2021 yılı için bir okuma listesi hazırlamadım fakat elimden geldiğince Nobel ödülünü almış yazarlara eğilmeyi planladım. İlk okumam ise Ivo Andric - Drina Köprüsü oldu.

Bu kitap bir başyapıt. İnanılmaz bir eser. 2021'e böyle bir kitapla başlamatan mutluluk duydum. Umarım bütün yıl böyle güzel kitaplarla geçer.

Öncelikle bu kitaptaki dram, psikolojik olarak insanı mahvedebilecek düzeyde. Yani hassas okurlara pek önermiyorum. Özellikle başlarda tansiyon dram anlamında çok çok daha yüksek. Daha 50. sayfalarda bir kazık sekansı var ki, o bölümleri rahat rahat okuyabilmek için insan olmamak lazım.

Drina Köprüsü, öyle sürekli karşınıza çıkabilecek kitaplardan değil. Her yönüyle, anlatımı, yoğunluğu, tarihi katmanları, karakterleri, her ama her şeyiyle çok büyük bir kitap. Masallarla bezeli gerçek, tarihten beslenen kurgu, yazarın o inanılmaz betimleme yeteneği.. Aman Allah'ım. Uzun zamandır böyle bir kitap okumamıştım. Tüm zamanların en iyi kitapları seçkimde kendine yer edinebildiğini söyleyebilirim. Belki ilk 3-5'e girmez ama mutlaka listeye girer.

Okuması kolay sayılmaz. Sayfa başına kelime sayısı fazla olan kitaplardan. Yoğun ve boşluksuz satırlarıyla, her devireceğimiz sayfa emek istiyor. Burada çeviriye de değinmek isterim. Hasan Ali Ediz'in muhteşem ve hatasız çevirisi ile basılan bu kitabın dili, sayın Ediz'in tarzından ve yetkinliğinden dolayı genç okuru biraz da olsa zorlayabilir esasen. Kendisinin çeviriye ve cümlelere bakışı tam anlamıyla sanat olsa da çabuk tüketebileceğiniz hafif cümleleri yok. Tıpkı yazar gibi, çevirmen de biraz özen göstermenizi istiyor esere okurken. Kitabın diğer çevirmeni Nuriye Müstakimoğlu'nu da anmazsak ayıp etmiş oluruz. Eser Sırpça aslından çevrilmiş. Gönül rahatlığıyla kitaplığınıza ekleyebilirsiniz.

Ιστορίες, πρόσωπα, συναισθήματα κι ένας αφηγητής.
Ο Άντριτς καταφέρνει να αφηγηθεί πολλαπλές ιστορίες, οι οποίες έχουν έναν κοινό παρονομαστή: το γεφύρι πάνω στο Δρίνο.
Δεκάδες ονόματα που ισοδυναμούν σε δεκάδες ήρωες, τους οποίους γνωρίζεις σταδιακά, για κάποιους τρέφεις συμπάθεια και για άλλους όχι και τόση και σε κάθε επόμενη σελίδα ψάχνεις τη συνέχεια της ζωής τους. Τη συνέχεια της ζωής τους μέσα στη βαλκανική ιστορία.
Φτάνοντας στην τελευταία σελίδα τους θυμάσαι όλους, έναν προς έναν, αυτούς και την δική τους μικρή ή μεγάλη ιστορία και τότε αντιλαμβάνεσαι το μεγαλείο αυτού του εκπληκτικού συγγραφέα.
Πρόκειται για πραγματικό αριστούργημα!

This is a story about a beautiful white bridge on the Drina, a river in Bosnia, which was built in the 16th century. This bridge played an important part in the lives of the inhabitants of the town near the river for almost four centuries. This land is blessed with warm climate and fertile land. But the people who live here together, under the same sun, for many generations and work the land, speak different languages, pray to different Gods. For centuries empires had been fighting for this land. Every empire
left its trace.
This historical novel follows 'the life' of the bridge and consists of many different stories of the people whose lives were connected to the bridge on the Drina for almost 400 years. They are dramatic, sad, funny or tragic. Their protagonists are Bosnian, Serbs, Turks and Jews, the people who had (and have) more in common than they could ever imagine.

