Play Book Tag discussion

This is a brilliant book. It’s a set of interconnected short stories set in a Russia, mostly in Siberia and Chechnya. It touches on key political and social changes that occurred from the 1930’s to the present, and follows a few families through that time. Many of the characters lived in harsh and dangerous mining communities because they or their ancestors were accused of crimes against the state in the 1930’s, and sent away to work camps. I have to mention the audio narration, because the accents and inflections were wonderful. They helped me to connect to the characters and hear the sly humor in the writing. Two of the three narrators were excellent, but i had difficulty focusing on the third narrator. I’m missing some details, so I picked up the kindle to fill in the blanks and connect all the pieces (and names).

I knew that in many communist regimes throughout history, people would disappear. In Russia, they didn’t just go missing, they were struck from historical records, and they were literally painted out of pictures. Artists were used to paint something (or someone) else in their place. Families were forced to destroy all photographs of their loved ones who were killed or imprisoned. The first story was about an artist who was used to erase people, including a famous ballerina who was denounced as a spy. The second story follows the granddaughters of the dancer and her fellow prisoners. These stories continue to build and connect to others.

The author is listed as an American, so I’m curious about how he came to understand the culture so deeply and create these wonderful characters. I feel sure that he must have spent time with family or others in the region. Thank you to those who continued to promote this book to us.

Nice review. I am always happy when somebody likes an Anthony Marra book.

I am a huge fan and went to a talk of his after reading A Constellation of Vital Phenomena shortly after it was released.

Here is an article about him:
https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/30/bo...