrupción. Kongoli utiliza una prosa evocadora y vívida para transportar al lector a la desesperanzada y claustrofóbica atmósfera de la Albania comunista. La narrativa está hábilmente estructurada, alternando entre el presente de Thesar y los recuerdos de su juventud, lo que permite al lector comprender la complejidad de su experiencia y las fuerzas que moldearon su vida. "Una nulidad de hombre" es una obra conmovedora y profundamente humana que ofrece una perspectiva única sobre un período oscuro de la historia albanesa.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 16, 2025
This; and another book from Fatos Kongoli; were a duo that I bought pretty randomly in Albania's Book Fair 2023 after my mom saw the writer and told me that he was an exceptionally renowned one. I am glad that both books were chosen by Mr. Kongoli and that I have them both signed by him.
I loved the storytelling on this one, amazing world-building, especially for an Albanian child of the late 90s who has not experienced the darkness of the many years that my country wasted under the communist regime. I liked the depiction of "different Albanians", some more equal than others and some equal among being "lesser". The gradual decline of the main character's view of the world as bad things happen to the people around him (and to him as a default of the regime) was a key element of the book, which I could not explain in any other language better than in my native one - "bjerrja e nje shpirti" - I genuinely loved this one.
I loved the storytelling on this one, amazing world-building, especially for an Albanian child of the late 90s who has not experienced the darkness of the many years that my country wasted under the communist regime. I liked the depiction of "different Albanians", some more equal than others and some equal among being "lesser". The gradual decline of the main character's view of the world as bad things happen to the people around him (and to him as a default of the regime) was a key element of the book, which I could not explain in any other language better than in my native one - "bjerrja e nje shpirti" - I genuinely loved this one.
July 7, 2023
Había leído Piel de perro de Kongoli, y creo que sigue siendo mi favorito, pero este libro es durísimo porque el protagonista y narrador está básicamente roto. La vida en el país y en las circunstancias que le tocaron vivir le arrebataron todo. Son elementos que ya leí en las dos novelas suyas que he leído, la decepción, pero también algo parecido al amor. Acá ya con el título te das cuenta de lo que piensa sobre sí mismo, lo duro es ver cómo es que llegó a verse a sí mismo de esa manera. Seguiré leyendo a Kongoli, creo que sus historias, si van todas por este tono son terribles, pero a al vez muy humanas, me deja muy conmovida este libro, y por un rato me sentí desesperada y con ganas de cachetearlo, pero me emocionó y entristeció casi por igual.
March 17, 2025
Το τελευταίο καιρό αποφάσισα να επισκεφτώ (λογοτεχνικά) την Αλβανία, μια χώρα που παραδόξως ξέρουμε πολύ λιγότερο απ'όσο θα έπρεπε. Πράγματι, πόσα γνωρίζουμε για την πριν το 1990 κατάσταση πέρα από τον Χότζα και τα πολυβολεία του; Κάπως έτσι ξεκίνησε η αναζήτηση μου για συγγραφείς που εξερευνούν την κομμουνιστική κληρονομιά και τι απέμεινε από αυτήν ως συλλογική βιωματική εμπειρία.
Ο Φατος Κογκολι χρησιμοποιεί την ιστορία του Θεσαρ Λούμι που αποβιβάστηκε τελευταία στιγμή από το καράβι που θα τον πήγαινε στην Ιταλία για να σχολιάσει το προσωπικό βίωμα στην κομμουνιστική εποχή της Αλβανίας. Ομολογώ ότι ήταν πολύ καλύτερο απ'ότι το περίμενα. Ο Λούμι μέσω αναμνήσεων επισκέπτεται τη ζωή του στις δεκαετίες του 60, 70 και 80 και εκθέτει τους μηχανισμούς λειτουργίας του κράτους και την ασφυκτική σχεδόν πίεση που ασκούσαν σε άτομα. Όλα παίζονταν από το ποιόν έκανες παρέα, αν έμπλεκες με λάθος γυναίκες η πολύ απλά αν ο τοπικός ανακριτής δεν γουσταρε τα μούτρα σου. Φόβος, αγωνία, μια λάθος λέξη και σε έστελνε φυλακή η ακόμη χειρότερα σε εξαφάνιζε από προσώπου γης. δύσκολα χρόνια. Πέτρινα. Στο τέλος ο Λούμι μας παρουσιάζει τι απομένει από όλα αυτά: τίποτα. Μια άδεια κωμόπολη, όπου όλοι οι κάτοικοι της έφυγαν στο εξωτερικό για μια καλύτερη ζωή. Αυτοί που απέμειναν ήταν οι αναμνήσεις και τα φαντάσματα.
Ο Φατος Κογκολι χρησιμοποιεί την ιστορία του Θεσαρ Λούμι που αποβιβάστηκε τελευταία στιγμή από το καράβι που θα τον πήγαινε στην Ιταλία για να σχολιάσει το προσωπικό βίωμα στην κομμουνιστική εποχή της Αλβανίας. Ομολογώ ότι ήταν πολύ καλύτερο απ'ότι το περίμενα. Ο Λούμι μέσω αναμνήσεων επισκέπτεται τη ζωή του στις δεκαετίες του 60, 70 και 80 και εκθέτει τους μηχανισμούς λειτουργίας του κράτους και την ασφυκτική σχεδόν πίεση που ασκούσαν σε άτομα. Όλα παίζονταν από το ποιόν έκανες παρέα, αν έμπλεκες με λάθος γυναίκες η πολύ απλά αν ο τοπικός ανακριτής δεν γουσταρε τα μούτρα σου. Φόβος, αγωνία, μια λάθος λέξη και σε έστελνε φυλακή η ακόμη χειρότερα σε εξαφάνιζε από προσώπου γης. δύσκολα χρόνια. Πέτρινα. Στο τέλος ο Λούμι μας παρουσιάζει τι απομένει από όλα αυτά: τίποτα. Μια άδεια κωμόπολη, όπου όλοι οι κάτοικοι της έφυγαν στο εξωτερικό για μια καλύτερη ζωή. Αυτοί που απέμειναν ήταν οι αναμνήσεις και τα φαντάσματα.
