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A review by jelundberg
The Sacred Book of the Werewolf by Victor Pelevin
5.0
In modern Moscow, a werefox prostitute falls in love with a werewolf FSB (formerly KGB) agent, and seeks enlightenment through philosophy and Buddhism. Sexy and smart, and full of Nabokovian turns of phrase. Just as the fox's tail spins a glamour on her clients, Pelevin's wordplay ensorcells the reader, and a satire of contemporary Russia transmutes into a profound exploration of the very notion of existence itself.
The only quibble I had at all was a minor one, that of the werefox nomenclature; A Hu-Li is our first-person protagonist, and her name is set up as a linguistic joke in that, in Russian, it's a vulgar obscenity. In its original Chinese, it simply means "the fox named A," with "Hu-Li" as her surname. However, this is counter to Chinese naming, where the surname actually comes first, and the correct form should have been "Hu-Li A," although "A" would not be used as a Chinese given name (mostly because the letter by itself gives no clue as to its pronunciation); again, with the protagonist and her sisters ("A," "E," "U," and supposedly the other vowels as well), the linguistic conventions are expressed in a Russian mindset that just would not make sense for creatures who originated from China.
But as I say, this is a very minor beef for such an incredible novel. Absolutely brilliant, and easily the best book I've read this year. Highly recommended.
The only quibble I had at all was a minor one, that of the werefox nomenclature; A Hu-Li is our first-person protagonist, and her name is set up as a linguistic joke in that, in Russian, it's a vulgar obscenity. In its original Chinese, it simply means "the fox named A," with "Hu-Li" as her surname. However, this is counter to Chinese naming, where the surname actually comes first, and the correct form should have been "Hu-Li A," although "A" would not be used as a Chinese given name (mostly because the letter by itself gives no clue as to its pronunciation); again, with the protagonist and her sisters ("A," "E," "U," and supposedly the other vowels as well), the linguistic conventions are expressed in a Russian mindset that just would not make sense for creatures who originated from China.
But as I say, this is a very minor beef for such an incredible novel. Absolutely brilliant, and easily the best book I've read this year. Highly recommended.