Review by Choice Review
The 25 stories in this collection span the entire career of Vasily Shukshin, one of the more important Soviet short story writers of the 1960s and 1970s. The introduction by John Givens comments incisively on the place Shukshin occupied as a filmmaker and writer, as a man caught between his village origins and his status as a Moscow intellectual, between his father's legacy of rebellion (as an "enemy of the people") and his own success in the Soviet cultural scene. The frequent appearance of the "oddball" or eccentric in these Siberian village stories suggests for Givens the volya (or freedom) that, joined with a passion for telling the truth, is the key to Shukshin's literary power. This particular selection of stories almost constitutes a (postmodern?) novel in the multiple and yet linked character studies that give the reader a sense of the village life with which Shukshin was familiar. The reader will find here a fine variety of situations--from a village muzhik "cutting down to size" a new Ph.D. to an encounter of two feuding family members with a pack of hungry wolves. A good collection, recommended for all libraries. D. Murdoch Rochester Institute of Technology
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
Shukshin (1929-74) was a popular Soviet actor, film director, and author. His works include film scripts, plays, and novels, but he exceled in the short story form. Siberian native Shukshin set many of his tales in a village much like his own. His characters are uprooted seekers who share a thirst for truth and justice. Their souls ache with an inchoate longing that sets them apart from their neighbors, and their foibles are as likely to elicit laughter as tears. This wonderful collection includes many stories making their first appearance in English. The translators explain in their note that they tried to make Shukshin's characters "speak in an authentic, believable idiom." There are a few jarring moments, as when a Siberian villager uses "Howdy" as a greeting, but the translation generally succeeds. The work includes helpful commentary, notes, and a glossary. Highly recommended for all libraries.Sister M. Anna Falbo, Villa Maria Coll. Lib., Buffalo, N.Y. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Stories From A Siberian Village ($35.00; paper $16.00; Oct. 1996; 285 pp.; 0-87580-211-7; paper 0-87580-572-8): A generous collection of 25 stories--11 of which were previously unavailable in English translation--by the popular and charismatic Russian author (192974) who was also a renowned actor and film director. There's a hint of Erskine Caldwell in Shukshin's vigorous, earthy stories of northern Russian village life--specifically of his restless characters' yearnings to stretch beyond their origins and their often uneasy accommodation to urban life. The standout entries include a number of autobiographical stories (such as ``Oddball'' and ``Uncle Yermolai''), the amusing ``Mille Pardons, Madame'' (about an aborted attempt to assassinate Hitler), and the romantic ``Stenka Razin,'' the tale of a 17th-century Cossack Robin Hood whose adventures Shukshin explored in both fiction and film, and whose ebullient unconventionality clearly appealed to, as it resembles, Shukshin's own bold and defiant spirit.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Library Journal Review
Review by Kirkus Book Review
