Pulling out the big guns for the ninth book of the year! I don't remember where I heard about this book, it could have been a book review somewhere, it caught my eye because it is the story of a tough Chechen fighter's interaction with his Russian adversaries.
Hadji Murad is the tough fighter and his former superior, Shamil, feeling threatened by Murad's courage and success has taken Murad's family hostage and has sent Murad into exile. Murad turns to the Russians and gives himself up with the promise to fight on their behalf as long as the Russians give him his personal Cossack guard. The Russians agree and Murad returns to Chechnya to fight Shamil.
This passage from the book could apply today just as well as it did 100 years ago:
No one spoke of hatred of the Russians. The feeling experience by all Chechens, from the youngest to the oldest, was stronger than hate. It was not hatred, for they did not regard those Russian dogs as human beings, but it was such repulsion, disgust, and perplexity at the senseless cruelty of these creatures, that the desire to exterminate them - like the desire to exterminate rats, poisonous spiders, or wolves - was as natural an instinct as that of self-preservation.
1 comment:
A fascinating period and region. I've always wanted to learn more. Thanks for the review.
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