‘Twilight of the Eastern Gods’: English translation of Kadare’s ‘Twilight’ cause for celebration

The name Ismail Kadare is often batted around as a possible recipient for the Nobel Prize in Literature - especially since Kadare received the inaugural Man Booker International Prize in 2005. But despite being a major player in international literature since the 1960s, the Albanian writer still is unfamiliar to most Americans. Few of his works are available in the United States, and those that have been translated into English come not from the original Albanian, but from French translations, making the works difficult to access.

Even so, the recent American release of his 1970s masterwork 'Twilight of the Eastern Gods” (Grove Press, $25) still is cause for celebration.

Set in Moscow in 1958, the novel tells the story of a young Albanian writer who, like the author, enrolled at the Gorky Institute for World Literature, an establishment committed to creating a new generation of socialist writers. The young authors live together in a depressing, multistoried building ('nowhere else in the world could so many dreams of eternal glory be crowded into such a small space”), spend their summers together at regulated writers retreats, and conform to a number of codes about what can and cannot be written.

'I was learning that ... there were many other things they did not mention, and reciprocally, many of the topics that filled whole chapters or acts of their works barely impinged on their real lives. The contrast made me constantly uneasy.”

A fascinating look at the life of an artist under communism, the novel is structured around a period of time rather than a specific plot, making the narrator's conversations, love affairs, and long periods of introspection come together a bit like a fitful dream. But some moments loom larger than others, such as when Boris Pasternak is named the winner of the Nobel Prize ('a poisoned gift of the international bourgeoisie”) and the narrator has a rude awakening to the dangers - and power - of the written word.

But perhaps the best part of the novel is how Kadare weaves the Albanian legend of Kostandin and Doruntine throughout, showcasing both the importance of keeping one's word and remaining true to one's heritage, despite overwhelming pressure to the contrary - lessons readers from all countries can appreciate.