Quando al liceo si comincia ad affrontare la storia contemporanea viene sottolineato spesso come più volte i Balcani dopo la crisi dell'Impero Ottomano siano stati teatro di scontri coloniali, etnici e religiosi assai gravi, forieri di guerre e sofferenze per l'europa intera (dalla Prima Guerra mondiale alla scissione jugoslava della metà degli anni '90).

Ma un conto è impararle sui banchi quelle guerre, un conto è guardarle in faccia. L'ingegnere responsabile della manutenziione nella fabbrica dove lavoro è un signore colossale (alto più di due metri) robusto ma non grosso, dritto e grigio come un vecchio albero; e di un vecchio albero ha anche lo sguardo saggio di chi ne ha viste tante. Si chiama Stefan ed è croato. Un giorno mentre sacramentavo stupidamente di guerre e politiche varie, Stefan mi ha messo un ram..ehm una mano sulla spalla e mi ha parlato di sua figlia. La ha vista per la prima volta a sei mesi, perchè tra casa sua e l'ospedale della sua città in Croazia a quei tempi ci correva la linea del fronte, e per tutto quel periodo non è mai stato sicuro se avrebbe potuto rivedere la sua compagna e vedere per la prima volta la sua prima figlia.

Stefan mi ha insegnato a non invocare guerre alla leggera, ma mi ha instillato una grande curiosità per quella terra maledetta piena di popoli bellicosi e tra loro alieni ma anche di storia e di opere meravigliose. "Il ponte sulla Drina" parla di quella storia e di quelle opere, partendo dal culmine della dominazione ottomana fino alla crisi di Sarajevo che porterà alla prima guerra mondiale.

L'ambientazione non avrebbe potuto essere migliore: Ivo Andric sceglie Visegrad, un paese in piena Bosnia (la terra più martoriata dai conflitti di ogni epoca) non troppo lontano dal confine serbo, dove musulmani, serbi, croati, ebrei, zingari vivono una comunità in perpetua tensione ma che riesce a coesistere pacificamente finchè governata con forza.

La lunga sequenza di racconti mostra lo snodarsi delle generazioni attorno al possente e maestoso ponte sulla Drina, costruito dal sultano Mehemet Pasha, strumento di sviluppo di culture e commerci ma anche simbolo di un dominio unificato e di una pace imposta con la forza ma non meno fruttifera e concreta. Ma generazione dopo generazione quel potere viene meno, e con esso si sgretola la fragile corazza che impediva alle tensioni etniche e religiose di deflagrare. L' avvento della dominazione austroungarica introduce un altro attore in questo già complicato scenario, ma è con l'avvento del socialismo e con le sue dirompenti idee rivoluzionarie che la miscela diventa esplosiva. Fino a che manipoli di esaltati con idee confuse e contraddittorie tra socialismo, nazionalismo e panslavismo creeranno le condizioni per il divampare della guerra mondiale che porrà la fine alla pace nella Slavia del Sud e distruggerà il Ponte sulla Drina, secolare simbolo di essa.

Come accennato in precedenza il romanzo in realtà si struttura in una serie di racconti cronologicamente ordinati: scritti in maniera eccellente con una prosa fluida e godibile e caratterizzati da un immaginario vivido e maestoso, non rinunciano tuttavia alla missione pienamente riuscita di restituire al lettore uno spaccato ricchissimo e profondo di quella umanità variegata di culture una più viva e vivace dell'altra. E proprio questo essere prima uomini senza smettere di essere serbi o turchi, ebrei o bosniaci rende bellissimi i protagonisti delle storie e degna di un premio nobel l'intera opera.

