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jenpaul13's review
4.0
Back in the USSR with a story of art, censorship, drugs, and the government. Following the stories of people connected to the artwork censored at the introduction, The Tsar of Love and Techno by Anthony Marra weaves a tale that depicts some universals of the trails humanity endures through the ages.
To read this, and other book reviews, visit my website: http://makinggoodstories.wordpress.com/.
Soviet Russia in the 1930s was a dangerous place for free expression as the government was an ultimate power. When an artist in charge of censorship for the government decides to both leave a portion of a person fated to be erased from history and insert a version of his governmentally sanctioned censored brother into each painting he alters, he alters the course of events for those who follow after him, which includes the granddaughter of the censored ballerina, a gangster, and soldier waiting to listen to his brother's mixtape.
The narrative was composed of interesting interconnecting vignettes of life of those in a small town in Soviet Russia from its USSR days to more contemporary times. There were several times throughout the narrative where I became confused as to who was "speaking," particularly with the male characters. The story comes full circle with the censorship introduced at the beginning of the book and Vladimir coming to a realization of what his artist uncle meant about his father always being in the background, watching him. The centrality of art and censorship in Soviet life was intriguing to read about through these stories as it shows the reality behind what governments willingly do to their citizens and how citizens deal with the governmental intervention into their lives.
Overall, I'd give it a 3.5 out of 5 stars.
*I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.
To read this, and other book reviews, visit my website: http://makinggoodstories.wordpress.com/.
Soviet Russia in the 1930s was a dangerous place for free expression as the government was an ultimate power. When an artist in charge of censorship for the government decides to both leave a portion of a person fated to be erased from history and insert a version of his governmentally sanctioned censored brother into each painting he alters, he alters the course of events for those who follow after him, which includes the granddaughter of the censored ballerina, a gangster, and soldier waiting to listen to his brother's mixtape.
The narrative was composed of interesting interconnecting vignettes of life of those in a small town in Soviet Russia from its USSR days to more contemporary times. There were several times throughout the narrative where I became confused as to who was "speaking," particularly with the male characters. The story comes full circle with the censorship introduced at the beginning of the book and Vladimir coming to a realization of what his artist uncle meant about his father always being in the background, watching him. The centrality of art and censorship in Soviet life was intriguing to read about through these stories as it shows the reality behind what governments willingly do to their citizens and how citizens deal with the governmental intervention into their lives.
Overall, I'd give it a 3.5 out of 5 stars.
*I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.
jaclyncrupi's review
3.0
Marra's a brilliant writer and these stories are great but it's no A Constellation of Vital Phenomena. He's good in the short story form though.
emmabeckman's review
5.0
This wasn’t a new favorite necessarily but I loved how the stories were interwoven and the writing was truly exceptional.
catbonati's review
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
laurenisallbooked's review
5.0
My heart is so happy after reading this. This collection of beautifully woven stories is packed with rich metaphors and brilliant language.
I considered rating 4 stars because one story dragged on a bit, and there were some moments where you could feel the author writing himself into one character. I also hoped the intersection the two main families of the book would have a stronger connection.
Overall, I loved this book. I cannot wait to reread this and share this with a friend.
I considered rating 4 stars because one story dragged on a bit, and there were some moments where you could feel the author writing himself into one character. I also hoped the intersection the two main families of the book would have a stronger connection.
Overall, I loved this book. I cannot wait to reread this and share this with a friend.
cabbagefan's review
4.5
4.5, i wish i didn't take so long to read this because i found it hard to remember what had happened in previous stories and who certain characters were but the payoff of how the stories are interconnected was worth it in the end, i now want to reread this someday in one sitting
sarah_nera's review against another edition
5.0
This books was fabulous. It was such a pleasure to read short stories that all connect to each other and not in a way that felt forced or irritating to the reader. Gorgeously written, about an area and in some ways a culture that is pretty unfamiliar to me, and fascinating. I didn't love the very end of the book but it felt like a natural ending at least. I'm going to put his novel on my to-read list for the summer.
anushb's review
I don't know what it is with Anthony Marra books making the most unbearably awful audiobooks. It might be the unfortunate decision some audiobook directors make of taking characters who are speaking a foreign language and making their part of the narration heavily accented. If a character in a book is supposed to be speaking Russian, but the book is written in English by an American author, I do not understand why a character would speak English with a very heavy Russian accent. This book is especially awful because every single part of the narration is done with a Slavic accent, but each story has a different narrator, so as soon as you at least get used to one person's accent, the narrator changes, and you have to get used to a different accent. The resulting audiobook is slightly more pleasant than nails on a chalkboard.
