She Doesn't Exist.
Neither Does Her Baby.
Now What?
When a “software error” erases Zala from the system, she discovers that officially, she and her newborn don’t exist.
As Zala fights desperately to prove her existence, and save her child from adoption, she uncovers the Kafkaesque reality of Slovenia’s system — one that erased 25,671 citizens on February 26, 1992.
A chilling thriller about bureaucracy as violence, and one mother’s battle against the state.
What did I think?
Oh my word, Erased by Miha Mazzini is an emotional and heartrending book that is astonishingly based on real events. It just blew my mind that this could happen but also reminded me how easy it is to press the delete button a keyboard. I thought identity theft was scary but deletion of identity is even worse! This isn't an imaginative dystopian novel; this deletion actually happened in Slovenia in 1992. Wow!
Zala is about to give birth to her first child so she attends her local hospital, only to be told that she doesn't exist on the computer system. She is accused of being an illegal immigrant and presented with a bill for her hospital stay, oh and the hospital is keeping her baby. I can only imagine what Zala felt like and I had feelings of shock, outrage and devastation as I followed every step of her journey as she fights for her baby and her identity.
It's an incredibly emotional read as I really felt for Zala as she is on her own. She is a very strong character though and there's nothing more powerful than a mother fighting for her child. Miha Mazzini's evocative writing brings Zala to life so the reader can't help but take her to their heart. I actually forgot that it was a translated novel when I was reading it so I have to give a shout out to the impeccable translation by Gregor Timothy Čeh.
Shocking, disturbing and harrowing, Erased is a poignant and thought-provoking novel that really makes you think about your own electronic identity and how easily it could be erased. I would highly recommend this outstanding book to readers of all genres.
I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.
My rating:
Buy it from:
Fly on the Wall Press (use code BOOKMAGNET10 for 10% off)
No comments:
Post a Comment