Il romanzo non è esente da qualche piccolo difetto come per esempio di essere fin troppo assertivo e generalizzante in alcuni punti o di dare alle descrizioni del Ponte una caratura epica che sconfina nella retorica in altri. Ma quello che davvero colpisce e che restituisce al "ponte sulla Drina" tutto il suo valore è il pensiero che Andric scriveva subito dopo la seconda guerra mondiale e non aveva la minima idea di quello che sarebbe accaduto cinquant'anni dopo; ma i prodromi e le cause del conflitto che avrebbe travolto quella terra maledetta si intravedono comunque tutti. resta l'amara considerazione che siano Turchi o Austriaci, i comunisti di Tito o altro forse davvero per tenere in pace i balcani c'è bisogno comunque di un dominatore.

Non so se dopo aver letto questo libro potrò permettermi di guardare in faccia Stefan e pensare di aver capito quello che ha passato: probabilmente no. Ma sicuramente questo è un libro arricchente e godibilissimo, bello ed utile anche per sfatare molti miti che dal "TOLLERANTE" impero turco alle foibe sono stati edificati per ragioni politiche che non c'entrano nulla con le sofferenze di questa gente.

Non conoscevo Ivo Andric, e istintivamente lo consideravo come un Premio Nobel di seconda fascia. Probabilmente sbagliavo di molto.

لا أدرى لماذا ربطت بمجرد بداية قرائتى لرواية إيفو إندريتش ربطتها برواية دروز بلغراد ربما نفس معاناة الناس من الذل والتسخير والاستعباد وفرض ضريبة الدم حتى لو فى سبيل بناء إمبراطورية عظيمة تمتد حدودها من الشمال إلى الجنوب ومن الشرق إلى الغرب وهى الإمبراطورية العثمانية
الرواية فى مجملها رواية رائعة ولكن هناك فقرات كاملة ومن الممكن القول صفحات كاملة زائدة عن الحاجة ولاتمثل إضافة للرواية ولكن المترجم سامى الدروبى الرائع هو من أضاف لهذه الصفحات والفقرات وربما للرواية بأكملها ثقل لغوى ومفردات رائعة ونسق ونظم لغوى لم أره فى الكثير من الروايات ربما لكتّاب كبار.

"E un pod pe Drina", un roman cu un puternic aer balcanic, încărcat de o atmosferă autentică. Povestea începe în secolul al XVI-lea, când Pașa Mehmet Sokolović poruncește să se clădească renumitul pod de peste Drina, din orașul Vișegrad. Pe atunci un ținut locuit de sârbi, turci si evrei, ce făcea parte din Imperiul Otoman. Totul se termină odată cu izbucnirea Primului Război Mondial, în 1914.

Cartea este mai degrabă o cronică decât un roman, sunt descrise întâmplări din viața oamenilor din Bosnia, precum și transformările prin care aceștia trec de-a lungul veacurilor.

Totodată avem de-a face cu o expunere unde mitul se întrepătrunde cu realitatea, unde istoria mare se împletește cu istoria mică, ni se înfățișează drame romantice, povești cu aer oriental, povești cu înțelepți de odinioară.

1961 yılında Nobel Edebiyat ödülünü kazanan Andriç, bu kitabında 350 yıllık bir tarihi izlekte sosyo-mekansal değişimi romanlaştırıyor. Tarihsel olayların toplumlara, toplumlar arası ilişkilere, insanlara ve insanların karakterine etkileri kadar yerleşimlere, coğrafyaya ve mekanlara etkilerini de en ince ayrıntısına kadar ele almış Andriç. Bu diyalektik içerisinde yılları politik coğrafyayla örmüş ve okura aktarmaya çalışmış.

Bu kitapta beni zorlayan ve kitaba ara vermeme neden olan iki temel neden var.
Kitabın arka kapak tanıtımında "Bir ülkeyi ve insanlarını, onların üç yüz elli yıllık tarihine tanıklık eden bir köprünün dilinden anlatan olağanüstü bir roman" yazıyor. Bu durum, bende ciddi bir beklenti oluşturdu. Köprünün gözünden yıllar boyu yaşanan olayları dinleyeceğimizi düşünmek bile heyecan vericiydi. Her ne kadar köprü bu romanın ana karakterlerinden biri de olsa, bu kitapta köprünün dilinden herhangi bir anlatım söz konusu değil. Bu da beni ciddi anlamda bir hayalkırıklığına uğrattı. İkinci neden ise, anlatımda bazı konular detaylandırılırken bazı konuların çok yüzeysel geçilmiş olmasıydı.

