Overview

The spellbinding new book by the prizewinning writer Kapka Kassabova tells the story of her time with the last moving pastoralists in Europe- a gripping portrayal of human-animal interdependence, and a plea for a different way of living. 'A book that mesmerises with its sense of adventure and epic sweep, this is creative non-fiction at its best' GUARDIAN Over the course of one summer, Kapka Kassabova lives with perhaps the last true pastoralists in Europe. She joins the epic seasonal movement of vast herds of sheep, along with shepherds and dogs, to find pasture in the mountains. As she becomes attuned to the sacrifices inherent in this isolated existence, Kassabova finds herself drawn deeper into the tangled relationships at the heart of this small community. Anima is a spellbinding portrayal of the human-animal interdependence in pastoral life, and a plea for a different way of living - one where we might all begin to heal our broken relationship with the natural world.

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9781529933413

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Reviews

A book that mesmerises with its sense of adventure and epic sweep, this is creative nonfiction at its best. * Guardian * A haunting, beautiful book from what feels a darkly enchanted land. Kassabova is an extraordinary writer who slips into the skin of a place. Fiercely intelligent, scalpel-sharp, at once romantic and toughly pragmatic: Anima will live with me for a long time -- Cal Flyn, author of ISLANDS OF ABANDONMENT Anima is a masterwork and a profound and important book. Kassabova is writing about how we forgot the land and our animals and banished many tribes. In doing so, we lost our soul. Anima is a treasure of nature writing and people writing, a classic in the making for our times -- Monique Roffey, author of THE MERMAID OF BLACK CONCH [Kassabova is] iron-hard and courageous, both on the page and in life... Roaming across the high pastures, Kassabova sees all our lives with clarity * Spectator * Anima is what happens when an extraordinary writer and dauntless explorer discovers a wild and ancient way of life still, somehow, surviving in Europe's remotest wilderness. This is a beautiful book of passion and adventure. It asks: who are we, what have we done and how shall we live? Kapka Kassabova stops at nothing, including risking her life, on her quest to see deeply, live fully, to learn, and teach, constantly. She is simply sublime -- Horatio Clare, author of HEAVY LIGHT

Author Information

Kapka Kassabova is a prizewinning writer of narrative non-fiction. Her recent Balkan quartet includes Anima (2024), Elixir (2023), To the Lake (2020) and Border (2017). Her awards include a British Academy prize, the Scottish Book of the Year, the Stanford-Dolman Travel Book of the Year, the Highland Book Prize, the Prix Nicolas-Bouvier, the Prix du Meilleur Livre tranger, and the Premio Mazzotti. Kassabova grew up in Sofia, Bulgaria, and migrated to New Zealand before settling in Scotland twenty years ago. She lives by a Highland river.

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