Written with a “formal playfulness [that] suggests Kundera with A.D.D.” (Village Voice), Georgi Gospodinov’s The Physics of Sorrow became an underground cult classic upon its 2012 release.

In a semi-autobiographical retelling of the myth of the minotaur, a young Bulgarian boy is able to transport himself into the lives of others through empathic sensitivity. He navigates the labyrinth of his life and the memories of others, cataloging abandonment, and trying to find out how to live with sadness.

Published by Liveright, May 2024
Art directed by Steve Attardo and Sarahmay Wilkinson