Andrzej Stasiuk invites you along with him to Albania, speaking of his world, the human condition, and literature.

Andrzej Stasiuk invites you along with him to Albania, speaking of his world, the human condition, and literature.

The protagonists are four thirty-year-olds: Gąsior, Mały, Wasyl, and Kostek. Their meeting at the Na Rozdrożu café ends with a lavish drinking party. They decide to drive Gąsior's car to visit Czesiek, a childhood friend. During the trip, they become involved in a series of events, partly the result of absurd coincidences. As a consequence, they come into conflict with the law.

The protagonists are four thirty-year-olds: Gąsior, Mały, Wasyl, and Kostek. Their meeting at the Na Rozdrożu café ends with a lavish drinking party. They decide to drive Gąsior's car to visit Czesiek, a childhood friend. During the trip, they become involved in a series of events, partly the result of absurd coincidences. As a consequence, they come into conflict with the law.

This is not a love story though it is full of love. It is not a comedy though the characters often say funny things. It is not a detective story even though the hero is trying to solve a murder. It is not a nature drama though it shows the splendid colours and customs of the countryside. It is not a musical though Lubica expresses her longing in a passionate dance. Nor is it a film about ghosts though a ghost does ask the hero for a favour. A few draughts of Strawberry Wine are enough to take us into a magical world in the true centre of Europe, where love, crime and penitence are just as much a part of life as the changing of the seasons, the migration of birds or the flowing of a mountain stream.

This is not a love story though it is full of love. It is not a comedy though the characters often say funny things. It is not a detective story even though the hero is trying to solve a murder. It is not a nature drama though it shows the splendid colours and customs of the countryside. It is not a musical though Lubica expresses her longing in a passionate dance. Nor is it a film about ghosts though a ghost does ask the hero for a favour. A few draughts of Strawberry Wine are enough to take us into a magical world in the true centre of Europe, where love, crime and penitence are just as much a part of life as the changing of the seasons, the migration of birds or the flowing of a mountain stream.

"I moved to the Beskids because they are beautiful, and several years of experience have confirmed my belief that it was a brilliant idea," said Andrzej Stasiuk, a resident of the village of Czarne near Dukla in the Podkarpacie region for fifteen years, in a recent interview. He knows life in the provinces inside out, having described it many times in his prose and columns. He has experienced its good and bad sides, its problems and shameful corners firsthand.