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Title: Pu-239: And Other Russian Fantasies by Ken Kalfus ISBN: 0-7434-0075-5 Publisher: Washington Square Press Pub. Date: 28 November, 2000 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.45 (11 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Beautiful...
Comment: I ran across this book entirely by accident. While scanning the shelf for yet another author, the title caught my eye, and being a Russian language undergraduate and traveler; I decided to take the book home to find out more these "russian fantasies". When at home, I randomly opened the book and landed straight on the story Birobidzhan and decided that was were I would start and within a few lines, I was totally in love. Mr. Kalfus has a writing style that instantly transports his readers into the same realm of his characters. Not only could I envision Israel and Larissa dancing, but I could also hear that insistent jazz unwinding from its record. It's been a long time since I've been memorized by an author, albeit a male author and I must say that the story Birobidzhan is enough for me to say this book is wonderful.
Rating: 3
Summary: A decent collection of stories
Comment: Pu-239 consists of a collection of six short stories followed by a novella. The short stories cover a broad range of topics and cross the vast geographic expanse (Moscow, Chechnya, an area like Chernobyl, and the former Soviet/Jewish Republic of Birobidzhan) that is the former USSR. Some of the stories work and read well. Pu-239 and Birobidzhan work particularly well. Others, Orbit and Anzhelika, 13 are acceptable. Salt and Budyonnovsk, are not particularly good. The Novella, Peredelkino, concludes the collection and is Kalfus' best piece of writing. Ironically, it also explains the pitfall that keeps this work from a higher rating. Much has been made in prior reviews and in the dust jacket of Kalfus' 4-year stay in the USSR/CIS. Some have argued that the stories reflect the broad but ultimately superficial range of Kalfus' knowledge of Russia. This is a valid criticism. However, the importance of that criticism depends upon whether you believe that a short story requires the same kind of depth one would look for in a novel. Further, it depends upon whether you view in-depth knowledge to be a pre-requisite for a good story. Peredelkino centers on a Soviet writer and member of the Writer's Union during the Brezhnev regime. The protagonist receives fierce criticism for a novel that focuses on life on a Soviet merchant vessel. The criticism centers on his lack of precise in-depth information about life on the ship. It shows, his critics argue, a lack of concern for Soviet realism. The writer complains that the facts were not essential. He writes fiction and the ship was merely a fiction delivery device. Kalfus, to a certain extent, faces the same criticism. Despite his 4-year stay, his stories do not seem to cut below the outer levels of reality of Soviet life. On the other hand, if we accept the settings merely as a fiction delivery device rather than an in-depth excursion into the soul of Mother Russia, the value of the stories as stories are heightened. Ultimately, this is a book worth reading despite its uneven quality.
Rating: 4
Summary: Compelling collection of short stories
Comment: Kalfus' second collection of stories has a lot to commend it. The title story "PU-239" is the best of the book. Like all short story collections, some are very successful and some are complete misses. In general, I like the way he draws out characters and he is excellent at describing the movements that define a person. In some of the stories, I felt that he only had a cursory, historical knowledge of places and events and that made the story seems a little shallow. Overall, this is a worthwhile book to own and enjoy.
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Title: Thirst by Ken Kalfus ISBN: 0671034820 Publisher: Washington Square Press Pub. Date: 01 September, 1999 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Lucky Girls : Stories by Nell Freudenberger ISBN: 0060088796 Publisher: Ecco Pub. Date: 14 August, 2003 List Price(USD): $22.95 |
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