Salvation and Other Disasters

This book made me laugh out loud so much. There's great humor here, as well as some really good writing. I also recommend Yolk, his previous book of short stories, and his novel April Fool's Day. I just ordered his new short story collection, and if it's like what he's written so far, I can't wait.

Salvation and Other Disasters is a selection of wonderful stories that take place mostly in and around a war-torn Croatia. Most of the stories explore the limits of human nature during war. One question the book asks is what man becomes during war. They are beautifully written, finely told stories involving love, rape, violence, death, illness, and through all of this -- always, that sensitive and alive flame that defines human consciousness. I really enjoyed this book, and recommend it to everyone, especially in today's political climate.

I'm actually surprised at how well many of Novakovich's stories about Croatia in the early 1990s, especially "Sheepskin" and "Crimson" capture the mood and feel of life at the time, given that he has been living in the U.S. since the 1970s. These two stories in particular reflect the brutal and at times surreal atmosphere of life in wartime Croatia. Also moving are his stories that deal with various aspects of the immigrant experience in America. Novakovich is one of those writers who can really evoke a sense of time and place, I found myself haunted by many of these stories days after reading them.