
Liga za opstanak
"The League for Survival" fits into the context of younger Croatian prose with its narrative tone and fluid humor.
The stories are imbued with a tragicomic tone and fluid humor, focusing on small, marginal themes and outsider characters struggling with failed lives and the absurdities of everyday life. The narrator, often in the first person or as an observer who is simultaneously involved and distant, captures the "bad" atmosphere of Vinkovci through the prism of the heroes' absurd obsessions - from caring for a perfect lawn, to football and ćevapčići, to exhuming the dead or campaigning. Stories such as "Grogi tema", "Plodovi mišjanog mesa", "Kopači" or "Ulogu HNK Cibalija u ravuše dedinog gout" stand out with a mix of autobiographical elements, social satire and absurdity, while the war, although present in the background, is not the dominant theme, but rather enhances the sense of meaninglessness. Nuhanović's stories, awarded the Ivan and Josip Kozarac and Slavić DHK awards for best debut novel, and included among the five best prose books of 2001 by Jutarnji list, reveal the fragile and somewhat deviant urbanity of eastern Slavonia. The collection, translated into English as Survival League, has been praised for its fresh portrayal of the region, its wit, and its ability to portray large human and social themes through small stories.
One copy is available