I've been on a tear of buying Russian literature of late. Discovered Sorokin a few months back, and buying a lot of others (Shalamov, Vodolazkin, etc.). I was hoping to slow down and absorb some of them before I bought more, but your article just blew that completely out of the water. Sigh, it's just money......A School for Fools will be here Thursday.
I have read and loved both In Memory of Memory and A Volga Tale (I believe this is the US title of Guzel Yakhina's My Children). I want to read... everything here. I am frequently curious about the state of contemporary literature in other countries and this was wonderful. Thank you!
Solid list. I'd also recommend Confessions of a Lapsed Standard Bearer by Andrei Makine, a short novel about childhood in 1960s Leningrad with a haunting ending.
have not read myself yet but also heard lots of good things, yes. I was going to include him in the main part per my wife’s rec and started researching but then realised no translations are done (yet! or I failed to locate them)
Laurus is one of the few novels I’ve read in the past decade that I still think about often. I have such a emotional connection to it. Incredible book.
This is great! I’ve read a reasonable amount of older Russian literature but realize my shelves are sadly lacking in contemporary writers. Going to be looking out for some of these!
Great overview and suggestions... I'd also add Oksana Vasyakina's Wound and Yelena Moskovich’s Nadezhda in the Dark to the list - both forms of feminist autofiction...
Vanya, this is a great resource for those outside of Russia. I haven't seen anything like this. As you probably already know, all those who left Russia seem to be here in Thailand or close by. They don't seem to socialize with non Russians and are stuck in horrible locations like Pattaya and Phuket.
As someone who had the privilege to see it in the making, I have to say, this is a tremendous amount of work!
And Vanya actually read all of these (even the boring ones;).
I've been on a tear of buying Russian literature of late. Discovered Sorokin a few months back, and buying a lot of others (Shalamov, Vodolazkin, etc.). I was hoping to slow down and absorb some of them before I bought more, but your article just blew that completely out of the water. Sigh, it's just money......A School for Fools will be here Thursday.
I have read and loved both In Memory of Memory and A Volga Tale (I believe this is the US title of Guzel Yakhina's My Children). I want to read... everything here. I am frequently curious about the state of contemporary literature in other countries and this was wonderful. Thank you!
Solid list. I'd also recommend Confessions of a Lapsed Standard Bearer by Andrei Makine, a short novel about childhood in 1960s Leningrad with a haunting ending.
Also, The Aviator has been translated: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/jun/07/the-aviator-eugene-vodolazkin-review
That's great, I missed this one!
Have you read Polyarinov? I really enjoyed The Reef and Cadavres, and heard good things about some of his other stuff.
Another rec is Tyulbasheva’s Forest.
have not read myself yet but also heard lots of good things, yes. I was going to include him in the main part per my wife’s rec and started researching but then realised no translations are done (yet! or I failed to locate them)
The Reef is excellent, and Cadavers is in my reading queue. I had him in the long list, but I had to limit myself somehow.
Awesome in the true sense of the word.
Outstanding. I have already downloaded and begun reading Опасные советские вещи, which I discovered by following the link in your article.
Thank you for the amazing list! I haven’t read much, if not any, contemporary Russian literature but now have a whole list to get through!
I just discovered Ulitskaya and feel like a dope for not having known about her for so long. Thanks for this generous post!
Wow! Amazing! Thank you!
Laurus is one of the few novels I’ve read in the past decade that I still think about often. I have such a emotional connection to it. Incredible book.
This is great! I’ve read a reasonable amount of older Russian literature but realize my shelves are sadly lacking in contemporary writers. Going to be looking out for some of these!
Great overview and suggestions... I'd also add Oksana Vasyakina's Wound and Yelena Moskovich’s Nadezhda in the Dark to the list - both forms of feminist autofiction...
This spectacular overview of contemporary Russian fiction is invaluable.
Any thoughts on Russian emigre Andre Vltchek's novels written in English, Point of No Return (2005) and Aurora (2016)?
Thank you very much Tony! I haven’t read Vltchek
Thank you both, Vanya and Konstantin, now I just have to trace them all down and read them. A literary banquet fit for a passionate Russophile reader.
Vanya, this is a great resource for those outside of Russia. I haven't seen anything like this. As you probably already know, all those who left Russia seem to be here in Thailand or close by. They don't seem to socialize with non Russians and are stuck in horrible locations like Pattaya and Phuket.