Published in 2016, Mommyland:Flag by Armen of Armenia is the first [*] novel by a Queer Armenian who is native to the Republic of Armenia.
Armen of Armenia (Armen Ohanyan) is a fiction writer and essayist. He is the President of PEN Armenia Center since 2017. He is known for his short story collection The Return of Kikos, published in 2013. His short story Who Wants to Be a Millionaire appears in 2015 edition of Best European Fiction collection by Dalkey Archive Press. His writing is significantly influenced by his political activism. In 2015 he has participated at City of Asylum Writer Residency program in Pittsburg, PA, USA as well as the Fall Residency at the widely acclaimed International Writers’ Project at the University of IOWA at Iowa City, IA, USA.
Armen says that one of the reasons he chose to write this story was that he wanted a novel that would present gay life in a positive light to exist in Eastern Armenian and he wanted to be the one to offer it to his generation.
From As You magazine’s profile of Armen of Armenia
The novel follows three queer Armenian friends living in Armenia. Armen of Armenia describes Nar as a transvestite, who was kicked out of his home for wearing women’s clothing. Sam and Ando are two gay men in a relationship.
Armen of Armenia’s characters navigate compulsory heterosexuality and compulsory military service. Ando has completed his service, while Nar receives an exemption through a direct challenge to the army’s hetereonormativity. Sam, on the other hand, is eager to serve to challenge the idea that gay may cannot serve in the army.
Each chapter is organized around the three colors of the Armenia flag.
Mommyland:Flag is the first novel in a planned trilogy, Mommyland:Anthem and Mommyland:Gerb.
At this time, as far as we are aware, there is no English translation of the novel. Digital versions can be found at Yavuhrat ebooks and at Inknagir literary magazine.
