The Poor, Rich, and Idealist

Albania, 1943. When war reaches his cornfield, Bajram, a quiet farmer, makes a choice that will define the rest of his life. He shelters Marco, a dying Italian deserter from the occupying army. Soon after, he opens his door again - this time to Joseph, a Jewish refugee fleeing Nazi persecution. Bajram and his wife Fatime - a Muslim couple with little more than a small farm and their faith - ask no questions. All they can offer is bread, salt, and a white heart. But when a wounded partisan named Agim arrives, the fragile sanctuary inside their home begins to fracture. A communist idealist, Agim clashes with Joseph's past and Marco's uniform. Trapped together in a basement under the constant threat of German patrols, the three men are forced to confront not only war - but themselves. The war ends. The danger does not. Communism rises. Agim returns not as a fugitive, but as a man of power. Branded a traitor, Bajram is imprisoned for twenty-four years. His wife dies waiting. The world he protected disappears. Now, in the final days of his life, Bajram waits once more - not to give shelter, but in the quiet hope that someone might return it. Inspired by true events.

Pagina's: 268, Paperback, Matthews and Bates