Damages is a memoir about one man’s fight to overcome the psychological wounds created by his peculiar upbringing as he struggled to find his true identity and freedom. The story begins with the death of his abusive father, a Communist official. His mother is diagnosed with cancer, and he immediately returns to Macedonia to take care of her. Meanwhile, his more than thirty-year search for his biological mother ends, and he tells her his life story, starting with his lonely childhood and adolescence. After finding his “new mother” to be very understanding, he reveals his first gay experience in the army, his desire for self-realization that caused scandals in the College of National Security, his escape to Turkey where he transformed into a stunning transvestite after meeting a handsome wealthy man, and his return to Yugoslavia where he wandered in the underground world of a country that was falling apart. As Yugoslav nationalism and Islamic fundamentalism rose, he experienced them directly, almost losing his life, but he eventually succeeded in immigrating to America. Although he finds his biological mother, he ultimately discovers that it is his adoptive mother’s devotion that is irreplaceable.

WINNER in the Writers Digest Awards 2005 -

Reviews:

"Bazhe has a vivid talent for powerhouse storytelling and Damages is a remarkable, compelling read." SLV, White Crane Journal, NY

"Bazhe is a skilled narrator, and Damages never dips into being a dull read."
RD, Instinct Magazine, CA

"Bazhe’s life story is uniquely his own, but at the same time it is a story that we can all relate to. That alone makes Damages a good book worth reading."
JM, The Weekly News, FL

"Bazhe has led what Leo Tolstoy or George Eliot might have called an epic life."
JT, Lavender Magazine, MN

"We can mirror traces of our life in Bazhe’s search for meaning, and be supported by his strength and creativity."
LCL, Idea Museum Collective of Consciousness, CAN

"The story is told skillfully via a number of flashbacks ...an enlightening read." Rainbow Network, UK

"Bazhe knew a world that turned to violent ethnic strife after years of civil unrest, echoed by his own inner turmoil. Damages is the story of his inner and outer wars." SS, Recorder Newspapers, NJ

"Bazhe reveals horribly realistic experiences that had to be lived. No one could have made this up. Damages is a remarkable read."
Radical Faerie Digest, TN

"Damages is an important book. My hope is that it can work a similar magic on you. Bazhe has a talent and Damages is a compelling read."
Chicago Pride, IL

"The concept rather reminds me of Michael Ondaatje’s The English Patient—again a retrospective commingling of love and history and tragedy that became a powerful Miramax film in 1996. The same opportunity obviously exists here."
JB, Hppub Book Review, MN

"Bazhe has a vivid talent for powerhouse storytelling and Damages is a remarkable, compelling read." SLV, White Crane Journal, NY "Bazhe is a skilled narrator, and Damages never dips into being a dull read." RD, Instinct Magazine, CA "Bazhe’s life story is uniquely his own, but at the same time it is a story that we can all relate to. That alone makes Damages a good book worth reading." JM, The Weekly News, FL "Bazhe has led what Leo Tolstoy or George Eliot might have called an epic life." JT, Lavender Magazine, MN "We can mirror traces of our life in Bazhe’s search for meaning, and be supported by his strength and creativity." LCL, Idea Museum Collective of Consciousness, CAN "The story is told skillfully via a number of flashbacks ...an enlightening read." Rainbow Network, UK "Bazhe knew a world that turned to violent ethnic strife after years of civil unrest, echoed by his own inner turmoil. Damages is the story of his inner and outer wars." SS, Recorder Newspapers, NJ "Bazhe reveals horribly realistic experiences that had to be lived. No one could have made this up. Damages is a remarkable read." Radical Faerie Digest, TN "Damages is an important book. My hope is that it can work a similar magic on you. Bazhe has a talent and Damages is a compelling read." Chicago Pride, IL "The concept rather reminds me of Michael Ondaatje’s The English Patient—again a retrospective commingling of love and history and tragedy that became a powerful Miramax film in 1996. The same opportunity obviously exists here." JB, Hppub Book Review, MN

BAZHE, autor/artist (author of Damages) Bazhe.com
Bazhe is a writer, poet, and artist. He is the author of Damages (creative nonfiction)- WINNER in the Writers Digest Awards 2005, and Identities (poetry book). He has published in Serbia, Bosnia, Macedonia, and Bulgaria. In America, his poems have appeared in: Poetic Voices Magazine, Winter's Gems Anthology, Bay Windows, Opus Literary Review, River Run, and Reader. His art has been exhibited in New York City, NJ, OH, and EU. He lives between NY, NJ, and MA.

DAMAGES by Bazhe on Amazon.com
DAMAGES by Bazhe on Amazon.com - Damages is a saga of a young man caught in the political crossfire of a country torn apart by Communism, Christian nationalism, and Islamic fundamentalism. It is one man's fight to find his true identity and freedom as he awakens to his own sexuality in an oppressive society and comes to realize that he can no longer consider his own home a safe haven and flees to America where he builds a new life in the land of Freedom.

IDENTITIES by Bazhe on Amazon.com
IDENTITIES by Bazhe on Amazon.com - Identities is about analyzing human manipulations through poetry. The poems deal with greed and ignorance, destruction and war, politics and phoniness, love and hatred, sex and ecstasy, loneliness and loss, and visionary musings of hope.

ART by Bazhe
ART by Bazhe - To See: All Reviews, Excerpts, Interviews, Upcoming Events, Art, and Poetry, Visit Bazhe’s Website at: http://www.bazhe.com