A bit of a schizophrenic novel. The first half explores the life of a character born in Bulgaria near the end of the 1800s. Through this life, you see the various social upheavals that have occurred there since the Turkish period. It is an interesting social history and focuses on a topic I am interested in, which is the long-term effect on society and personal psychology of living under the Communist system where acknowledged reality and lived reality diverged so distinctly.
The second half of the book changes characters and location - Georgia and the US. Its focus is organized crime and the exploitation of traditional cultures by the american music industry. Less successful, less subtle, too trendyish.
Strangely, the guy who wrote this book is Indian.
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