Every Wednesday after school, a new girl invites herself over to a classmate's house and stays there until dark, her cell phone turned off. A thirteen-year-old schoolgirl finds a kindred spirit in her hospital roommate and realizes she's never felt so comfortable with anyone before. A boy from a prestigious chemistry and biology lyceum teaches a girl from a regular school to listen to the wind while sitting on a rooftop, and saves her father, who is protesting the school's closure, from being crushed by a concrete mixer...

These are just three stories. But behind each lies a poignant narrative. A story about momentary situations, an irrevocable past, and an anxious anticipation of the future. A description of life as it is when you are between 13 and 15 years old: an eccentric teacher with whom the students are in love, a father who writes rap, a familiar librarian who treats you to tea with kurabye, a stepfather who saved your life even before you were born, a mother with whom it is so cool to stroll around the mall and eat hot syrniki at home!

The teenage heroes are lively and sympathetic. Touching and responsive. They speak normal language. They worry about each other, seek support, mutual understanding and love - from friends and loved ones.

In total, there are five novellas and short stories in Maria Boteva's new collection. Five stories from life. Five mini-performances in which one mise-en-scène replaces another. For each plot, the author chooses a new language, reveals another side of the characters' existence, shows different life collisions.

Author: Maria Boteva