Bunlara rağmen, çok fazla kültüre ev sahipliği yapmış bir coğrafyayı yanlı olmayan bir anlatım dili ile anlatmak da bir başarı.

Kitaplarla kalın!

Un libro importante: un affresco storico davvero multietnico per capire un po' di più il destino tormentato dell'ex Yugoslavia. Ambientato in un villaggio al confine fra Bosnia e Serbia, confine labile e provvisorio come la vita degli abitanti, tra le dominazioni che si succedono con la loro ferocia nell'arco di qualche centinaio d'anni; turchi, ebrei, cristiano-ortodossi con le loro tradizioni e leggende, la costruzione quasi fantastica di un ponte che resiste all'usura del tempo, testimone di soprusi e uccisioni cruente ma anche di matrimoni e chiacchiere fra i cittadini che alla sua porta si riuniscono.
E' un libro "serio" ma non per questo noioso, forse un po' antico ma in questo risiede il suo fascino.

54th book of 2021. Artist for this review is Serbian painter Nadežda Petrović, between photographs of the real-life setting of the novel.

I've never been to Bosnia, but I have been slightly north/west many times, to Croatia. I've been to Dubrovnik, multiple times, which is on just the thinnest sliver of Croatia beside the border of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Also, slightly farther northwest, I've been to Split, and several other places farther north. For years running throughout my boyhood we returned to Croatia, in love with the place, perhaps five times I've been back. I had never heard of Ivo Andrić despite the fact he won the Nobel Prize over writers like Tolkien, Forster and Steinbeck in 1961. Of course, those other writers are household names, but as far as I was concerned, Andrić had slipped into obscurity.



The Bridge Over the Drina (sometimes translated to The Bridge on the Drina) is not really a novel, but a chronicle (as Andrić himself preferred to call it), or even closer to a short story collection with a single unifying theme—the bridge. It covers four centuries of Balkan history surrounding the bridge as this near-perfect (indeed, perhaps, perfect) structure in the middle of a storm. Andrić's writing comes across as being telling and cold for the most part, but also oddly sympathetic. The novel begins around the 16thC when the bridge is constructed in the small Bosnian town of Višegrad, and ends in 1914. The bridge itself, in reality, is called the Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge (pictured below). The novel is also, then, regarded as a "historical novel" or even a "non-fiction novel", into Capote territory. Georges Perec (whom I'm very fond of) said of it in Le Monde:

"The wealth and variety of its fictional elements carry it so far beyond the confines of a straightforward novel, it cannot be limited to such a description. It puts one in mind of a collection of tales, but no collection of tales (not even A Thousand and One Nights or Washington Irving's stories) ever possessed such a unity and continuity of theme."

In that way it also reminded me of War and Peace, with its multifaceted elements of history and fiction, and I suppose the same for Les Misérables for its Waterloo dissection, etc. It also felt somewhat Sebaldian... All those books that do not fit so neatly into one category. These are my favourite sorts of novels.


Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge, ca. 1900.

And Perec is right, Andrić constantly reminds the reader at the end of every chapter that the bridge is there as the centre of this novel's universe. Most of the action even takes place on the bridge itself, if not within seeing distance of it. Throughout, it is the observer as much as we are of all that befalls Bosnia (and its fictional inhabitants) over two centuries. And the returning images of the bridge at the end of most chapters contained some of my favourite lines in the novel—
n  

Thus the generations renewed themselves beside the bridge and the bridge shook from itself, like dust, all the traces which transient human events had left on it and remained, when all was over, unchanged and unchangeable.

