Author of the Month: Andrey Kurkov
Selected by the Bookshop
Our Author of the Month for March is the Ukrainian writer Andrey Kurkov, whose satirical works lampooning the post-Soviet landscape have never seemed more relevant, beginning with Death and the Penguin which introduced the unforgettable penguin Misha, liberated from Kyiv zoo to the tender care of the hapless Viktor who scrapes a living by writing obituaries for a local newspaper.
His most recent novel Grey Bees, set in the Grey Zone of Eastern Ukraine and in occupied Crimea, contains the following introduction: ‘The second half of this novel is, in some ways, my personal farewell to the Crimea that may never exist again. Nor do I know when I will next return to eastern Ukraine, or when the conflict will end. But I sincerely hope the war leaves the residents of the grey zone alone – that it goes away and that the honey made by the bees of Donbas loses its bitter aftertaste of gunpowder.’
From the publisher:
'A latter-day Bulgakov . . . A Ukrainian Murakami.' - Phoebe Taplin, Guardian'A post-Soviet Kafka.' - Colin Freeman, Daily TelegraphThis journal of the invasion, a collection of Andrey Kurkov's writings and broadcasts from Kyiv,…
From the publisher:
Ukraine's most famous novelist dramatises the conflict raging in his country through the adventures of a mild-mannered beekeeper. From the author of the bestselling Death and the Penguin."A latter-day Bulgakov . . . A Ukrainian Murakami"…
From the publisher:
Translated by George BirdViktor is an aspiring writer with only Misha, his pet penguin, for company. Although he would prefer to write short stories, he earns a living composing obituaries for a newspaper. He longs to see his work…
From the publisher:
Translated by Sam Taylor-16 DegreesC, sunlight, silence. I drove the children to school, then went to see the revolution. I walked between the tents. Talked with rev olutionaries. They were weary today. The air was thick with the smell of…
From the publisher:
Marital troubles? Sick of life? Suicide the answer? Why not get yourself a contract killer? Nothing easier, provided you communicate only by phone and box number. You give him your photograph, specify when and where to find you, then sit…
From the publisher:
Viktor - last seen in Death and the Penguin fleeing Mafia vengeance on an Antarctica-bound flight booked for Penguin Misha - seizes a heaven-sent opportunity to return to Kiev with a new identity. Clear now as to the enormity of abandoning…
From the publisher:
Moscow, 2013. Bunin, the Ukrainian President, has joined other heads of state in an open air swimming pool to drink vodka and celebrate with Putin. During his rise to power Bunin has juggled with formidable and eccentric political and…
From the publisher:
When Kolya moves into a new flat in Kiev, he discovers an annotated manuscript hidden inside a copy of War and Peace and decides to track down its author, even if it means digging up the grave of a Ukranian nationalist who died in…
From the publisher:
When the corpse of a distinguished general and presidential adviser is found, attached to an advertising balloon, lieutenant Viktor Slutsky is sent in to investigate. Meanwhile, KGB officer Nik Tsensky arrives in Kiev for a secret mission.…
From the publisher:
Semyon is disturbed. He has woken up in the living room with blood on his shirt, an angry wife and no idea where he was the night before. When this happens several mornings in a row, he realises he needs to investigate. After his friend…
From the publisher:
Igor is confident his old Soviet policeman's uniform will be the best costume at the party. But he hasn't gone far before he realises something is wrong. The streets are unusually dark and empty, and the only person to emerge from the…
From the publisher:
Catch-22 meets The Brothers Karamazov in the last great satire of the Soviet EraThe Great Patriotic War is stumbling to a close, but a new darkness has fallen over Soviet Russia. And for a disparate, disconnected clutch of wanderers - many…
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