LAMENT FOR THE NAVY BY VANJA VLAHOVIĆ ( BOOK REVIEW) PLAČ ZA MODRIM (OGLED KNJIGE)

 Hello my dear readers! Happy New Year! Welcome January! Now, that the exclamatory happy sentences are out of the way, let's get at the merry business at hand. In this post, I'll review Lament for the Navy, a novel by Croatian writer Vanja Vlahović.  

I have been really looking forward to reviewing this novel ever since I read it (i.e a few months ago). The reason why I haven’t reviewed is yet is because I wanted my review to be perfect. I wanted to do this novel justice and write one of those very long, detailed and meaningful book reviews that I’m known for. So, I’d waited for the winter holidays, assuming I’ll have some free time with no school and all that. Well, my winter holidays were no fairy tale. I had fallen ill at the start of the winter holidays, so I’m only starting my review today. I don’t know will I have the time to make this review perfect, but I will do my best with the time and energy I have. Better late than never, better something than nothing, right?

 One of the reasons why I was so excited about reviewing this novel is because Vanja Vlahović is a new author to me. I’m always keeping an eye on contemporary Croatian literary scene, so I’m surprised that I missed this one. However, the literature gods being as kind to me as usual, they literally sent this novel my way. I found a copy of it in one of those bookexchange boxes in Jelsa. I took it home to read and I was simply blown away by it. 

What impressed me so much? First of all, it was the quality of writing. I did not expect a novel from a new author to be as well written. Secondly, it was the depth of the novel itself. This novel is a work of magic realism, and it is one of the best I have read. It really embodies everything I love about magic realism, primarily its ability to capture the complexity and strangeness of our human condition. If you are a regular reader of my blog, you know that I love magic realism. Some of the most read book review posts on my blog fall into this category. Now, there is another magic realism author to love! Speaking of magic realism, should I share links for the other magic realism authors I loved? Here are the books: 

BLACKBERRY WINE BY J.HARRIS // SWIFT AS DESIRE BY LAURA ESQUIVEL// EAST, WEST BY SALMAN RUSHDIE // KAFKA ON THE SHORE BY MURAKAMI //AUNT JULIA AND THE SCRIPTWRITER BY MARGIO VAGAS LLOSA // OF LOVE AND SHADOWS BY ISABEL ALLENDE //OF LOVE AND OTHER DEMONS, BY GABRIEL MARCIA MARQUEZ  // MY NAME IS RED BY ORPHAN PAMUK // THE ISLAND OF THE MISSING TREES BY ELIF SHAFAK // A BUILDER OF AN INN, BY IVAN ARALICA

Apart from it belonging to magic realism, what else should you know? What kind of novel is this? What is it about? Well, this novel basically tells a life story of a little boy who was birthed by the sea. What do I mean by this? A baby boy is found in a fishing village on an island.  Nobody knows where the baby come from. It seems that the sea itself in some mystical way brought them the boy. The village is a small one, so they know it is not from one of them. An old fisherman Columbo decided to adopt the baby boy and the ladies from the community offer to help him raise the boy. Columbo names the boy Grgur and raises him as his own.

 Early on, Grgur shows a mystical connection with the sea, spending hours starring at the sea. What could it all mean? As the story develops, Grgur grows and falls in love, starting his own family, the sea remains a powerful force in the lives of all the characters. Fishing is described with mythical enthusiasm and the sea is almost a deity of some sort. Hand in hand with lyrical descriptions of the sea, the author shows concern for ecology and speaks of the importance of sustainable fishing. Sustainability is a hot topic right now and rightfully so. I try to be as sustainable as I can, both my shopping habits, fashion and frame of mind.

Who is Vanja Vlahović? Born in 1970, Vanja Vlahović is a Croatian writer from Omiš, a Dalmatian town I have written about in a number of posts. Vanja Vlahović is an engineer of fishing technology. From what I found online, all of his literary works are heavily inspired by the sea. This enthusiasm and concern for the marine life is evident is this novel. I assume his other works show a similar love for the sea. I did some research online and discovered that this author wrote his first poetry collection in 1998 and this novel in 2002. I also discovered that he published another novel in 2018 titled The Forest Boy (Šumski dječak), this one being devoted to his adopted son. Vanja adopted his son when he was eight and he wrote this novel because most adopted children blame themselves for being abandoned and he wanted to let them know they are worthy. Just reading that made me teary-eyed. It also makes me wonder whether this novel Lament for the Navy was written before or after adoption, because it also talks about adoption.

