Farewell gift

This novel offers us the gift of bitter-sweet memories of coming of age in the shrinking country that once was Yugoslavia. The protagonist"s painful saying good-bye to his missing brother, to his hometown and to all the things which formed his identity in never-erasable past time represents the inevitable preparation for his move to his new home on a different continent. Vladimir Tasić"s masterfully woven story takes the reader on a journey which will eventually end with a peaceful coming to terms with oneself. The cycles of love and loss that build the package of each and every life find an exquisite voice in this masterfully written prose.