
Tutori
"Tutors" is a novel by Bora Ćosić, first published in 1978, which chronicles the author's family over a period of 150 years, from 1828 to 1977.
The novel is structured in five parts, each named after a family member and a year, with each segment using different styles and forms of writing.
Ćosić uses innovative literary techniques, such as irony and parody, to portray the linguistic and cultural stereotypes of different eras. For example, the first chapter, titled "Teodor 1828", is written in the form of a dictionary, reflecting the language and style of the time.
The novel caused controversy in the then Yugoslavia due to its critical portrayal of society, which led to the book being withdrawn from bookstores, the theater play being banned after one hundred performances, and the film of the same name not being shown in Yugoslav cinemas, although it premiered at the Venice Film Festival.
Despite the initial controversies, "The Tutors" later gained recognition and was translated into German in 2015, for which translator Brigitte Döbert received the Leipzig Book Fair Award in the translation category.
This novel is considered one of Bora Ćosić's most significant works, providing an in-depth analysis of social and cultural changes through the lens of family history, while simultaneously using innovative literary methods that question traditional narrative forms.
One copy is available