n
Reading the novel is almost tiring. It isn't dense per se, but the relentless moving of time throughout the novel, jumping years with every chapter, and countless characters being introduced in with every turn, the novel becomes repetitive and draining to read. I read the first 100 pages in a day and then somehow slowed to read the final 200 over the rest of the week. Naturally, like a short story collection, some chapters are far more interesting than others, depending on the characters involved. Some were brilliant, the man impaled alive on the bridge, the woman escaping her marriage, the gambler risking everything he owns in one final game... the stories are at times wonderful and cover a wide range of characters, the poor, the military, Catholics, Muslims, Orthodox Christians, etc. At times I found my interest slipping somewhat, but the chapters are never too long that it detracts too much from the general feel of the novel.



But I also believe that is part of the novel's power, that thematically, the constant moving of time, constant passing of characters in and out of the narrative is indicative of its scope and purpose; that unlike the Huxley novel title, time does not have a stop. As a character says on the penultimate page in 1914, If they destroy here, then somewhere else someone is building. I think this is one of the main sentences of the novel and a good sign at what Andrić was writing about. Partly, a bridge on the Drina (and hanging Balkan history from it like a baby's mobile), but also that time does not have a stop, that wars come and pass, as all things do, and in the end there will always be a bridge somewhere, on some river, and around it, countless people from all different walks of life being born and living sad or sometimes happy lives before dying, recurring like so forever. Hence, the novel is tiring to read.

المكان هو بطل الرواية بامتياز , و عليه تعبر المدينة و حكاياتها و مشاكلها , و عليه يعبر الزمن , ليكون هذا الجسر هو سيرة المدينة بكلّ ما فيها .
حوالي أربعة قرون تغطّيها الرواية , ممتلئة بالحكايات و القصص الملهمة و الكاشفة لهذا المجتمع المتعدّد و الذي اتكأ عليه التاريخ بخلافاته و حروبه , من قال إنّ ثمّة ما يكشف الأحداث الكبرى و يظهرها أكثر من اليوميّ البسيط ؟!
عشرات من الحكايات الشعبية و التاريخية على طول الرواية , تتغيّر و وتتبدّل و تتطوّر عبر الزمن .... و يبقى الجسر
ممتعٌ هذا الكتاب جدّاً

Ένα μεγάλο βιβλίο!

Reviews routinely call this a masterpiece, people say it’s “as full of suspense as any novel”, its prose is beautiful, it’s “a necessary and essential book” and “everyone should read this book” and the author got the Nobel Prize, so you are already thoroughly intimidated before you pick up The Bridge on the Drina and when it fails to ignite, when it seems to be made of melted tarmac and every sentence seems calculated to induce a light hypnosis, the sort where 20 minutes can go by without you noticing, you have to figure it’s you that’s wrong, not everybody else, but there it is, it can’t be helped. There’s no point in faking book-love.

This is not a normal novel with a plot and a handful of main characters. It’s about 400 years of Serbian history, as refracted through a magnificent stone bridge which was completed in 1571. The bridge changes everything for the people in the otherwise unremarkable town of Drina. Trade and armies flow over it, lovers have assignations, it’s used for executions. Ivo Andric’s book is like the imperturbable river under the bridge, he is going to flow through his 400 years at a slow but steady speed. He finds interesting and illuminating anecdotes here and there, and characters appear, last for ten pages, then drift downstream. This is the method.

The building of the bridge by Ottoman engineers (it took five years) was like a disaster for the townspeople – men were pressed into service, often without pay, everyone’s life was upended, so a couple of radicals decided to sabotage the whole thing. They were caught and there was an excruciating detailed account of the execution by impaling of the main saboteur. That got my attention. It was hair-raising. So I thought I was going to like this book – give me a gruesome impaling and I’ll follow you anywhere – but all the other tales of the town that Andric picked out just seemed a little on the dull side, and his unvarying and totally humourless prose did not help at all. Two hundred pages later the only thing I could remember was the guy who got impaled.

I freely concede that everyone is right about this book and I am wrong.