In the fall at the German publishing house Fresh publishing The novel “It’s a Little Tense in Buinaksk” by Alisa Ganieva has been published. His first story, “Peace be upon you, Dalghat!” (2009), about a day in the life of a young resident of Makhachkala, Alisa Ganieva signed a male pseudonym to avoid the bias of critics and readers, and received a prize for her debut. Already under her name, she has written three novels (“Mountain of Celebrations”, “The Bride and Groom”, “Offended Feelings”) and a biography of Lily Break (“Lily Break against the background of the Luciferian era”). In her new book, Janeeva writes again about Dagestan, and this time not even modern, but from the near future, and at the center of the story here is a young woman, divorced and separated from her son. Now you can read the novel “A Little Tension in Buinaksk” for free.
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Aida is in her early thirties, divorced, her son lives with her ex-husband, and she barely gets along in a small apartment with her mother, who is always dissatisfied with her. Previously, Aida worked in a school in Makhachkala, but after she was fired for “anti-patriotism,” she had to return to her native Buinaksk and get a job as an administrator in her distant relative’s beauty salon.
At first glance, everything is calm in the city: the war has already ended, the devastated “New Lands” are being restored, and the head of state is healthy and full of strength. But is this all really true? A spontaneous trip to a history lecture at a local museum turns Aida’s quiet life upside down – and then strange events begin to happen in Buinaksk and beyond its borders.
This is what literary critic Lisa Berger writes about Janeeva’s new novel
“A Little Tension in Buinaksk” is a book written after the full Russian invasion of Ukraine, and it cannot be limited to just one note. After the invasion began, Alisa Ganieva signed a mass anti-war letter, left Russia and never stopped speaking out against the war. Her novel is a complex portrait of Dagestan society, not from a contemporary perspective, but from a historical perspective. In the context of the ongoing war, this image took not only form, but also a purpose. This is a call to see and realize what is really happening and through this awareness to regain the almost lost opportunity for change. And even if this opportunity, according to the law of the repetition of history, is doomed in advance.
Now the book “It’s a bit tense in Buinaksk” can be read for free in the Meduza app.
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