 

This novel hasn't been translated to English yet. Therefore, I translated the title for you. Originally titled ‘Plač za modrim’, this title could be translated also as 'The Cry for the Blue' but I felt that Lament for the Navy sounds better. Croatian language has a special word for dark blue and it is ‘modro’. English also has a special word for dark blue, and one wouldn’t typically say ‘dark blue’ in English but would use ‘marine blue’ or ‘navy blue’ or just ‘navy’. I also like how ‘navy’ has a double meaning in English and it can be both a noun and an adjective. Navy can also mean a fleet of ships. There are ships in this novel so I think my translation is kind of perfect. Now, ‘crying’ is perhaps as close in meaning to ‘plač’ as lament, the two words being synonyms, but I feel that lament is more poetic and better captures the lyrical prose of this novel.

Back to the novel. I suppose one of the reasons why this novel captured me so is how it well it describes the power of the sea. As someone who has been in love in the sea since I can remember, reading a novel that captures the magic of the sea is pure joy. 

 

This novel is set on an uncharted island. We can assume that the island is somewhere in Croatia, but the author does not really specify what island could it be. Is it in the north or the south of Croatian coast? We have no idea. We also do not know at what time this novel takes place. We can assume that it is in the past. There is an Italian merchant who comes at one point and sells new modern nets to the fishermen who have previously used only traditional nets, so we can assume that the novel is set in 20^th century. However, it is hard to be more specific than that. There is talk of difficulty and economic uncertainty, but that is something that can be connected with various stages of the last century. I think the author is being vague on purpose. It does not matter when exactly this story takes place.

What matters is that life on the island is always difficult. What matters is that the communities living on any Croatian island (or perhaps any island in the world) will always struggle. What matters is that they keep their traditional values and respect for the sea. Likewise, people will always have struggles in challenges in their life, what is important is that they make the right moral choices. So, the subjects of this novel are actually universal. The exact time period or location is not important. The events that take place could have happened before, after or during the First and the second World War or even during the nineties war. The emphasis is not on any time period; it is one the characters themselves. The narrative is told in the third person by an all-knowing narrator. The narration flows effortlessly and is easy to follow. The writing is often very lyrical, especially in the descriptions of the sea or the fish. The  dialogues in the novel  are well written, and they add more personality to the main characters.

The author Vanja Vlahović does not really use any of the islander dialects in this novel, rather he writes mostly in standard Croatian. The characters are islanders, but as I said, they are islanders in an universal way, you cannot pinpoint the island they are from. If the writer opted for any of the islander idioms or Croatian seaside dialects, then Vanja Vlahović would have to set his mind on a distinct location in Croatia. As I said, I feel like Vanja Vlahović left all of it vague and ambiguous because he wanted the emphasis to be on the universal themes, such as the mystical connection of the human soul and nature. There is a higher reality implied in this novel, something that goes beyond the everyday life. In the character’s connection to the sea, one feels something supernatural and spiritual. While the themes explored in this book are not religious, there is a spiritual component in it. What do I mean? Well, Lament for the Navy  or Crying for the Blue certainly does not promote materialistic or consumeristic values.  This mythical connection of people and nature implies spiritual depths. This novel not only goes sees through the materialistic philosophy of our age, it criticizes it. Lament for the Navy advocates for marine ecology and respect of all life. While its characters are fishermen, they are (most of the time) full of respect for the sea and the marine life. The protagonist of the novel, the orphan of the sea Grgur has an especially profound connection to the sea. At one point in the novel he almost dies because he cannot resist the calling of the sea and he jumps into so called ‘Eye of God’, a mysterious spot in the sea.

