Biografi: A Traveler's Tale [Paperback]

Lloyd Jones (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 14, 1994

In 1991, with communism in tatters throughout Eastern Europe, Jones journeyed to a most unlikely destination: Albania. What he found was a relentlessly bizarre world of half-truths and fictions, a world where your status and sometimes your life hinged on your biografi. Named one of Publishers Weekly's Best Books of the Year. Map.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In prose clear as window glass, sharp-eyed New Zealand novelist Jones (Splinter) recounts his journey through Albania in 1991, just as the poor, isolated country stumbles into a chaotic, post-communist future. Biografi (the title comes from the word for the security dossiers kept by the secret police on each citizen) is equal parts travelogue, political reportage and mystery: the author's search for Petar Shapallo, a dentist whose face had been surgically altered so he could serve as a double for the Communist dictator, Enver Hoxha, gives the book its considerable narrative thrust. Deftly, Jones etches memorable images of the country and its people: "The notion of clouds gives way to layers of hill; their tops are darkly pencilled and fold back on one another"; a "pale and thin" man, fueled by his volatile convictions; the official "state farms"-in reality desolate exile camps-dotting what was once the food bowl of Albania. Never intrusive, always curious, Jones is the perfect conduit for stories that are by turns horrifying and comic, tragic and heroic, each depicting yet another life stunted by repression. Biografi is a gem: sympathetic and informed, as enlightening as it is entertaining. First serial to Grand Street; QPB selection.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

A biografi was an official dossier maintained by the Albanian sigourimi (secret police) on its citizens until 1991. Most were intricate combinations of fact and fiction, contrived to show that the sigourimi were protecting the state from internal insurrection. This novel is cleverly disguised as a travelog. The unnamed narrator travels from New Zealand to Albania in 1991 after the collapse of communism to find Petar Shapallo, a dentist who was used as a double for the dictator Enver Hoxha for over 30 years. The narrator describes his experiences as he travels the country. Is Shapallo a real person? It hardly matters as fact blends into fiction, giving an absorbing glimpse of life as it may have been in that backward nation. Recommended for general fiction collections, though it would not be surprising to find this work in the travel section.
Mary Ann Parker, Dept. of Water Resources Law Lib., Sacramento, Cal.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Mariner Books (November 14, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0156001284
• ISBN-13: 978-0156001281
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #300,607 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > History > Europe > Albania

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars identity in a totalitarian state, May 26, 2000

By 

"javits2000" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Biografi: A Traveler's Tale (Paperback)

Enver Hoxha's regime was one of the most brutal and oppressive in all of Communist Eastern Europe. In this fascinating book, Jones picks through the aftermath of Hoxha's regime, interviewing people who were hostile to him (including former political prisoners and priests), those who remember him fondly (including his wife and son), and those who were simply indifferent. His central theme, as the title indicates, is "biografi," the dominant concern of Hoxha's totalitarianism. If your father had fought with the Communists during World War II, you were likely to be favored; if your grandfather had prospered under King Zog, you could be sent to jail. Jones explores the continuing fascination with biografi in the new, democratic Albania. In one extraordinary passage, he encounters a large group of people lined up outside a government office to correct the official versions of their lives, and those of their family members.

This preoccupation with identity is also reflected in the sections of the book dealing with Hoxha's double, a provincial dentist who was surgically altered to become, essentially, the dictator's twin. He appeared at many public events as Hoxha, and lived in relative luxury in the government compound in Tirana. However, his old life had been erased, and his family killed off. Worse still, after Hoxha died and the communists were overthrown, he was attacked by a mob who believed him to be the ghost of the former dictator. In an attempt to reclaim a separate identity, he intentionally disfigured his own face.

