THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER WINNER OF THE ONDAATJE PRIZE 'The best
book I read last year by a mile. . . so beautifully written that
anyone would be hooked' Laura Hackett, Sunday Times, Best Summer
Books 'Wonderfully funny and poignant. . . a tale of family secrets
and political awakening amid a crumbling regime' Luke Harding,
Observer 'We never lose our inner freedom; the freedom to do what
is right' Lea Ypi grew up in one of the most isolated countries on
earth, a place where communist ideals had officially replaced
religion. Albania, the last Stalinist outpost in Europe, was almost
impossible to visit, almost impossible to leave. It was a place of
queuing and scarcity, of political executions and secret police. To
Lea, it was home. People were equal, neighbours helped each other,
and children were expected to build a better world. There was
community and hope. Then, in December 1990, everything changed. The
statues of Stalin and Hoxha were toppled. Almost overnight, people
could vote freely, wear what they liked and worship as they wished.
There was no longer anything to fear from prying ears. But
factories shut, jobs disappeared and thousands fled to Italy on
crowded ships, only to be sent back. Predatory pyramid schemes
eventually bankrupted the country, leading to violent conflict. As
one generation's aspirations became another's disillusionment, and
as her own family's secrets were revealed, Lea found herself
questioning what freedom really meant. Free is an engrossing memoir
of coming of age amid political upheaval. With acute insight and
wit, Lea Ypi traces the limits of progress and the burden of the
past, illuminating the spaces between ideals and reality, and the
hopes and fears of people pulled up by the sweep of history. THE
SUNDAY TIMES MEMOIR OF THE YEAR WINNER OF THE SLIGHTLY FOXED BEST
FIRST BIOGRAPHY PRIZE SHORTLISTED FOR THE COSTA BIOGRAPHY AWARD
SHORTLISTED FOR THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION
SHORTLISTED FOR THE GORDON BURN PRIZE CHOSEN AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR
BY THE GUARDIAN, FINANCIAL TIMES, SUNDAY TIMES, TLS, DAILY MAIL,
NEW STATESMAN AND SPECTATOR
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