Novel
Under the Free Sun
Pod svobodnim soncem
Fran Saleški Finžgar · 1906
Synopsis
In the sixth century, the Slavic tribes who have come to settle in the Balkan peninsula live free, with neither master nor supreme chief, pagan and close to nature, in conflict with the Byzantine Empire. Iztok, a young Slavic warrior, travels to Constantinople. At court he meets Irena, and the love that grows between them is caught up in the struggle between his people and the empire.
Context
The novel first appeared as a serial in the review Dom in svet in 1906 and 1907, then in two volumes in 1912, with the subtitle “a tale of the ancient forefathers”. It draws on Slovene mythology and stages Slavs free of subjection. It was adapted as an opera in 2016, as a comic by Goran Vojnović and Damijan Stepančič, then for the stage in Nova Gorica in 2023. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer showed interest in it for a time, but the author demanded that the leading roles go to Slavs.
Who it is for
A historical adventure novel in two volumes, which reads like an epic; there is no French translation.
Prizes and reception
Reprinted more than forty times; a Slovenian publisher regards it as the greatest book of the country.
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