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Ryssar är Såna Som Gillar Björkar (2012)

by Olga Grjasnowa(Favorite Author)

3.51 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

9185849944 (ISBN13: 9789185849949)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

Weyler Förlag

review 1: Russian literature always has me in my head for weeks after interacting with it, this book is no exception. It played with me on several levels. First is my fascination with language. How something so abstract is so fundamental to humanity. How it unites us and divides us all at once. How it can be beautiful even when describing the horrible. All this from something that could be considered a background plot. The main story revolves around the normality and routine of life. How we seem to get comfortable with it. How jarring and disorienting it can be when taken away from us. It is about never knowing where you belong, or even IF you belong. The back of the book has a blurb that I found especially apt, "[All Russians Love Birch Trees] captures beautifully ... what it's lik... moree to be neither a tourist nor a native no matter where you go...".Olga wrote the book in tight, modern prose, making it a quick read. This is a debut novel and I am looking forward to seeing what her next project is.
review 2: Captivating plot. However, the prose and ultimate execution, sadly, just did not live up to the strength of the plot alone. Perhaps the final version will be improved; I read an uncorrected proof I picked up at work. I had no idea what it was about but as I kept reading I could relate to it, by proxy: I'm married to a Ukrainian Jew who fled the USSR to the U.S., and the rest of the family went to Israel. The book started strong, slowed down a bit and then picked up again at 3/4 through. Then it just...pffffffft.....Ended. Would love to see what this author does next, though. less

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