"We loved each other, we hated each other, we were ashamed of each other, we felt contempt for each other, we were afraid of each other, we were close and we were distant. Everything was mixed up in our hearts, our heads; yet, surprisingly, it had all become unimportant, nearly meaningless in the face of our desire to be separated once and for all.
Set across nearly thirty years in the lives of conjoined twins, lidija dimkovska's a spare life (Rezerven zhivot) is an epic tale of sisterly love (with all of its frustrations), family strife, and late 20th century eastern european politics. the macdeonian author's novel takes some unexpected turns (much to the book's benefit), yet is perhaps too long by a third.
