"In this inaccessible and inhospitable land, enclosed between two seas, Monteleone has found his theme. A scrupulous narrator, he follows the line drawn by 'concerned photography.' and by linking images he constructs a narrative of places and people. . . .Each image in this book contains a complex story in which the photographer plays the difficult role of being a witness of events and the guardian of memory, weaving together the stories of the Caucasus and the stories of these men and women."—Renata Ferri

Red Thistle is a powerful and fascinating exploration of the important but relatively unknown region of the Northern Caucasus and its people. It lies between the Black and Caspian Seas and is within European Russia (Chechnya, South Ossetia, Georgia, Abkhazia, Dagestan, etc.). Wars have been fought here for centuries—the most recent in Chechnya. Monteleone examines the stubborn, rebellious culture of this region, which although part of Russia, differs in the ethnicity, religion, and social customs of its inhabitants.

Nine beautiful and moving short stories by writer Lucia Sgueglia introduce each section of the book and reflect on elements of daily life and the experience of conflict within the region.