Two Statues Become One

The 1937 novel by Azerbaijani author Kurban Said titled “Ali and Nino” is a tragic love story between Ali who is a Muslim nobleman from Azerbaijani and a Christian princess named Nino from Baku on the Caspian Sea.  This is a very complicated affair in an era of inter-religion tensions that take place during the years 1918–1920 when the First World War and the Russian Revolution were going on.  It has been hailed as one of the most romantic epic novels of all time.  The two had to fight, hide and escape from country to country to hide their love, until they arrive in Azerbaijan as a symbol of peace.  They are torn apart by the turmoil in this grand love story, and Ali joins the defense of Azerbaijan from the onslaught of the Red Army, and Nino flees to the safety of Paris with their child, not knowing whether they will ever see…