A cracking good read

Oology: the study — and the cherishing — of bird eggs.
The Impossible Thing is largely stock mystery thriller, yet unconventionally centred on a bunch of rabid oologists, spanning decades and decades.
British mystery-writer Belinda Bauer here switches gears rather dramatically from her usual trilogy fare featuring small towns beset by far too many clever, terrifying murderers inevitably entrapped by humble heroes, and opts instead to test the limits of wrapping a 'thriller' around characters — historical and contemporary — who behave in quite crazed ways because they over-value birds' eggs, in the extreme.
Jay Brooks photo
Belinda Bauer was named to the Booker Prize long list for her 2018 novel, Snap.
The breathless opening scene of this precious egg caper plops us into the point-of-view of an apparently good-guy sniper, utterly in the middle of chasing an obviously dastardly black hat named Matthew Barr. This hook has the scant details and the onus-on-the-reader feel of a desperately clever Cold War spy caper. It chucks in murky waves of movement, absolutely nothing of dialogue nor explanations, and a big dose of our guy's driven, nigh-maniacal inner thoughts. We quickly get our man, Matthew, and pin him down so that we might pontificate at him and his gross ideology.
And here we first encounter our oological MacGuffin.
Why have we been chasing Matthew as if the safety of the free world depended on our valorous efforts? Because Matthew had stolen some eggs.
Cut immediately to the historical set-piece as we are flung back to the 1920s. Here, we meet and follow lovely teenage Celie Sheppard and her charmingly, painfully oafish, (Of Mice and Men's) Lennie-style friend, Robert.
These two are the opposite of dastardly — they are mismatched, quaint and endearing, with a touch of pathetic. The reader can't help but adore them as they do the most unusual thing: hulking Robert ties one end of a heavy rope around himself and the other to a frighteningly makeshift sitting contraption for wee Celie, and he delicately, lovingly (you can see it coming from oh-so-afar) lowers her down through 'The Crack,' a devilishly beckoning fissure in a blood-curdling overhang that teeters atop the cliffs that survey the chilling, blustering North Sea.
Why is sweet Robert dangling his beloved Celie's fragile life? Because beneath that overhang nest hundreds of guillemots. At least once a year, these otherwise ordinary seabirds settle under that dramatically protective ledge to lay their eggs, one per guillemot couple. They're beautifully coloured eggs, extraordinary in their peculiar variations of hue — no two eggs are precisely the same colour, nor sport the same intricate patterns.
These snowflake eggs therefore are ridiculously valuable and insanely coveted — by keen, studious oologists, to be sure, but also by far-too-wealthy, early 20th-century British male snobs. Dainty Celie and lumbering Robert eke their way through their harsh existence by, just once a year, poaching one of those prized eggs.
Jump back to the present and we meet two differently charming, very young men (although, again, the charm is purchased mostly by grand awkwardness): Patrick and Nick. Nick has a tag, one that just about captures this whole book: he's known as Weird Nick. We never really learn why, but nonetheless must agree wholeheartedly — this fellow was bestowed with an apt epithet.
In any case, stashed up in the attic of Nick's mother's house is one of these vital eggs that a century ago Celie and Robert had so frightfully and fatefully retrieved. Immediately and inevitably it is stolen before poor Nick realizes the nature of the thing he was just about roosting on — and the prolonged chase scene is on. Two teenage buds who bonded over Call of Duty fling themselves into a real-life sortie, bumbling their way over harrowing hill and through daunting dale to get that darned egg back.
The Impossible Thing
You end up with spectacularly colourful, spectacularly invaluable 1920s eggs and the conflicting quests not only for ownership of them but also for some kind of philosophical comprehension of their essential meaning driving a — let's be honest, weirdly — gripping scramble across divergent time and rural place.
It's a lot. Yet somehow, it works. In some spades.
In 2018, Bauer was unexpectedly longlisted for the Booker Prize for her eighth novel, Snap. Bauer's books are hardly rarefied literature. Still, they are sporadically sprinkled with exquisite moments of diction and syntax, moments that catch one's breath, even as they are so fleeting. One can only imagine that the sum of such moments in Snap achieved some sort of critical mass that garnered Bauer the celebratory nod. Good.
The Impossible Thing (Bauer's 10th book) will not likely repeat the feat. (Again: it's about frantically, irrationally chasing bird eggs.) But it oozes the charm of its quirky props and their dogged pursuers — eggs, and the oologists who adore them so.
Laurence Broadhurst teaches English and religion at St. Paul's High School in Winnipeg.