Grgur is basically the key figure of magic realism in this novel. From young age, he demonstrates amazing fishing abilities that border on supernatural. He can exactly where the fish is going to be. Grgur is a very solitary boy in his early life, he hardly communicates with anyone but his adoptive father. He feels best when he is near the sea or in the sea.  He impresses his father with his catches, but Columbo also worries for Grgur, sensing that his adopted boy is different. Grgur grows up and joins Columbo at fishing. They sail together. Grgur is unmatched in his fishing abilities, yet at the same time, Grgur is often reluctant to fish. There are periods when Grgur refuses to catch fish. 

Like Santiago from Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea, Grgur loves the fish. Santiago at some point wonders is it worse or better to love what you kill.  If Grgur wonders the same, we do not learn it, because we are not privy to his thoughts. We see and learn about Grgur from the eyes of the others. Grgur warns the others about the dangers of the overfishing. It is almost like he is some kind of sea angel; a spiritual being sent by the sea. At the same time, Grgur very much seems like a real person. It is one of the things that impressed me the most, how the author managed to make Grgur seem both real and an otherworldly person. I think what adds realness to Grgur is his devotion to his family members.

As I said, Grgur is the protagonist of this novel, but he is not the only key character. The novel opens with old Columbo adopting Grgur. Despite his old age, Columbo is a gentle father. Columbo is no angel, though. He is described as an old man that is not without flaws. Sometimes Columbo says and does the wrong thing. Sometimes he is stubborn and superstitious. Sometimes Columbo is quite limited in his way of thinking. At one point in the novel, Columbo punches their Catholic priest in a face over some dispute. Columbo is not a religious man. He is not an ideal man in anyway. However, Columbo is sincere and steadfast in his love for his unusual son. As Grgur grows up, the two men become a real if small and usual family.

The plot of this novel is linear, it basically follows Grgur’s life story, as he grows up, falls in love and starts a family of his own.  Who does he fall in love with? Well, her name is Barbara and she is also one of the inhabitants of the island and the fishing village. This novel does not venture from the island, even if the outside world sometimes comes in touch with the island and the islanders. Everything that happens in this novel happens within the community. There is a number of other characters explored in this novel. The most important of them is Barbara, Grgur’s love interest. I really liked Barabara's character. She defied expectations and proves herself to be psychologically strong. 

Boats in the Night, an original painting 

Barbara is described as a girl that rebels. She is bored of the island’s life and morality. Barbara wants to be as different as possible from her traditional mother and father. Barbara is set to defy the moral standards of the old times and she does not care much about religion. Barbara rebels against her parents and lives a promiscuous life until she falls in love with the reclusive Grgur. The two could not be more different it seems. Barbara is outspoken, energetic and talkative, Grgur is silent and solitary.  At start it is not clear whether Barbara cares about Grgur or having fun with him. At times it seems like Barabara wants to take advantage of Grgur’s innocence and naïveté. I wondered whether Barbara moves in with Grgur because she cannot stand living with the parents she hates. However, once she marries Grgur, Barbara becomes a loyal wife to him.

Their love story was interesting to read about. It starts of kind of slow and unimpressive, but as the time moves on the plot progresses, it becomes more and more touching and profound. Together, Grgur and Barbara go through a lot of difficulties, losses and challenges. You can literally see them both growing as individuals and a couple as the story progresses.  Life throws obstacles and tragedies towards them, and through it all they demonstrate great love and affection to one another. Barbara accepts her husband as he is, completely different from others, with his otherworldly qualities. Grgur shows real love for his wife and this love humanizes him. It was wonderful seeing both of them grow as characters. The awkward beginning of their love story actually made their latter strong connection more touching.

Columbo also develops a lot as a character. Living with his daughter-in-law Barbara, he also has to make adjustment. The little family of three felt really real. They go through their little arguments and conflicts, but come out stronger for it because they genuinely care about each other. The conflict between Barbara and her parents does not really get resolved, it turns more bitter with time it seems. I found this credible. There are quite a few human conflicts in this novel and they add to the realism of this novel. Even if they might have a good moral core, people are sometimes cruel and stupid. In other words, people make mistakes. Sometimes they manage to correct them and sometimes they do not get the chance. Even the good ones make terrible mistakes sometimes. There are also those people that are simply rotten inside and everything they touch rots. It is life.

