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Book Group:
"Hard by a Great Forest" by Leo Vardiashvili
When
Thursday, January 22, 2026 | 12PM EST
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01/22/2026 12:00 pm 01/22/2026 1:30 pm America/New_York Book Group:"Hard by a Great Forest" by Leo Vardiashvili
Hybrid: In-Person at the Princeton Public Library and on Zoom
Where
Hybrid: In-Person at the Princeton Public Library and on Zoom
Registration
Free; Registration Required.
You will be redirected to the Princeton Public Library to register.
Propulsive, funny, and profound.”
Elif Batuman, Pulitzer Prize finalist
At the Library
About the Event
In anticipation of Georgian violinist Lisa Batiashvili’s appearance as part of our Music & Healing series (Wednesday, April 29, 2026 at 7:30PM | Learn More), we invite you to read and reflect together on Hard by a Great Forest, a novel that echoes the political and emotional terrain at the heart of her event.
Set in the aftermath of war in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia—a country still grappling with the consequences of Russian occupation and aggression—Leo Vardiashvili’s debut novel explores the legacy of conflict through a deeply personal lens. When a father disappears after returning to his homeland, his sons embark on a journey that confronts the wreckage of history and the longing for home.
This community-wide book group, presented in partnership with the Princeton Public Library, offers a space to consider the human cost of geopolitical violence, the resilience of culture, and the healing power of storytelling—through both literature and music. Participants will have the opportunity to submit a question for Lisa Batiashvili to address during her onstage conversation, which will reflect on her own experiences and responses to the ongoing struggle in her native Georgia, and by extension, Ukraine.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Named one of NPR’s “Books We Love,” and praised by The Financial Times as a “propulsive page-turner [and] spellbinding achievement,” Leo Vardiashvili’s Hard by a Great Forest is a lyrical and unflinching portrait of a family shaped by displacement. Haunted by the violence of the past and the uncertain terrain of the present, the novel follows two brothers retracing their missing father’s path through a homeland scarred by war. At once brutal and tender, it’s a work that “has captured the winking, world-weary humor and magic-realist touches that mark a lot of literature from Europe’s war-torn corners.”(Los Angeles Times)
Visit princetonlibrary.org or call 609-924-9529 for details. Registration forthcoming.
Read More About Event
In anticipation of Georgian violinist Lisa Batiashvili’s appearance as part of our Music & Healing series (Wednesday, April 29, 2026 at 7:30PM | Learn More), we invite you to read and reflect together on Hard by a Great Forest, a novel that echoes the political and emotional terrain at the heart of her event.
Set in the aftermath of war in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia—a country still grappling with the consequences of Russian occupation and aggression—Leo Vardiashvili’s debut novel explores the legacy of conflict through a deeply personal lens. When a father disappears after returning to his homeland, his sons embark on a journey that confronts the wreckage of history and the longing for home.
This community-wide book group, presented in partnership with the Princeton Public Library, offers a space to consider the human cost of geopolitical violence, the resilience of culture, and the healing power of storytelling—through both literature and music. Participants will have the opportunity to submit a question for Lisa Batiashvili to address during her onstage conversation, which will reflect on her own experiences and responses to the ongoing struggle in her native Georgia, and by extension, Ukraine.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Named one of NPR’s “Books We Love,” and praised by The Financial Times as a “propulsive page-turner [and] spellbinding achievement,” Leo Vardiashvili’s Hard by a Great Forest is a lyrical and unflinching portrait of a family shaped by displacement. Haunted by the violence of the past and the uncertain terrain of the present, the novel follows two brothers retracing their missing father’s path through a homeland scarred by war. At once brutal and tender, it’s a work that “has captured the winking, world-weary humor and magic-realist touches that mark a lot of literature from Europe’s war-torn corners.”(Los Angeles Times)
Visit princetonlibrary.org or call 609-924-9529 for details. Registration forthcoming.