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Winnipeg Free Press

4 hours ago

• Winnipeg Free Press

Turn books into mushrooms — like magic

Raymond Lyttle would disappear into the wizardly world of Harry Potter any chance he could get in elementary school. He recalls being eight years old, burrowing into a haskap bush at recess and cracking open one of the books to escape the bullying he experienced at school as a closeted queer child. Lyttle would open one button on his winter jacket, just wide enough to get one hand through and flip the pages so he could avoid getting frostbite. Ruth Bonneville / Free Press Oh Doughnuts owner Amanda Kinden was inspired to repurpose Harry Potter books into something delicious. 'I fell in love with reading pretty quickly and would burn through books voraciously. I found it to be a really safe place,' Lyttle says. He read the entire series — seven books published between 1997 and 2007 — nine times in order; he's lost count how many times out of order. The relationships between child wizard Harry Potter and the other characters, and the familiarity of the world created by British author J.K. Rowling, kept Lyttle coming back for more. But when Rowling's focus shifted from being a writer to campaigning against the transgender community, Lyttle, a 24-year-old trans man, says he couldn't return to the books and support the author who was attacking his identity. 'It felt sort of like learning that a place that you had cared about as a young person had burned down or had somehow became desecrated. Whatever value was there, I could never go back to that in the same way,' he says. He removed all the books from his home, giving them to someone else so they could read them without financially supporting Rowling. On Sunday, Winnipeg shop Oh Doughnuts will take the rejection of Rowling's work in a new direction, hosting a workshop called Turf the TERF, where people can bring any unwanted Harry Potter books to its 326 Broadway location and learn how grow edible oyster mushrooms on them. TERF, which stands for trans-exclusionary radical feminist, is a term used to refer to a group of feminists who refuse to recognize trans women as sisters and reject their inclusion in women's spaces. Rowling's first foray into the anti-trans movement was when she 'absent-mindedly liked' a post on X (then Twitter) calling trans women 'men in dresses' in 2018. That snowballed into years of posts, reposts and comments targeting and attacking the trans community, earning her the TERF label. Oh Doughnuts owner Amanda Kinden was inspired to host the event by a post from the U.K.-based Instagram account which hosted a similar workshop in May to protest Rowling. While Kinden hasn't read the Harry Potter books herself, her partner grew up reading the series, but became 'very conflicted' when the author started ramping up her anti-trans rhetoric. 'Let's make something productive and delicious out of something that maybe was created with a bit of hate towards trans folks,' Kinden says. Kinden connected with Tom Nagy of River City Mushrooms, who sells mushrooms and grow kits, to throw their own event to decompose the Harry Potter books while raising awareness about the ways Rowling is harming the trans community. Instagram An a U.K. event hosted by books were made into mushroom grow kits. Growing mushrooms from books isn't a new trend, Nagy explains. A waterlogged old paperback novel can break down the same way as a damp, rotten log and create the perfect conditions for fungi. The metaphor of the process isn't lost on Nagy. He views mushrooms as nature's recycling program and as symbols for the cyclical nature of life and death. 