Бажанов, А. Стихи и поэмы о саамском крае = Verses & poems on the Saami land / Аскольд Бажанов ; English translation by Naomi Caffee ; with an essay by Johanna Domokos. - Berlin : Nordeuropa-Institut der Humboldt-Universitat, 2009.

192 heart linked together. Saami literature in translation, read without close historical and political interpretation, is mainly experienced through its universal message. From this respect Bazhanov is a fine example of an author who always has a clear point, whose poems are peaceful and warm, bringing to the foreground a harmony that is too often lost by the (post)modern reader. In a thematic categoriza tion of world literature, Bazhanov’s works are excellent examples of so-called »homeland« literature. Homeland literature can be de scribed as an art form that reflects the strong connection of a group of people to their tradition, region and community. The works of contemporary homeland literature can be classified according to context: as colonial, post colonial or non-colonial. Bazhanov’s work can be placed on the crossroads o f all three, although the majority of his poems feature a non-colonial, politics-free approach. Instead, Bazhanov concentrates on the ever-changing aspects of his home land in the cycle of the nature, as is shown by poem »Go to the mountains« (p. 133). Go to the mountains, go to the tundra, and I ’d like for you to appreciate that there are no easy paths in the Khibiny; don’t joke about the mountain passes. Sure, the North is not so threatening after all, if it offers you the warmth o f campfires, it comes off as earnest, pulling no punches, and unflinchingly stem to newcomers. And don’t hope for an easy descent, don’t set off on the trail without supplies. The mountains have granite conviction, you cannot faze them with incantations. Take fewer luxuries with you, take more salt and bread. And the mountains will gradually point out to you where the creeks are full o f grayling and brown trout Don’t allow yourself to become a boor, to carry the weight o fjeering in your heart Go to the mountains with one hope - to know yourself through solitude!