At first glance, this novel is about a woman who waited for the man she loves, and it is, but there are also explorations of impressions, social commentary and poetic prose. Deftly translated from the French by Geoffrey Strachan, harsh conversations are countered by lyrical descriptions of buildings and nature, such as a flashlight‘s beam “..sometimes veered upward and its light collided with the bleak infinity of the sky.” It is a quiet novel about human emotions.
The narrator is a slightly jaded young writer from Leningrad who arrives in the tiny Russian village of Mirnoe to report on the crumbling hamlets in the area. There he meets Vera, legendary for waiting 30 years for the man she loves, who promised to return when he went off with the Army engineers at the end of WW2. As the writer becomes immersed in village life, he begins to unravel the story behind Vera’s wait. Is she devoted or just a fool? What is revealed as he searches for answers is surprising to himself as well as the reader.
Arcade Publishing 2004 182 pp. ISBN 1-55970-774-7
Have to agree that it’s a great book and seeing this reminds me that I really need to read more by Makine, especially his Dreams Of My Russian Summers, which is supposedly exquisite.
My review of the book is here.
Sounds like a really interesting book. Oh dear, another one for my list!
The woman waited for thirty years? Spooky. That’s exactly the amount of time it takes for a writer to hear back from a publisher. Well, maybe not quite that long.
Really though, thirty years? Is she devoted or a fool? ‘Fool’ does spring to mind. It’s an intriguing premise though. Certainly a book I’d like to read.