'They're essentially initiating the future by decomposing the past. You're taking a perspective or ideology that doesn't really match with what people are realizing about human nature and society and transforming it into something different,' he says. Hearing about the Turf the TERF event, Mavis Reimer, a University of Winnipeg English professor and the director for the Centre for Research in Young People's Texts and Cultures, chuckles. 'It strikes me as a really smart protest. It's a gentle and pretty peaceful protest,' says Reimer, who studies children's literature and its impact on media and pop culture. Destroying books has been a routine protest against literature throughout history. When Indian-British author Salman Rushdie published The Satanic Verses in 1988, it ignited book burnings, death threats and protests across the Muslim world, owing to its perceived blasphemy. However, Reimer sees the mushroom workshop as a nuanced revision of book protests. While book burnings are usually spearheaded by people holding power to create a spectacle that can instil fear in onlookers, she says this protest focuses on repurposing and recycling the books. 'Growing is such a quiet metaphor, and it's a slow metaphor, and it's a metaphor of changing something into something else. When you use the books to grow mushrooms, those particular physical books are destroyed, but they're actually commuted and transformed into something else,' she says. 'Gardening with Harry Potter books is different to burning Harry Potter books.' Strong reactions such as this happen because words and stories are powerful, says Reimer. Often in children's literature, a book's author is more connected to the text than other genres, as authors often do readings in schools and book talks aimed at kids when a new novel is released, she says. It's difficult to separate the art from the artist when someone with Rowling's notoriety doesn't try to distance herself from the franchise — especially financially, Reimer says. Celebrity culture blurs the lines even more; Rowling was an early adopter of social media channels and has a following of millions of people. Instagram An edition of Harry Potter is prepped to eventually sprout mushrooms at a U.K. event. Kinden says she can't separate Rowling from her work because the author has dedicated money earned from the Harry Potter franchise to take away trans rights. In response to a 2022 comment criticizing her transphobic stances, Rowling posted on X: 'I read my most recent royalty cheques and find the pain goes away pretty quickly.' Rowling also began using the wealth generated from her books to influence policy. When the author introduced the spellbinding world of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in 1997, it was met with meteoric success. The franchise spawned online fandoms, video games and films — all of which fed into the commercial success of the books; Rowling has an estimated net worth of $1.2 billion, according to Forbes. In 2024, U.K. newspaper The Telegraph reported Rowling donated at least 70,000 pounds to For Women Scotland, an anti-trans feminist group, when it challenged a U.K. Supreme Court ruling that said biological men could legally become women and share legal protections. Monthly What you need to know now about gardening in Winnipeg. An email with advice, ideas and tips to keep your outdoor and indoor plants growing. In April, the court subsequently passed a ruling limiting the definition of a woman to biological sex and excluding trans women from discrimination protections. In response to the ruling, Rowling posted on X: 'I love it when a plan comes together' with a picture of herself smoking a cigar and holding a cocktail. Former fan Lyttle believes Rowling's actions overrule any legacy the books had, because she's denying trans people their humanity. 'A mushroom isn't less valuable than this book. We've just decided that a mushroom is more valuable than this possession,' he says. 'It's better as fuel for something new and beautiful than as something we look at that makes us sad.'

