Till a Better World - Libroj.org

Lingvo: English

Eldonita je 19-a de oktobro 2022 de Pioneer Publishing.

ISBN:: 978-1-7370047-2-1

(1 recenzo)

One is scarred by a brutal war. Motherhood evades the other. When two women are faced with the possibility of new life, what is the cost of conception?

Bosnia, 2008. Selma Karic can’t shake the burden she carries. With her days forever darkened by the shadows of genocide, the traumatized survivor works to pick up the pieces and redefine her sense of purpose. But trust hits an ugly low when an intimate moment of solace leaves her confused… and pregnant.

USA, 2008. Emma Harris is overwhelmed with life. Crushed by school debt and walking on professional thin ice, the newly married businesswoman feels further away from strength and independence every day. But her heart shatters when she discovers any chance of naturally conceiving a child is completely out of reach.

In despair of her fate, Selma dodges the baby’s father she unwittingly gave everything to. And when Emma goes behind …

One is scarred by a brutal war. Motherhood evades the other. When two women are faced with the possibility of new life, what is the cost of conception?

Bosnia, 2008. Selma Karic can’t shake the burden she carries. With her days forever darkened by the shadows of genocide, the traumatized survivor works to pick up the pieces and redefine her sense of purpose. But trust hits an ugly low when an intimate moment of solace leaves her confused… and pregnant.

USA, 2008. Emma Harris is overwhelmed with life. Crushed by school debt and walking on professional thin ice, the newly married businesswoman feels further away from strength and independence every day. But her heart shatters when she discovers any chance of naturally conceiving a child is completely out of reach.

In despair of her fate, Selma dodges the baby’s father she unwittingly gave everything to. And when Emma goes behind her husband’s back to borrow funds for the exorbitant IVF prices, the foundation of her lies and desperation threatens to crumble.

With profound destinies playing out in parallel, can both Selma and Emma still bring beauty into the world?

Unflinching and moving, author Nadija Mujagic weaves a deeply impactful pair of journeys through parenthood and trauma. Authentic to its roots and intensely personal, this powerful narrative expertly dissects the human element driving persistence in its purest form.

Till a Better World is a heartrending women’s fiction novel. If you like no-punches-pulled realism, tear-jerking drama, and eye-opening poignancy, then you’ll love Nadija Mujagic’s story of hope.

1 eldono

Stephanie Jane recenzis Till a Better World de Nadija Mujagic

Competently written

3 steloj

I was impressed by Nadija Mujagic's writing in both her memoirs - her life through the Serbian attack on Sarajevo, Ten Thousand Shells and Counting, and her acclimatisation to living in Boston, America, Immigrated - so I was keen to also read her first work of fiction, Till A Better World, when I was offered a review copy. The novel is essentially two ultimately-linked narrative strands, one following Emma in America and the other following Selma in Bosnia. In a lot of ways the two womens' experiences are mirrors of each other. One is striving to improve her accommodation while the other loses her home, one is desperate to have a baby while the other falls pregnant unexpectedly.

I did guess quite early on how the two stories might connect, but their journeys to that meeting point were much deeper and more emotional than I anticipated, especially in Selma's case. …

I was impressed by Nadija Mujagic's writing in both her memoirs - her life through the Serbian attack on Sarajevo, Ten Thousand Shells and Counting, and her acclimatisation to living in Boston, America, Immigrated - so I was keen to also read her first work of fiction, Till A Better World, when I was offered a review copy. The novel is essentially two ultimately-linked narrative strands, one following Emma in America and the other following Selma in Bosnia. In a lot of ways the two womens' experiences are mirrors of each other. One is striving to improve her accommodation while the other loses her home, one is desperate to have a baby while the other falls pregnant unexpectedly.

I did guess quite early on how the two stories might connect, but their journeys to that meeting point were much deeper and more emotional than I anticipated, especially in Selma's case. I frequently found Selma's story difficult to read because of the graphic events which she experienced during the war. There's one harrowing scene in particular which, while it was sensitively written, is impossible to unsee. Her story, for me, was the stronger of the two however and I preferred the Bosnian chapters to the American ones mainly, I think, because I liked Selma whereas Emma irritated me. In comparison to Selma I felt Emma was selfish and irresponsible, destroying the good things she did have in order to chase an obsession. That said, I've personally never been remotely maternal so I struggled to empathise with the biological urges driving Emma's behaviour.

Till A Better World wasn't such a good fit with my reading tastes as Mujagic's previous works had been although it is still competently written and I think would appeal more strongly to readers who enjoy family drama and womens fiction novels.