8th February, 2026 in Restless Books

Catch the Rabbit by Lana Bastašić

“I vomited a whole language for nothing, wasted it on fiction, while your beautiful brother still stood in your backyard, under the cherry tree. We had outgrown him. I saw all of that in your eyes.” The novel, Catch the Rabbit, by Lana Bastašić, brings forward an emotionally layered exploration of memory, displacement, and the quiet violence of devotion. When Sara is summoned back to Bosnia by her estranged childhood friend Lejla, a reluctant return home grows into a road trip shaped by grief, denial, and unfinished stories. The search for Lejla’s missing brother slowly exposes the lies both women have learned to live with. At times, the novel’s abstract structure may frustrate readers, but its strength pulls from that uncertainty. This is a thoughtful novel with emotional honesty about the stories we cling to in order to survive.