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  • Coming of Age at the End of History
  • By: Lea Ypi
  • Narrated by: Lea Ypi, Rachel Bavidge
  • Length: 9 hrs and 8 mins
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars (21 ratings)

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Free

By: Lea Ypi
Narrated by: Lea Ypi, Rachel Bavidge
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Publisher's Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

Shortlisted for the 2021 Baillie Gifford prize and the 2021 Costa Biography Award. 

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, a year after the fall of the Berlin Wall, 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.

©2021 Lea Ypi (P)2021 Penguin Audio

Critic Reviews

"Funny, moving but also deadly serious, this book will be read for years to come.... Beautifully brings together the personal and the political to create an unforgettable account of oppression, freedom and what it means to acquire knowledge about the world." (David Runciman)

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A first hand account of the author’s coming of age experiences in 1990’s Albania

Searingly honest examination of the author’s experiences growing up in the last days of communist Albania. Ypi’s close relationship with her grandmother Mimi is especially memorable. Apart from a host of local characters - including her teacher the “mule” - the author brings to life her strong willed, combative parents as fully realised human beings with all their complexity and contradictions. Ypi has an unflinching eye for telling details sharing her first hand experience of the horrors of post communist structural reform with wit and humour. Highly recommended reading.

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Fascinating story and great epilogue

Loved this audiobook! The story intrigued me. But, by far the epilogue was the part I enjoyed most. Thank you Lea Ypi for sharing your story :)

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  • lr
  • 11-12-2021

Food for Thought

I listen to a lot of audio books as I am driving during the day. This was a fascinating retelling of a forgotten part of 20th century history, and a cautionary tale about how easy it is to manipulate human perception.

I enjoyed the narration, but the non judgemental narrative by the author certainly allowed me to consider my own reactions and thoughts to the ever changing circumstances of her childhood.

This is an important book which shines a light on the cynical political manipulation of countries both after the collapse of socialism in Europe, and during the party dictatorships.

The takeaway lesson here is that people are pawns in an international and increasingly multinational game, where control and money take precedence over individuals.

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