The Province

a day ago

• The Province

Hong Kong food tour is a window to Chinese food in Vancouver

Mia Stainsby goes on a food tour with Humid with Chance of Fishballs with founder Virginia Chan trying uniquely Hong Kong dishes. Kung Wo Beancurd Factory, a Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant, has been making soy products since 1803. Photo by Gavin Wilson Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. In the Vancouver area, cha chaan tengs, or uniquely Hong Kong cafés, are potent nostalgia to former Hong Kongers. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Locally, I'm talking the likes of New Town Bakery and Restaurant, Ho Yuen Cafe, The Boss Bakery and Restaurant in Vancouver, and the Lido, Cha Don, Cha Kee, and 852 Kitchen in Richmond. At cha chaan tengs, British colonialism insinuated its way into Hong Kong-meets-west dishes like eggs and toast, macaroni soup with ham, French toast, egg sandwiches, pork chops and rice, along with more Asian dishes like satay beef noodles. And always, always, egg tarts, pineapple buns, milk tea with condensed milk, and yuen yueng (a mix of coffee, tea, milk, sugar). The cuisine has been named a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. 'It's what I think the epitome of Hong Kong food is,' said Virginia Chan, a food tour operator in Hong Kong. 'The Cantonese food we eat, like dim sum and Chinese barbecued meats, is from the Canton, or Guangdong, region in China. But the food you find at a cha chaan teng is iconic and unique to Hong Kong. It was invented here. It's influenced by the British but they wouldn't recognize it to be their own. It's ours. We made it our own. Classics like macaroni in soup, egg tarts and French toast, pineapple buns, milk tea — all invented in Hong Kong.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Virginia Chan, a Vancouver ex-pat and founder of Humid with a Chance of Fishballs food tours. Photo by Virginia Chan I love to go on food tours on my travels. And in Hong Kong, it was with Chan, a Vancouver expat and founder of Humid with a Chance of Fishballs food tours. The quirky name riffs on Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs — the multiplatform franchise about a kid and a machine that turns water into food storms. Chan is a machine herself, breathlessly leading us to some iconic foods, elucidating on their whys and wherefores. Cha chaan tengs, Chan says, began as tea houses. 'People loved to have what they called afternoon tea here, usually with a pastry. The British had them at hotels and fancy restaurants, which locals couldn't afford, so they made their own version. 'At dim sum, it's tea with no milk or sweetener but in these cha chan tengs, instead of full leaf tea, they'd use the brokens and the dust.' Tata and Yellow Label Lipton tea are popular go-tos. Brits used fresh milk; Hong Kongers made milk tea with evaporated milk. 'It had a longer shelf life and was cheaper. We call it silk stocking tea because it got strained through a long cloth bag that looked like a stocking.' There's usually a bakery in the restaurant because the British taught them how to bake (whereas at dim sum, most items are steamed). Essential reading for hockey fans who eat, sleep, Canucks, repeat. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The egg tart's origin is debatable, Chan says. 'Some say it's from the Portuguese. I say it's British because it was originally made with short crust. I think puff pastry is more popular these days, though.' The perpetually busy Kam Wah Café in the Mong Kok neighbourhood is one such cha chaan teng, a locals' favourite for pineapple buns and egg tarts. There, we had both, along with French toast with a slab of butter and milk tea. 'They just got inspired by British goods but made Hong Kong versions, due to an unavailability of goods or taste preference. A cool example is chicken pie. Hong Kongers make individual sizes and instead of butter, we use lard for the pastry and the seasoning would be soy sauce, oyster sauce and sesame oil. The chicken was tossed in Chinese seasoning and mixed with peas and ham instead of potatoes and mushrooms,' Chan said. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. A day earlier, I had visited Central's Lan Fong Yuen, the G.O.A.T and longest reigning cha chaan teng when it comes to milk tea. It started as a dai pai dong or streetside stall in 1952. The finest pineapple bun I had, though, was in the entirely different world of the two-Michelin Lung King Heen at the Four Seasons Hotel, where it was beautifully crafted into designer patisserie fare. For the very Hong Kong tradition of dim sum, we went to Luk on Kui, one of the few survivors of dim sum by trolley. In this raucous second-floor room, you scramble for a seat, sharing a table with strangers. On the third floor, you can get table service for an extra charge. 'They're moving away from trolley service as people are getting wealthier and want to be served,' Chan says. 'And dim sum chefs are dying off as it takes a lot of skill and no one wants to do it anymore.