Free Coming of Age at the End of History

Reading Lea Ypi is like taking a walk through history - or better through the end of it. When the Soviet Union collapsed, Ypi was still coming of age. Everthing she thought to know fell apart within months. People she knew closely disappeard, political views were smashed under the weight of the collapse - but somehow life kept on going. Her perspective on her own adolescence is alive and so much more than a simple biographie. It's like a history book written as a novel and breathing like a poem - and it's worth every minute of your time.

Lea Ypi is a respected professor and speaker in her field, teaching politics and economics at the London School of Economics. She grew up in socialist Albania, where she learned to love Uncle Enver and was indoctrinated as a child through school and the state in general. Through her story of growing up, we witness the fall and then the "rise" of Albania, or perhaps I should say another kind of fall, different from the one before. Lea Ypi takes us on a journey that reveals the horrendous sides of socialism, but also the sacrifices that come with change and with a state that had neither the resources nor the institutions to prepare for the uncontrolled "capitalism" that followed. It is a questioning of a middle ground, one that doesn't simply see things in extremes. It is a memoir, which makes it an easy read, but at the same time, it is an origin story of how Lea Ypi developed her philosophical and political worldviews. Although I may not agree with her a hundred percent, I was still deeply intrigued and have great respect and understanding for where she is coming from. It is a memoir that shows the shades of grey in war, families, politics and love. It is a plea for empathy and morality, encouraging us to question what freedom really means and to question those in charge. To learn from the past and teach future generations when and where to fight. A book that teaches us the history of a nation so often forgotten, and about a past that continues to impact the present, as Albania still struggles to become a free and fair nation. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to learn about nations outside the norm and beyond the Western bubble.