{"product_id":"9781854114525","title":"The Loser","description":"\u003cp\u003eAn impassioned indictment of government oppression, this novel follows the fortunes of Thesar Lumi, a laborer living under communist rule in Soviet-controlled Albania. At the center of the story is a crucial decision Lumi makes in the last days of the Second World War: he has a chance to leave Albania on a refugee ship headed to Italy, but at the last moment he disembarks and returns home to his village. As it happens, he has chosen a grim existence. To survive, he is forced to work in a concrete factory, from which he watches friends and family members run afoul of repressive new laws. But even as the book skillfully depicts the slow suffocation of a whole society, it also celebrates the moments of love and hope that sustain the people—and holds out the possibility that Lumi may have been right to remain at home.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Seren","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47057063313648,"sku":"9781854114525","price":17.18,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781854114525_p0.jpg?v=1763597835","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781854114525","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}