The Tour of the Five Stories, connected to the novel Bulgarian Nose, began in PLOIEȘTI. Three events brought me together with readers in Ploiești: three encounters, each with a different theme and a different audience.
On this page:
The Ploiești Meeting \| Stories from the Tour \| Photos and Video \| Press, Radio, TV \| About the Novel
“Virgil Madgearu” National College / County Library / “Paul Constantinescu” Philharmonic
Theme: Love
The first stop was at “Virgil Madgearu” National Economic College. Outstanding teachers, young principals, and many words about writing, literature, and the present moment.
It was a brief meeting, lasting one hour, until the bell rang for the break and we hurried on to the next event.
The library event took the form of a conversation about fiction, love, and identity, starting from the recent novel Bulgarian Nose (Humanitas, 2026). Alongside Doina Ruști were Genoveva Cerchez, representing Humanitas; Iulia Dragomir, writer; and Mihaela Radu, director of the library.
The meeting at the library took place at 3:30 p.m., in the Great Union Hall at the Palace of Culture.
What did we talk about? Love and identity. Ancestors. It was a free conversation with the audience, and the writer sparked discussions that will not easily be forgotten: from love to ancestors, there is only one step.
In the evening, Doina Ruști was at the Philharmonic for an epic performance. Five stories, connected or not to Bulgarian Nose, invited the audience into dialogue.
The general theme of the evening was
FIVE LOVE STORIES.
Older and newer histories, events tied to urban memory, passionate or dramatic episodes, encounters and emotions — this was, broadly speaking, the thematic territory.
Doina Ruști’s storytelling partners were:
• Mihai Morar, teacher
• Iulia Dragomir, writer
• Marius Nica, writer, Associate Professor, Faculty of Letters
• Loredana Novac, journalist
• George Frîncu, actor
The entire event unfolded under the guidance of Andi Enache, journalist and host of the evening.
Doina Ruști, on the stage of the Ploiești Philharmonic, with actor George Frîncu and journalist Andy Enache.
In a student campus haunted by crimes and rapes, a love story begins. He is a student at the Conservatory; she is a student of Letters. But between them there is not only music and literature, but also a past. Among intellectual aspirations and social fears, people and events from ancient times begin to make their way in.
Each episode of love is symbolically connected to the archaic history of the Romanians: Danubian migrations, the cult of Dionysus, Bulgarian mercenaries, mythical Caucaland, as well as archaic gods and the spirits of a vanished world. All of them become part of the context of a love story that gradually turns into a history of identity.
“To love means to discover who you are.” (Bulgarian Nose)