This novel is really good in capturing the realism of living in a small fishing village, the feuds and the arguments, but also the ability of people to come together and help one another in the challenges and troubles. There are certainly many challenges, troubles and tragedies described in this novel. As I mentioned, there is an ecological aspect to this novel. An Italian merchant sells the fishermen modern nets. At first, they refuse to take them, but driven by hunger and poverty, the fishermen eventually give in. With the new nets, the fishermen capture a lot of fish, but they also cause damage to the sea. The new nets drag on the sea’s surface, killing more marine life then needed and doing more damage than good in the long run. It is a distinctly ecological question. This character of the Italian merchant is perhaps also a metaphor for modern life. While technology can bring progress, it can also jeopardize not just ecology but also traditional values and culture. The moral pollution caused by materialism is as dangerous as actual damage and pollution of the sea. Pollution comes in many shapes and forms. It also comes in the form of putting material gain before your family or in putting material gain before your moral principles. In all of this, the supernatural aura of Gregor serves as a reminder of the power of nature.

 Grgur seems almost like an angel, a spiritual being created by the sea, and yet at the same time he feels very much real. His love towards his wife Barbara grounds him and makes him more human and approachable. As tragedies and danger looms above the couple, Grgur and Barbara prove their love to one another. However, love is not enough to stop tragedy. Life is often composed of a series of tragedies. As the novel gets grimmer and more serious, the reader wonders will Grgur and Barbara be able to survive all the sorrows that life throws at them? Throughout all of this, the reader can sense the sea calling out to Grgur.

Indeed, this novel has a lot to offer.  It is not a long novel. In some ways Lament for the Navy is quite economical.  There are not a lot of characters featured in this novel, just enough to give you a feeling of a small community it describes. Only the principal characters (Columbo, Grgur and Barbara) are portrayed in detail, but that is alright because they are the ones that matter the most. This novel is really about them, about the power of a family and love. 

 The time and the location of the novel are intentionally ambiguous. Still, there are these little details that make this fishing community feel authentic, for example the ancient custom of making and gifting a shoe to the sea. The village described in this novel is a breathing village and community, as economic as the writing it. The conflicts between the islander characters are convincing. Equally realistic is the description of the often-unwanted intervention from the outside world that disturbs the islander way of life.  The writing alternates between descriptive and lyrical. The novel is at its most lyrical when it speaks of the sea. The narration is very easy to follow and at times quite captivating.

I would say that Lament for the Navy is one of the most touching novels I have read. Its literary power lies both in the universality of the themes it explores and the credible creation of its principal characters. The portrayal of principal characters was done exceptionally well. I really found myself caring deeply about Grgur and Barbara. Moreover, this novel has captured perfectly what it means to be enamoured with the sea, to be captivated by it.

 

As some of you might know, I’m a painter of the sea. You might call me a marinist or a marine artist as most of my art is focused on the sea and seaside. Detailed seascapes are basically my signature art pieces. If you follow my blog, you have seen hundreds of sea paintings and illustrations. Sea remains a powerful force in my life. I was born and raised by the sea. As a child, I believed in the sea in the theological sense. I believed that seagulls were angels and a sea of deity. When I would find a feather from a seagull, I would think to myself-look, a feather from a sea angel. Even when I was old enough to understand that seagulls are birds, I still believed they were special birds, emissaries from a spiritual world. The sea in my child mind was a deity basically. A manifestation of a deity. Sea was a living and conscious thing to me. I would swim until I turned blue as a child. You had to drag me out of the sea.

I spent much of my childhood sailing and fishing in a traditional wood fishing boat that belonged to my grandfather. My grandfather died young but we kept the boat. We learned fishing at a young age and would sail and fish all the time. To this day, I often paint traditional fishing boats.

