The Stories From Ferentari
There are two rules in Ferentari. Never reveal your real name or address. Ferentari is an area situated in southwest Bucharest, in its fifth Sector. Historically, it is the first industrial area of the city, which developed in the 19th century. These days, the situation is different. Ferentari is a place most inhabitants of the Romanian capital tend to avoid, a no-man's land, where several characteristics of the postcommunist reality merge – poverty, unemployment, turbocapitalism in its twisted way. The Romanian writer and anthropologist researching the music phenomenon of manele Adrian Schiop, who lived there for several years, captured the genius loci of this area in his latest novel. Manele is a type of music, whose vibrant guise is created in the streets of Ferentari, and which is a de facto sonic “persona non grata”, something alien, “dangerous” and “low-brow”. The majoritarian society, similarly to the phenomenon of manele, displaces the issues of minorities – economical or ethnic.

Adrian Schiop's writing style is thanks to his authentic, naturalistic style sometimes compared to the works of William Burroughs, we can find parallels in Hunter S Thompson's gonzo journalism. Schiop does not observes the phenomena of modern times through the prism of a scholar safe in his ivory tower, but he becomes an active part of occurences he writes about and which he researches. He is fascinated by Roma culture, but it is not only a sign of political correctness of an anthropologist. Soldatii. Poveste din Ferentari is thus a vibrant, autobiographical document of a period and time, of poverty and love, desperation and hope.

www.polirom.ro/catalog/carte/sol…in-ferentar-5159/

04/12/2013 - Adrian Schiop and his Ferentari stories

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