Ivan Vazov (1850–1921)

https://fromtheheartofeurope.eu/under-the-yoke-by-ivan-vazov/

A classic of nineteenth-century Bulgarian literature, a mercifully short novel about the 1876 uprising against Turkish rule. I must admit that I was surprised by how well it reads, given that I have read any number of much worse-written books about Ireland (or England, or the United States) at the same period. Vazov’s revolutionaries, all men, are outnumbered, outgunned and fight valiantly to the end; his women are in fact also three-dimensional characters; you can’t really say the same for the Turks, and it’s a rather black and white novel, but still it’s a good and digestible insight into that particular part of Europe at that particular time.… (more)

A very readable, all-action novel focussed on the ill-fated 1886 Bulgarian uprising against the Turkish oppressors.
When Kralich- a political prisoner escaped from the fortress of Diyarbekir- makes it back to his homeland, friends help him assume a new identity and a teaching job. But traitorous locals- who have their own axes to grind with him- are soon suspicious and seeking to betray him to the Turks.
The message that comes through all along is less that the Turks are unspeakable swine (we soon see that) but that so many of the Bulgarians themselves - through fear or compkaisance- played along with them. The final line says it all- when the village idiot, Mooncho, is hanged for cursing Turkey: "The idiot was the only man who had dared to protest."
There are chases through the mountains, gossiping nuns, a lovely schoolteacher, Cleopatra the bear (I thought the bear would play a larger role) and the memorable war hero Borimechka. Quite a gripping adventure- had me googling the places mentioned.
Also had me googling what happened after this failed coup- apparently Russia liberated Bulgaria the following year, but international protest reversed that- Turkey got some back, and the rest was a "self governing" Ottoman kingdom of E Rumelia... Recall "doing" the Balkan wars many years ago for history O level and being entirely uninterested...but this book brings it all to very real life!… (more)

Under the Yoke by Ivan Vazov is a classic of Bulgarian literature.

For five hundred years Bulgaria was part of the Ottoman empire, subject to Turkish rule. By the nineteenth century Ottoman power was waning and nationalism was growing. Vakov's book depicts the failed April 1876 uprising of the Bulgarians against the Turks.

The book begins with a family celebration, which serves the purpose of introducing Bulgarian religious observance, customs and traditions, and the loathing of the Bulgarians for the Turks. The celebration is interrupted by a noise from outside, which makes the women shriek in fear and sends Marko, the head of the family, out with a loaded gun to investigate. The intruder, Ivan Kralich, a Bulgarian insurgent who has escaped from a Turkish prison, narrowly evades the Turkish policeman who arrives in response to the noise. In only one chapter, Vakov has introduced the main characters and set the scene for the action to follow.

Under the Yoke is the work of a Bulgarian patriot. There are no good Turks. The revolutionaries are brave and noble to the core; the rest are cowards and traitors. Vakov was there in 1876, fighting for Bulgarian independence. In 1878, after world-wide condemnation of Turkish atrocities committed during the Bulgarian uprising, the Russo-Turkish war finally freed Bulgaria from Ottoman rule. Vakov wrote the book in Odessa, in 1893.

I found this book fascinating. Apparently, before Vakov there was no literature written in Bulgarian. Kudos to the person, uncredited in this Kindle edition, who managed to translate this book into English in 1912. Unfortunately the Kindle edition is full of typos, and the footnotes appear without warning in the middle of the text. This book deserves better.

Highly recommended… (more)