Siege in Around the World

Jul 02, 2019 Nick rated it liked it · review of another edition

"The Siege" is an historical novel by the great Albanian novelist Ismail Kadare involving the defeat of the Ottoman army to capture a rebel city, with many details taken from the attack on Krujë in 1450. Krujë was part of a larger rebellion led by George Castriot, who used the mountainous terrain to harass the besiegers and deprive them of local supplies. That predatory nature of invading armies is part of Kadare's point; the novel was written in the aftermath of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslo ...more

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Nov 26, 2019 Sadiq. PhD rated it really liked it · review of another edition

The ability of Ismail Kadare to narrate a story in a way that you will feel like you are moving between the tents and battalions of the Ottomans soldiers and units, and sharing the same feelings portrayed by the fifteenth century besieged Albanians did.
The novel is mainly narrating the story of an Albania Christian portress when it was being attacked by the Ottoman Turks, and the heroic Albanian leader Skanderbeg was still actively fighting the attackers. This may seem like a straight forward h ...more

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Jun 27, 2009 Erma Odrach rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Ismail Kadare is an Albanian author who has been candidate for the Nobel Prize. The Siege is set in the 15th century and Albania is being invaded by the outnumbered Ottoman Turks. The book is interesting and very readable. If you like historical fiction and books with political meaning, this is a very good choice.

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