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Dim sum at Luk On Kui, one of the few survivors of dim sum by trolley in Hong Kong. Photo by Gavin Wilson There's a shelf under the table for newspapers and papers for business meet ups (safe from the messier business of eating). If someone pours you tea, tap with three fingers in a 'thank you', an ancient tradition from when an emperor secretly visited tea houses. When he poured tea, his entourage would tap with three fingers, symbolizing a bowed head and prostrate arms, while concealing the emperor's identity. Chan poured tea from a bowl into smaller tea bowls. 'Green tea is cooling and black tea is warming,' she said, in traditional Chinese medicine parlance. 'Tea was also the commercial driving force in Hong Kong and the reason it came under British rule.' With hours of sampling ahead of us, we settled for just two dumplings. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. At Mammy's Pancakes in Central Market, the first Michelin-recommended street food stall, they don't do pancakes, they do egg waffles in umpteen flavours (like pork floss and sesame, white sesame and chocolate, lemon). The egg-rich light waffles, originally inspired by the Dutch dollar waffles or stroopwafels, were hot and crisp and delicate. Then, another egg tart stop. Why not, when they're in the top five of Hong Kong snacks. Tai Cheong Bakery, an egg tart go-to for 71 years, often ranks as the best. Another why not! We joined a lineup at a Michelin Bib Gourmand ice cream shop in Kowloon for a black sesame ice cream cone. Heartwarming is known for stone-ground black sesame (ground by two stone mills by the door) products. As the Michelin Guide points out, the products are prized for their intense flavour and chewy texture. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. At Lau Sum Kee, a Bib Gourmand in Sham Shui Po run by a third generation of operators, we had noodles made using a bamboo pole, a dying technique. The pole is hooked to the wall above the noodles and the noodle master bounces, see-saw like, sitting on the other end, flattening dough that is made with Canadian flour and duck eggs. It's then fed into a roller and cut into noodle strands or wonton sheets. The technique gives the noodles a firm, springy texture. I could taste the artisanal love in the prawn and pork wontons, the lo mein with dried shrimp roe, and noodle soup. Noodles at Lau Sum Kee, a Bib Gourmand in Sham Shui Po run by a third generation of operators. Photo by Gavin Wilson Nearby Kung Wo Beancurd Factory, another Bib Gourmand, has been making soy products since 1803. 'It's my favourite place to have tofu pudding and tofu,' Chan said. 'I love the silken texture. No one else does it quite like them. The tofu fragrance is light, subtle and the texture is sooo light, airy and silky.' Although the pudding is often served with red beans or black sesame, this place spotlights the tofu. 'Kung Wo is so confident, they only let you add some sugar. That's it.' The shop offers other dishes like chicken wings, pig's feet, dumplings and noodles, too. But yes, the tofu pudding is like silk and cream. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. After wandering through the Nelson Street wet market, with an amazing display of seafood (including frogs, butchered fish still twitching from muscle contractions, fresh fish maw) we managed one more tasting at another Michelin-recommended street food spot. The rice rolls, or cheung fun, at Hop Yik Tai are humble but with a wonderfully silky texture. With peanut, hoisin or hot sauce, it grabs you by your lapel to take notice. Too crowded inside, we happily ate (was it with toothpicks?) in an alley. Side dish Times are tough for so many families and corporate kindness matters more than ever. The Glowbal Restaurant Group has a history of helping to feed families in need and on Canada Day, they'll be holding a fundraising 'Great Canadian Patio Party.' Proceeds will go to Snacks for Kids, a program run by volunteer Vancouver firefighters, providing nutritional support to 10,000 food insecure youths in over 90 Vancouver schools and after school programs. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Head to the patio at Glowbal Restaurant at 590 West Georgia Street and from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on July 1, there'll be music (Gift Shop, a Tragically Hip tribute band), a barbecue with burgers, hot dogs and other grilled items, side dishes, Canada-inspired desserts like poutine bar, cotton candy, snow cones and more. For kids, there's a bouncy castle and face painting. Tickets are $30 ticket ($40 at the door). Glowbal group of restaurants (Glowbal, Coast, Italian Kitchen, Five Sails, Black and Blue, The Roof, Riley's, Trattoria) will be providing 250 meals a week in the next school year to families in need in Vancouver elementary and secondary schools, which will be delivered by volunteer firefighters. miastainsby@ Read More Vancouver Canucks Vancouver Canucks World BC Lions NHL

