My Cat Yugoslavia is about Emine, an Albanian woman from Kosovo who, when her country (ex-Yugoslavia) is torn apart by war in the 1990s, flees, with her abusive husband Bajram and their five children, her country for Finland. Her story is intertwined with the story of her younger son Bekim, a gay, resentful, and lonely man who has a relationship with an anthropomorphic, aggressive and homophobic cat and, despite his phobia, has as a pet a boa constrictor. It is a surreal and extraordinary story.

Symbolism plays an important part in the novel. Pajtim Statovci’ s ingenious attempt to use animals instead of humans for his characters, allows readers to visualise difficult subjects, such as racism, xenophobia and isolation. The snake which Bekim kills it as it tries to kill him, paints Hi the picture of loneliness and isolation that is extremely prevalent among migrants and refugees. The obnoxious, talking cat represents the racism and the sharp criticism of the refugee experience in modern-day Finland.

Pajtim Statovci is an original, brilliant writer. In today’s increasingly, politicised and fraught political climate, My Cat Yugoslavia is a fresh and strange novel, an exploration of displacement, belonging and desire.