I finished the first two stories, which were well-written in my opinion, although the first story about a censor in the Stalinist era who eventually is betrayed himself was too reminiscent of Arthur Koestler's Darkness at Noon.
I finished the first two stories, which were well-written in my opinion, although the first story about a censor in the Stalinist era who eventually is betrayed himself was too reminiscent of Arthur Koestler's Darkness at Noon.
bellawoo's review
4.0
I have mixed feelings about this book. As you can see, I rated it 4 stars, but at times I was convinced I was going to give it a 3 and then in the next chapter, I'd predict it would end up as a 5. The thing is, I'm keeping this on my shelf, because I will likely reread it. But parts of it felt weak - particularly the interlaced relationships of the characters. I think Marra could've spend more energy weaving the relationship as the painting gets handed through each short story and strengthening the plot within each short story, instead of insisting that each character has some relationship to the others.
shelvedbycass's review
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
5.0
This book is unlike anything I’ve read before! I don’t even know how my words can even begin to do it justice.
I guess I’ll start with the structure. Alexei’s mixtape for Kolya is an integral aspect of this book’s plot and I think it’s absolutely genius of Anthony Marra to organize the book’s chapters like a mixtape. As a total music geek, I appreciated this structure and how it added a brilliant transitional element to these “short stories.”
The book is a series of a short stories but they all tie in together so beautifully. They can certainly be considered stand alone but they become so closely interwoven, it reads as a wonderful narrative that spans decades of history.
What I find most fascinating about history is how historians largely have to rely on assumptions oftentimes and must draw connections between different narratives in order to find a story. Events and moments are easy, it’s the STORY from start to finish that’s difficult. Marra perfectly captures this elusive story by connecting so many characters and moments of history. He truly does the work of a historian and it’s utterly fascinating.
Roman Markin was a particularly interesting character and I found myself dwelling on his story the most (it read as a Russian Twilight Zone in my opinion). Marra opens with Roman Markin who works as a censor. I’m now dying to scrounge up every last history book about censors because the art is spectacularly mysterious.
This book has so much hurt. It’s funny at times, profoundly moving at others, but also so painful. I can’t even say that I’ve picked up on all of the nuances that make this book so marvelous, I’m already aching for a re-read so that I can grasp a deeper connection.
This is a must read!!!
I guess I’ll start with the structure. Alexei’s mixtape for Kolya is an integral aspect of this book’s plot and I think it’s absolutely genius of Anthony Marra to organize the book’s chapters like a mixtape. As a total music geek, I appreciated this structure and how it added a brilliant transitional element to these “short stories.”
The book is a series of a short stories but they all tie in together so beautifully. They can certainly be considered stand alone but they become so closely interwoven, it reads as a wonderful narrative that spans decades of history.
What I find most fascinating about history is how historians largely have to rely on assumptions oftentimes and must draw connections between different narratives in order to find a story. Events and moments are easy, it’s the STORY from start to finish that’s difficult. Marra perfectly captures this elusive story by connecting so many characters and moments of history. He truly does the work of a historian and it’s utterly fascinating.
Roman Markin was a particularly interesting character and I found myself dwelling on his story the most (it read as a Russian Twilight Zone in my opinion). Marra opens with Roman Markin who works as a censor. I’m now dying to scrounge up every last history book about censors because the art is spectacularly mysterious.
This book has so much hurt. It’s funny at times, profoundly moving at others, but also so painful. I can’t even say that I’ve picked up on all of the nuances that make this book so marvelous, I’m already aching for a re-read so that I can grasp a deeper connection.
This is a must read!!!