broke my heart 

Rene Karabash: She who remains. 

"…below the waist, a man

above the waist, a woman…"

There she is Bekija, a sworn virgin, Matija.

Rene Karabash (n. Irene Ivanova) is a Bulgarian poet. Novelist, screenwriter, actor and playwright but also she, having read her book She who remains,

she is a genius.

I haven ´t read anything this powerful since, I don ´t even know, ..some time. Maybe even the last Pajtim Statovci, who, also, is a genius.

There is so much similarities in their books, in the setting, maybe,

but definitely in the feeling, the experience the reading gave to me.

Both, they have the power in their text.

She who remains, it is not an easy read, not at all, experiencing it one need endurance stamina space to move on, to go back and forth within the pages, to let the all sink but most of all one needs courage, as the story, it is empowering but most of all brutal, strong, so so piercfully mindblowing (and in this, too, it reminds me of my hero Patjim Statovici) and this is why it is a magnificent work of art.

This story, how it is presented, is poetic brutal poesi prose this is art this is literature this is galaxies exploding. This is a book I love. The story, it

Broke my heart.

Broke my mind

Broke the idea of justice in the world

What is is to be a woman, a man, a gay person, a person trapped in old codes, useless shit that destroy people

Kanun, the code in the backlands of Albania.

Death violence misogynia stupidity killing injustice confusion missing

blood honour pureness gender sexuality rape Albania Bulgaria safe place Sofia

"…the place where I supposedly belong, home is where your wings got clipped…"