Death and the Dervish

Mesa Selimovic's 1966 novel is considered one of the masterpieces of 20th-century South Slavic literature, and the Northwestern University Press English translation makes it accessible to readers who would otherwise miss it entirely. Set in 18th-century Ottoman Bosnia, the story follows a revered dervish whose moral world unravels when his brother is arrested by a ruthless authoritarian state. The author drew on his own brother's execution by Yugoslav authorities, and that grief charges every page. The psychological depth — the novel's exploration of complicity, faint-heartedness, and the slow corruption of a good man — is extraordinary. Faith readers will find the Islamic religious setting treated with literary seriousness rather than controversy. This is not a light read: it is heavy, somber, and philosophically dense throughout. Patient, mature readers will find it unforgettable.