Vancouver Sun

2 days ago

• Vancouver Sun

Belgrade show plots path out of Balkan labyrinth of pain

Belgrade — Life in 1990s former Yugoslavia was a nightmare of war, economic collapse and an all-powerful mafia. But a new exhibition in Belgrade hopes plunging visitors back into this labyrinth of trauma and suffering may actually help the Balkans find a way to escape its troubled past. The show tells how a once-prosperous country was ripped apart by rampant nationalism and devastating violence as much of the rest of Europe basked in post-Cold War optimism and the beginning of the digital revolution. 'I feel like crying,' Vesna Latinovic, a 63-year-old from Belgrade told AFP as she toured the exhibition, visibly shaken. Plan your next getaway with Travel Time, featuring travel deals, destinations and gear. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Travel Time will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. 'Labyrinth of the Nineties' opens with a video collage of popular television intros and music videos, followed by a speech from Serbian strongman Slobodan Milosevic, who ended his days in prison being tried for war crimes. Deeper into the maze, as the multi-ethnic state begins to crumble, nationalist street signs replace socialist ones, inflammatory newspaper headlines hang from walls, and infamous Serbian warlord Arkan even croons an Elvis tune on late-night TV. 'We've forgotten so much — how intense and dramatic it was, how deeply human lives were affected, and how many were tragically cut short,' visitor Latinovic said. At least 130,000 were killed — with 11,000 still missing — as Yugoslavia spiralled into the worst war in Europe since 1945. Millions more were displaced as neighbour turned on neighbour. The exhibition features haunting images of the Bosnian capital Sarajevo under siege, civilians under sniper fire, refugees and concentration camps. Those of strikes, worthless, hyper-inflated banknotes and descriptions of the rise of a new class of tycoons and oligarchs reveal a society imploding. The labyrinth in the show is meant to be a 'powerful metaphor to show that we entered the maze of the 1990s and we still haven't found the way out,' said historian Dubravka Stojanovic, who co-curated the show. At the labyrinth's heart is 1995 — a year when over 8,000 Muslim men and boys were massacred by Bosnian Serb forces in Srebrenica, and 200,000 Serbs were displaced from Croatia in the fall of the Republic of Serbian Krajina. That year the Schengen Agreement removed borders within the European Union, but at the same time new borders were being thrown up between the former Yugoslav republics. 'It was all completely absurd… The wars only brought suffering to innocents, while those responsible were never truly held accountable,' said a visitor called Cedomir, 39, as he left the exhibition. The curators say all sides involved in the wars — including EU members Croatia and Slovenia — deny, downplay or try to forget the crimes. The show is all about stopping sources and testimonies from fading into oblivion, Stojanovic said. 'In every country, we see the same phenomenon — no one speaks of their own responsibility, only the guilt of others. This makes true reconciliation impossible, let alone the building of trust in the region,' she added. 'But every labyrinth must have an exit,' the historian said. 'And this exhibition aims to help people search for and find that way out.' That's why the labyrinth includes a room dedicated to heroes — those who refused to participate in the war — and a room honouring independent media and anti-war activists. Those heroes include Bosnian Serb Srdan Aleksic who died after being beaten into a coma after he stepped in to defend a Muslim neighbour, and Nedjeljko 'Neđo' Galic, a Bosnian Croat, who with his wife managed to get some 1,000 Muslims and Serbs out of Croatian concentration camps near Mostar. It also features moments of joy amid darkness, like swimming beneath a bombed bridge or ravers partying in a shattered country. Hopeful graffiti that appeared on a wartime wall in Zagreb is also reproduced, 'Love will save us.' 'Regardless of religion, nationality or political affiliation, love knows no borders,' Sofia, a visitor from Skopje in North Macedonia wrote in the exhibition's guestbook. 'Labyrinth of the Nineties' is set to be made into a permanent exhibition in Belgrade. It has already been shown in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo and is also open in the Montenegrin capital, Podgorica, with plans for shows in Croatia and Slovenia in the future.