Synopses & Reviews
A Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award
Aleksandar Hemon's lives begin in Sarajevo, where boyhood is consumed by street soccer and sibling rivalry, and a young mans life is about American music, bad poetry, and slightly better journalism. At the age of twenty-seven, Hemon journeyed to Chicago — a trip that would mark the beginning of another life, this time in the United States. There, he watched from afar as war broke out in Bosnia, his parents and sister fleeing, and Hemon himself unable to return.
Yet this, his first book of nonfiction, is much more than a memoir of these experiences. At once a love song to two cities and a paean to the bonds of family, The Book of My Lives is a singular work of passion, built on fierce intelligence, unspeakable tragedies, and sharp insight. Like the best narratives, it is a book that will leave you a different reader when you finish — and a different person, with a new way of looking at the world.
Review
“The Book of My Lives is written with the full force of humanity. It will make you think, laugh, cry, and remember yourself. If youve never read Aleksandar Hemon, prepare to have your worldview deepened.” Jonathan Safran Foer
Review
“Incandescent. When your eyes close, the power of Aleksandar Hemon's colossal talent remains.” Junot Díaz
Review
“At once unimaginable and unforgettable.” Time
Review
“At once unimaginable and unforgettable.” Time
Review
“As crowded as the pool of contemporary writers wrestling with the American experience has become...no discussion is complete without Aleksandar Hemon.” Chicago Tribune
Review
“An extraordinary story.” The New Yorker
About the Author
Aleksandar Hemon is the author of The Question of Bruno, Nowhere Man, The Lazarus Project, and Love and Obstacles. He has been the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, a “genius grant” from the MacArthur Foundation, the Jan Michalski Prize for Literature, the PEN/W. G. Sebald Award, and, most recently, a 2012 USA Fellowship. He lives in Chicago.