The narrator in White Drin is a history graduate student who has just been abandoned by his partner. When he unexpectedly receives word that his Uncle Mon has died, he leaves Oslo for his family's homeland, Kosovo – not just to escape, but to understand.

Through meetings with relatives, strangers and stories that have long been buried, a family history marked by division, ideology and war is uncovered. The choices made by one generation – between Hoxha's Albania and Tito's Yugoslavia – cast long shadows over the next. At the same time, the landscape opens up: the White Drin river, the villages, the people, the memories – everything and everyone carries stories that refuse to be silent.

In his debut book, Leonard Karahoda depicts a journey through grief, identity and heritage. White Drin is about searching for belonging in what has been lost, and about finding a way forward when the past cannot be revived.