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Aka Mortchiladze: Voyage au Karabakh. Editions Noir sur Blanc, Mise en vente : 13 mars 2025  208 pages • 22 Euros • 27 CHF  

Traduit du géorgien par Alexander Bainbridge et Khatouna Kapanadzé.

Tbilissi, 1992. Après la fuite du président au pouvoir, l’anarchie et la guerre civile règnent en Géorgie. Deux jeunes gens, Gio et Gogliko, veulent profiter du chaos pour aller acheter de la drogue en Azerbaïdjan, à quelques heures de voiture de Tbilissi.

Gio essaie d’oublier son amour perdu : sa famille a refusé qu’il épouse la femme qu’il aime, et a voulu la forcer à avorter. Ils ne se reverront pas… Les deux amis quittent Tbilissi à bord d’une vieille Lada et arrivent dans la zone de guerre du Karabakh, où ils sont faits prisonniers. Ils perdent rapidement tous leurs repères : d’abord arrêtés par des Azéris, les jeunes gens sont séparés. Gio, le narrateur, est alors kidnappé par des Arméniens. Pendant tout le récit, la question de la liberté et de la captivité le hante : est-il réellement prisonnier ? Il est pourtant bien traité, mais peut-être va-t-il servir de monnaie d’échange… Que signifie être libre ? Et d’ailleurs, que vaut vraiment cette vie qu’il pourrait retrouver à Tbilissi ?

Le grand écrivain géorgien écrit sur une génération perdue, à la recherche de la liberté.

Aka Mortchiladze est considéré comme l’écrivain géorgien de référence parmi ses contemporains. Après avoir enseigné l’histoire à l’université de Tbilissi, il a travaillé comme journaliste sportif ; il a également animé une émission littéraire à la télévision. Il a publié plus de 20 livres, qui sont traduits dans 15 pays et ont inspiré de nombreux films et pièces de théâtre. Aka Mortchiladze vit aujourd’hui à Londres.

About the author

Nadia Sikorsky

Nadia Sikorsky grew up in Moscow where she obtained a master's degree in journalism and a doctorate in history from Moscow State University. After 13 years at UNESCO, in Paris and then in Geneva, and having served as director of communications at Green Cross International founded by Mikhail Gorbachev, she developed NashaGazeta.ch, the first online Russian-language daily newspaper, launched in 2007.

In 2022, she found herself among those who, according to Le Temps editorial board, "significantly contributed to the success of French-speaking Switzerland," thus appearing among opinion makers and economic, political, scientific and cultural leaders: the Forum of 100.

After 18 years leading NashaGazeta.ch, Nadia Sikorsky decided to return to her roots and focus on what truly fascinates her: culture in all its diversity. This decision took the form of this trilingual cultural blog (Russian, English, French) born in the heart of Europe – in Switzerland, her adopted country, the country distinguished by its multiculturalism and multilingualism.

Nadia Sikorsky does not present herself as a "Russian voice," but as the voice of a European of Russian origin (more than 35 years in Europe, 25 years spent in Switzerland) with the benefit of more than 30 years of professional experience in the cultural world at the international level. She positions herself as a cultural mediator between Russian and European traditions; the title of the blog, "The Russian Accent," captures this essence – the accent being not a linguistic barrier, not a political position but a distinctive cultural imprint in the European context.

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