Biografi: A Traveler's Tale [Paperback]

I was greatly pleased to read that Jones learned about Albania the same way I did, namely through shortwave radio. I vividly remember listening to Radio Tirana back in the 1980's. Tirana always stood out on the dial because the Chinese transmitters were so poorly modulated that the announcers sounded as though they were talking into a bucket. Jones's neighbor, who plays a prominent part in this book, often listened to Radio Tirana, and Jones became interested. When the Communist collapses came in the early 1990's, Jones decided to take a trip to Albania (lucky duck!). This book is the result.

Jones's quest in Albania is to find Petar Shapallo. Petar, a dentist by trade, is abducted by Communist leader Enver Hoxha's secret police so he can become Hoxha's body double. Shapallo assumes Hoxha's duties when Hoxha is ill. When Hoxha dies, Shapallo is cast out into society, where his likeness to a suddenly unpopular leader leads Shapallo to mutilate his face and go into hiding. During the search for Shapallo, Jones runs into a grand cast of characters, both local and foreign. Jones even talks to Hoxha's widow, Nexhmije, along the way. Everywhere Jones goes, he finds a country in a freefall into chaos. What's worse, the people are decaying just as rapidly. Albanians constantly worry over their "biografi," which are official files held by the Albanian secret police. The stories are heartrending; people locked up, exiled, or executed for trivial matters. A family member of thirty years ago with the wrong connections can land their descendents in jail, or worse. Outside of these biografis, Albanians seem to have no identity of their own.

Jones is very concerned with journeys in this book. Everyone is going somewhere; Jones is going to Albania, Shapallo is trying to return to his village, many Albanians are headed to Italy or points beyond. Jones even relates a tale about his aunt running away from her marriage to his uncle. This obsession with movement seems to be tied up with identity. None of the characters in the book seem to know who they are or why they do what they do. They just know they must GO, somewhere, anywhere. Hope lies just over the horizon and they'll find something if they can just get there. When Jones looks up some Albanians in Italy, they are unhappy because Italy isn't the paradise they thought it would be; now they talk about going to America. Will Albania ever find itself? Will we, as humans, ever find ourselves? It seems that this is a message Jones is trying to convey.

Of course, I could be completely off my rocker. What I do know is this book goes way beyond travelogue. There are dimensions to this book I can only guess at. Even if you don't want to read deeply into this book, there are still plenty of good things to find. Jones goes into some depth in his descriptions of the beautiful scenery in rural Albania, and the characters are, for the most part, well crafted and worth reading about. I do think some knowledge on Albania is helpful. The map in the book is worthy for place descriptions, but a quick web search might help with some basic information and names. You should know who Enver Hoxha is and why he is such a despicable character. I hope they reprint this book soon.