I grew up, but my fascination with the sea hasn’t changed. I can always feel it. The sea calling out to me. I can spend hours starring at the sea. We have a saying where I’m from- the sea heals. The culture I grew up is intricately linked to the sea.  To read about this mythical connection to the sea in a novel of magical realism was something that I did not even realize I need. I read a lot of beautiful literally descriptions of the sea. Writers such as Joseph Conrad and Alexandre Dumas have done a great job describing the sea and the connection one can feel to the sea. However, this novel as a work of magic realism adds a more mythical element to this connection. Lament for the Navy by Vanja Vlahović makes the sea feel truly magical. In other words, this novel has mesmerized me. I immensely enjoy reading it. I highly recommend this work. I’m looking forward to reading more from this Croatian writer.

That would be my book review. At 3500 words, I think it is not too short. I think I said the majority of what I wanted to say. I hope I have managed to convey my enthusiasm for this novel. Now, let’s talk about my outfit.

 These photographs were shot about the same time when I read this novel, in that transitional time between Summer and Autumn. The photographer was Gordan Džidić, that is, my husband. He did an amazing job with these photographs. This photoshoot was not planned at all, he just had a vision and went with this. 

We took these photographs in a friends’ house. When we arrived to Jelsa on island Hvar in September, we stayed with friends. They actually offered us to stay indefinitely, but we did not want to be a burden so we only stayed until we found a place of our own. In my last post, I told youhow we had to move multiple times. The crazy thing is that since my last post, we actually had to move again. I do not want to even talk about it and our renting drama, frankly it’s becoming ridiculous at this point. I almost wish we stayed with our friends as we got along so well with them. It was really nice living with them but I do not want to impose on them indefinitely, even if they seem genuinely happy to have us. Anyway, back to the subject of my post and this photoshoot in particular. 

What is connection between these photographs and the book? Do you see it?  My husband is a really talented photographer. I think he does not give himself enough credit. I do alright with taking photographs, he really has a vision with his photography. This blog would not be the same without him. Thank you, mr. husband for being so enthusiastic at taking my photographs. You are a part of this blog!

  These photographs turned out so well. When I saw them, I knew that I wanted them to go alongside this book review. I feel like they are just meant to be, not just because they were taken at about the same time as I read the book because the location matches the book so well. These photographs were taken on a Croatian island. This novel takes place on a Croatian island. In front of this house you can see fishing boats. This house belongs to a fisherman. Yes, there are generations of fishermen raised in this house. Our friend is a traditional fisherman. So, the location cannot be more authentic. It was meant to be, wasn’t it?

Alongside the photographs, I have also made collages and included some of my marine paintings. I often paint traditionalfishing boats and seascapes. You always seem to love them, too. I also do a ‘Travel with my art’ series where I post landscape paintings and take you places with my art. Most of these travel with my art posts are in fact seascapes. Should I add links? I have 44 of them, so I will just add the latest post in the travel with my art series, a painting of Zavala beach. If you click this link, you'll be able to see all the 44 posts in this category. 

 

My original boat art:  1 unsold/ 2 gifted / 3 gifted / 4 sold

Now, it is time for my sustainable fashion files.

The Story of My Outfit- The Links Between this Croatian novel and this Outfit 

Finally, this outfit matches this novel in a number of ways. This was a real outfit and as I said it was photographed by my husband. There was no plan behind it. I wore this outfit to work and I love it to bits.  Seeing it and the location, it just seems perfect for the job of accompanying this Lament for the Navy book review. Afterall, I’m wearing a blue top paired with a coral red necklace. I got this top from a friend of mine, so it is second hand. The brand is Sisley, and my friend got it from her daughter if I recall well. The coral necklace is plastic and I wore it a couple of times already. I love corals and while I have some real corals, I also like imitation coral jewellery. I do not wear real corals often maybe because I’m afraid of losing them. However, I do love corals. In case, you did not know coral jewellery is definitely a part of Croatian tradition and culture, especially when it comes to Croatian seaside. There is this whole tradition of diving for corals and making coral jewellery. This is also reflected in traditional Croatian folklore and dresses. Croatia does not have a single folklore dress, rather it has hundreds of different folklore dresses. Almost every town and village has its own traditional dress. Many seaside folklore dresses feature coral jewellery. 