The experience of Albanian Communism is a bizarre passage in 20th century history, and Jones' books offers plenty of lurid anecdotes and details of Hoxha's brutality. More importantly, though, he manages to explore the systematic dismantling of individual identity in a real-life Orwellian state. The perserverance of the Albanian people in the face of such an attack is particulary remarkable. This is a fascinating book, and Jones has done a great service by introducing English-language readers to the horrors of Hoxha's Albania.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not Your Typical Travelogue, May 25, 2002

By 

Jeffrey Leach (Omaha, NE USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Biografi: A Traveler's Tale (Paperback)

When I started reading "Biografi," I expected a straightforward travelogue on Albania and its peoples. After all, Albania seems to bring out the travelogue in authors. I can think of several on Albania alone off the top of my head. But most of these are 19th and early 20th century journals. What is surprising is that even in the 1990's, and one assumes into the future, travelogues are and will still be written on a country that is, amazingly enough, in Europe. The reason for this is few know anything about Albania. There may be a vague recollection of its Communist past; beyond this people draw a blank. This is where the travelogues come in; they are an easy way of discovering and presenting the unknown. Unfortunately, they are often grossly inaccurate and fraught with bias or outright hostility by the author in question. The topic, in this case Albania, is the problem. To outsiders, Albania is weird. Centuries of Ottoman domination destroyed any chance of development and left the majority of the population Muslim (at least nominally), and the rugged terrain further hindered outside influence. What makes this book different is that it isn't travelogue in the orthodox sense; it is a strange mix of fact and fantasy about a misunderstood country.

I was greatly pleased to read that Jones learned about Albania the same way I did, namely through shortwave radio. I vividly remember listening to Radio Tirana back in the 1980's. Tirana always stood out on the dial because the Chinese transmitters were so poorly modulated that the announcers sounded as though they were talking into a bucket. Jones's neighbor, who plays a prominent part in this book, often listened to Radio Tirana, and Jones became interested. When the Communist collapses came in the early 1990's, Jones decided to take a trip to Albania (lucky duck!). This book is the result.

Jones's quest in Albania is to find Petar Shapallo. Petar, a dentist by trade, is abducted by Communist leader Enver Hoxha's secret police so he can become Hoxha's body double. Shapallo assumes Hoxha's duties when Hoxha is ill. When Hoxha dies, Shapallo is cast out into society, where his likeness to a suddenly unpopular leader leads Shapallo to mutilate his face and go into hiding. During the search for Shapallo, Jones runs into a grand cast of characters, both local and foreign. Jones even talks to Hoxha's widow, Nexhmije, along the way. Everywhere Jones goes, he finds a country in a freefall into chaos. What's worse, the people are decaying just as rapidly. Albanians constantly worry over their "biografi," which are official files held by the Albanian secret police. The stories are heartrending; people locked up, exiled, or executed for trivial matters. A family member of thirty years ago with the wrong connections can land their descendents in jail, or worse. Outside of these biografis, Albanians seem to have no identity of their own.

Jones is very concerned with journeys in this book. Everyone is going somewhere; Jones is going to Albania, Shapallo is trying to return to his village, many Albanians are headed to Italy or points beyond. Jones even relates a tale about his aunt running away from her marriage to his uncle. This obsession with movement seems to be tied up with identity. None of the characters in the book seem to know who they are or why they do what they do. They just know they must GO, somewhere, anywhere. Hope lies just over the horizon and they'll find something if they can just get there. When Jones looks up some Albanians in Italy, they are unhappy because Italy isn't the paradise they thought it would be; now they talk about going to America. Will Albania ever find itself? Will we, as humans, ever find ourselves? It seems that this is a message Jones is trying to convey.

Of course, I could be completely off my rocker. What I do know is this book goes way beyond travelogue. There are dimensions to this book I can only guess at. Even if you don't want to read deeply into this book, there are still plenty of good things to find. Jones goes into some depth in his descriptions of the beautiful scenery in rural Albania, and the characters are, for the most part, well crafted and worth reading about. I do think some knowledge on Albania is helpful. The map in the book is worthy for place descriptions, but a quick web search might help with some basic information and names. You should know who Enver Hoxha is and why he is such a despicable character. I hope they reprint this book soon.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Albania in a nutshell, December 7, 2009

By 

Robi (Florida) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Biografi: A Traveler's Tale (Paperback)

I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Albania from 2008 to 2009 and in my opinion this book is still current. Reading it I was struck by how accurate and true-to-life a lot of his impressions are. The main drawback was a slight incoherency regarding his experiences outside of Albania, back in New Zealand, before and after the main body of work. This book should be required reading for anyone heading to the Balkans who wants a better idea of some of the hardships the region went through; obviously centered on Albania as it emerged from dictatorship and continues to struggle with free market entry today.