Sofia Returns Home

This story about a woman who lived through the 20th century spans several decades and many countries, from Armenia—which at that time was part of the Russian Empire—to China. Turbulent years, grueling trials, an astonishing fate. What should we tell in these crazy times? What stories can we use to tame its dizzying rush toward shores we’d rather not know about? Perhaps stories of people who refused to give in and, despite everything, stood by their convictions? Sofia is exactly that kind of person. Even as a girl, she decided to live not as others dictated, but as her own heart commanded. As a young woman, she did not allow the misfortunes that befell her to break her will. Now in her mature years, she returns, across the years and continents, to the place she once left behind, in order to remain true to herself.

Narine Abkharian She was born in the city of Berd, Armenia. In 1994, she went to study in Moscow. There, she met the love of her life and stayed in Russia. She has the looks and height of a model. During her years of financial hardship, she worked at a currency exchange office. She began writing as a blogger. Her stories are so captivating and eloquent that the most prestigious publishing houses immediately reached out to her. She first gained fame as a children’s author with her autobiographical series „Manunya.“ Her books have been translated into over 30 countries, with a total print run of nearly one and a half million copies. In 2016, she was among the guests of honor at the Paris Book Fair. She values her family history and often returns to her roots and the difficult fate of Armenia in her works. She writes in Russian. She loves jazz, the films of Woody Allen and Almodóvar, the paintings of Magritte, the prose of Chekhov, Márquez, and John Fowles, and the poetry of Joseph Brodsky.