Princes Amongst Men

by Garth Cartwright

Weaving historical fact, mythic tales and contemporary voices, Princes Amongst Men recounts a Balkan odyssey in search of the secret history and culture of Europe's greatest musicians - the Roma Gypsies. On his wild and affectionate journey, Garth Cartwright wanders through the ruins of post-Communist Serbia and observes Roma refugees from the Kosovo conflict. He attends a Gypsy wedding in Macedonia, conveys the tragedy of Romania in the aftermath of Ceaucescu, scours Skopje for opium, charts the Euro-Asian beauties so prominent in Bulgaria, almost marries a Gypsy princess in Kocani and witnesses the fiery celebrations that mark Ederlezi, the Night of the Gypsies, in an impoverished Bulgarian Gypsy ghetto. Cartwright?s engagement with Gypsy communities bypasses clich? and overturns prejudice to return with the true story of the Gypsies? Balkan blues.

?High times and hard times in the Balkans. Outrageously good.? Howard Marks ?Garth Cartwright is one wise traveller. Drifting across the Balkans he encounters those we call ?Gypsies?, a people much presumed about yet rarely understood. With empathy and wit, eyes and ears open, he describes their beautiful, defiant culture.? Benjamin Zephaniah

Garth Cartwright was born in New Zealand. He left school at 16, tried his hand at professional skateboarding, singing in punk bands, promoting concerts and even had a brief sojourn as a boxer, before turning to writing full time. In 1995 he won the Guardian Music Writing Award. He has written for the Guardian, Telegraph, Independent On Sunday, The Times, Time Out, Uncut, Folk Roots, and a multitude of international publications. He lives in London.