Now, when it comes to my sand trousers they are from Croatian brand Uzor (that sadly does not exist anymore). The downfall of Uzor was probably that they had their offices at a hot location, so somebody decided to destroy them. That is the only explanation for their closure that I can think of, since they had contracts with the government. They made uniforms for the police, military, airport personal and so on. They made my uniform when I worked at airport Split. So, it is very fishy they went bankrupt. Anyway, I absolutely loved this brand and I have quite a few pieces from it, such as this navy blazer, this one-of-a-kindbutton up dress (You can see seven ways to style it here in 2019!) and this green tartan blazer. There is also a DIY element to this pair of trousers. Years ago, I painted red flowers on this pair of beige palazzos with textile paint. I tried to make flowers look like embroidery. So, that is another example of me being inspired by Croatian folklore. The finishing touch to my outfit was this pair of fake snake skin oxford style shoes. I like the masculine vibe of this pair of shoes and how they match with my wide camel trousers. I added a black belt to match with the shoes. I do not remember where the thin belt is from, it probably just came with one of the dresses I bought. The shoes were bought in a Retro store in Mostar but they are made in Italy. I felt really comfortable in this outfit and kind of fierce, too. That would be the story of my outfit. Should I add the links?

The blue top (Sisley) : second hand, first wear

No links since it's my first wear!

The red plastic coral statement necklace: gifted

Previously worn : 

1) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2025/11/six-of-crows-by-leigh-bardugo-detailed.html

2) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2025/05/spring-in-bay-torac-island-hvar-3.html

3 & 4) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2025/05/spring-on-island-hvar-2-ferry-ride.html

5) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2025/04/is-talent-something-we-are-born-with.html

The camel wide trousers with DIY painted flowers: Uzor 

1) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2016/02/majstor-i-margarita-book-recommendation.html

2) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2015/11/travelling-is-state-of-mind-putovanje.html

3) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2014/01/wide-trousers-outfit-post-siroke-hlace.html (this is before I painted them)

4) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2013/01/3-outfits-post-snapshots-tri-odjevne.html (also before I painted this pair)

5) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2015/05/illustrating-with-fabric-paints-and.html

6) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2016/10/boromine-sandals-review-how-to-paint-on.html

7) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2012/12/yesterdays-outfit-for-evening-walk.html (before the paint job)

The black faux snake skin oxford shoes (Retro store)

1) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2025/11/six-of-crows-by-leigh-bardugo-detailed.html

2) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2025/04/is-talent-something-we-are-born-with.html

3) https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2024/11/summer-to-autumn-transition-mostar.html

Do you want to read more Croatian literature recommendations? Here are some of them: 

Škatule i batule, by Vendrana Stojan. What kind of novel is this? Written in Dalmatian dialect, an autobiographical novel by Croatian author Venera Stojan is a journey in her youth and adolescence.

Melem, a novel by Pavao Pavličić Melem, is a lovely novel by Pavao Pavlichich. This Croatian writer has (so far) published 95 books (most of them are novels), so he must be doing something right when it comes to writing.

People Who Planted Trees (Ljudi koji su sadili drveće), a novel by Croatian writer Josip Mlakić. Published in 2010, this novel focuses on a group of war veterans and friends.

Mirko Kovač, GRAD U ZRCALU: OBITELJSKI NOKTURNO- In this post, you can find my  book review for The City In a Mirror, an autobiographical novel by Mirko Kovač. I don’t know if I’ve ever read a more magical, tender, layered, and melancholy autobiography. 

 How We Broke Our Legs by Miro Gavran is one of the funniest books I've read so far. I passed this novel to to my husband, who  found it very funny as well. 

Knjiga o Tari, by Zdenko Lešić - This novel enchanted me. I would describe it as a profound philosophical and autobiographical novel, written in a post-modernist style.

In this post I reviewed a novel Marina ili o biografiji (Marina or About Biography) by Croatian writer Irena Vrkljan.  Published in 1985, this lyrical novel is a poetical blend of biographical and autobiographic writing. 

Damned Croatian Women by Milana Runjić - Another book that I absolutely loved was Proklete Hrvatice- od Cvijete Zutorić do Ene Begović by Milana Runjić Vuković (here you can read my review for one of her other books). This book focuses on lives of several notable Croatian women.

Thank you for reading and commenting! How's life treating you?