January 15, 2022
La historia es interesante y mantiene cierta intriga alrededor de por qué Thesar finalmente decidió quedarse, qué es eso tan grave q lo ata, q no le permite irse. Es una historia bastante trágica, creo q era la intención del autor mostrar lo difícil q es lograr una buena vida bajo un régimen opresivo y corrupto (aunq no entra en mucho detalle del contexto político).
Primera y única novela de autor albanés q he leído. En general me gustó, aunque hubo momentos dónde sentí q la historia iba demasiado lento...
Primera y única novela de autor albanés q he leído. En general me gustó, aunque hubo momentos dónde sentí q la historia iba demasiado lento...
January 28, 2025
Autori ben nje pune te mire duke na futur ne mendjen e nje njeriu te humbur. Personazhi kryesor nuk ka virtyte, bindje te qarta ose te forta ndaj dhe eshte e veshtire te kesh empati per te. Rreth tij ka gjithmon personazhe me interesante se ai.
Personazhi kryesor e kalon kohen duke vezhguar ate qe ndodh rreth tij por duket sikur nuk merr asnje iniciative. Gjerat thjesht ndodhin rreth tij. Nje personazh qe nuk zhvillohet, thjesht i mbetur pezull ne kohe duke dokumentuar fatet tragjike te atyre qe ishin me te denje se ai.
Personazhi kryesor e kalon kohen duke vezhguar ate qe ndodh rreth tij por duket sikur nuk merr asnje iniciative. Gjerat thjesht ndodhin rreth tij. Nje personazh qe nuk zhvillohet, thjesht i mbetur pezull ne kohe duke dokumentuar fatet tragjike te atyre qe ishin me te denje se ai.
August 27, 2019
Një roman i mrekullueshëm, mënyra e shkruajtjes dhe gërshetimi i kohërave në jetën e Thesar Lumit si dashamirëse e filmit që jam, më shtyri të mendoj për rrjedhën e filmit "Momento" të Nolanit. Një roman shumë origjinal dhe trishtues ku çdo faqe ma brente zemrën më shumë se tjetra. -"Thesar Lumi , ngrit veten duke e përulur", ishte një shënim i imi në fillim të librit dhe ashtu mbeti deri në fund.
September 13, 2023
The Loser is the tale of a young man in communist-ruled Albania who moves from one life-changing terrible experience to another in a small town. The author includes class structures in a "classless" society, the secret police, informants, and political intrigue in his background material, as well as small-town lack of opportunity, first love, and violence. While the tale is well-written and -told, it just doesn't carry on as strongly in the second half of the book.
July 24, 2021
im speechless. From the beginning i knew that i would like this book. Its a sad,love,crime story;
intertwined in the best way. childhood traumas make the main character and not only, suffer all his life till the tragic ending. I think this book will have different impacts to every reader.
The fact that the book is written by an albanian author makes me proud.
intertwined in the best way. childhood traumas make the main character and not only, suffer all his life till the tragic ending. I think this book will have different impacts to every reader.
The fact that the book is written by an albanian author makes me proud.
January 31, 2022
Loved the book. Witty and sad and well within the boundaries of a real novel, meaning the events imagined were not cherry picked to justify the plot, instead it almost seemed that the story was self-lived and told.
November 9, 2024
Novela en la Albania de los 70’ que nos muestra la opresión física, mental, emocional y hasta espiritual del dominado y atrapado en sus fronteras. Para reflexionar sobre la igualdad y los logros del mundo actual.
March 9, 2024
Una historia de un hombre y sus desgracias e infortunios.
Me recordó en cierta medida a “memorias del subsuelo” e “indigno de ser humano”: personajes que narran en primera persona su desgracia y sus desaciertos con mucha honestidad y que, desde ese lugar, logran conmover.
Me recordó en cierta medida a “memorias del subsuelo” e “indigno de ser humano”: personajes que narran en primera persona su desgracia y sus desaciertos con mucha honestidad y que, desde ese lugar, logran conmover.
July 15, 2024
The English title of this book is wrong--it should be called the Lost, not the Loser, a more ambiguous and in my opinion, better title.
Exploring the 1991 Albanian migrant crisis, or rather, one person who chose to not get on the boat and instead stay behind, returning to his village and contemplating his life and how he got to where he was, never really offering a definitive answer as to whether he made the right choice. History will tell us that the Albanians who wound up in the shores of Italy did not have a good time of it, so at least in his own country, he had a job and his family, which is more than most can say.
Exploring the 1991 Albanian migrant crisis, or rather, one person who chose to not get on the boat and instead stay behind, returning to his village and contemplating his life and how he got to where he was, never really offering a definitive answer as to whether he made the right choice. History will tell us that the Albanians who wound up in the shores of Italy did not have a good time of it, so at least in his own country, he had a job and his family, which is more than most can say.
November 14, 2014
This is the first book in my reading tour of Albania, and--while the story itself was fairly interesting--this was the first book I've read where it felt like the translation itself was making the story difficult to read.
March 13, 2017
"Ne rriteshim te bindur se ishim femijet me te lumtur ne bote. Keshtu thuhet ne kenget qe mesonin."
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