Novel Approach: Mongolia

For people who would like to learn more about Mongolia, I recommend the book “The Blue Sky: A Novel” by Galsan Tschinag (2006, Milkweed Editions. ISBN 9781571310552 — 192 pp., $22). It is the story of a nomadic shepherd boy coming of age during the l950s in the Tuva Valley in upper Mongolia. Reading it, I learned more about the life of a family in a yurt.

Born in the 1940s to a Tuvan family in Mongolia, Tschinag studied in Germany and is a shaman, throat singer, poet and storyteller in the ancient Tuvan tradition. He has published more than 30 books.

“The Blue Sky” has been translated from German to English by Katharina Rout, a teacher of literature in British Columbia. I was lucky enough to travel with Katharina on my trip to Mongolia in July-August 2004. After completing our 3-week tour, she and her husband continued on to the high Altai Mountains, where they spent time getting acquainted with Galsan and his family.

Milkweed Editions has signed a contract to publish the second and third novel in this semiautobiographical trilogy.

LORNA TJADEN

New Hope, MN