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viktoriya's review against another edition
2.0
This was not your regular novel. It did start at point "A", but it didn't end at point "B". The first 100 or so pages read like a real novel: we were introduced to main characters and people around them and we follow them through their school years. After their graduation, the style of this book changes. We follow some of them, but we keep going back and forth in time (and it does get confusing at times), we also start following some other people (who happened to be somehow connected to our main characters). It felt more like a collection of short stories and personally, I didn't like it. I grew to love main characters in the first part of the book and that's who I wanted to follow, not the other people around them.
The writing, however, was gorgeous. I will certainly get my hands on Ulitskaya's other books.
The writing, however, was gorgeous. I will certainly get my hands on Ulitskaya's other books.
frohrbach's review against another edition
5.0
This book was excellent. After reading it I went and tried to get her other books which was difficult. I’ve been looking for them for over a year but so far only found The Funeral Party, which was also great. I’m a huge Ulitskaya fan, and think everyone else should be too.
bcjnyc's review against another edition
5.0
This book has everything that I love about Russian literature: sweeping storylines, passionate characters, philosophy, and beautiful writing. It's like this line from the book describing the "enigmatic Slavic soul": "tender and courageous, irrational and passionate, with a tinge of madness and sacrificial cruelty."
monkeelino's review against another edition
4.0
Somehow cramming 20th century Russia into just under 600 pages works. Maybe the last 100 pages dragged a bit, but overall, this was kind of an easy read in terms of pace and tone, while being incredibly complicated in terms of characters and connections. Ulitskaya focuses on post-Stalinist Russia's aftermath on families and artists. From children who never got to know their parents thanks to state-initiated "disappearances", deadly imprisonments in labor camps, or exhiles-gone-wrong to adults trying to operate under the constant watch of the KGB, what emerges is a land of well-earned paranoia and distrust. And yet through all this, culture and art persist like weeds growing through whatever cracks are available reaching toward the light. A non-chronological chronology of Russians and the Russian spirit.
What follows is a 98% complete list of characters and some book/author references I kept while reading loosely organized around main characters (in bold). I might clean it up at some point or create some sort of infographic for my own amusement (if so, I'll update, but don't count on it). Hiding it with the spoiler tag for those who care...
* Ilya Isayevich Bryansky (DOB: 1942)-photographer; dissident; 3 marriages--1st to Lyudmila resulting in disabled son, Ilya; 2nd to Olga--'72-'80; 3rd to Oksana; good friends with Mikha and Sanya; part of Trianon and LORLs;
* Maria (Masha) Fedarovna--Ilya's single mother
* Isay Semenovich--Ilya's father
* Sima--Isay's wife
* Efim Semenovich--Ilya's uncle
* Lyudmila--Ilya's first wife; when they divorce, Lyudmila takes Ilya jr. to Israel
* Ilya--Ilya & Lydmila's disabled son; ends up in NY where Kostya (Olga's son) is summoned after Lyudmila dies
* Nanny Klava--Lyudmila's nanny
* Ilya Ivanovich--professor; Lyudmila's father
* Alta Pinchasovna Barbanel --Lyudmila's maternal grandmother
* Pinchas Barbanel --Lyudmila's maternal great grandfather
* Olga Matveerna--"nameless old lady"; lives in same building as Ilya and Maria
* Granya Loshkarova--widow; lives in same building as Ilya and Maria
* Pierre (Petya) Zend--dissident; hangs out w/ Trianon in Moscow; first person they hear openly speak out against communism; helps mail transport things; falls in love with Alla who gets him deported when forced to denounce him
* Nikolay Ivanovich (Uncle Orlov?)--Pierre's uncle; provides books and means of communicating off the radar
* Oksana --Ilya's 3rd wife; Russian-French woman
* Colonel Chibikov (Anatoly Alexandrovich Chibikov)--KGB; helps Ilya emigrate to America
* Vera Alekseevna--KGB (accountant in Writer's Union); Chibikov's assistant; helps set-up Ilya and Olga separately
* Klaus--German journalist; Ilya sells photographs to him
* Valentin Kulkov--underground Marxist; Ilya photographed him and his wife, Zina before they were imprisoned; their daughter shows up on Ilya & Olga's doorstep
* Zina--Valentin's wife
* Marina--Valentin & Zina's daughter
* Hera--Marina's dog
* Nicole--friend; located in France
* Edik Tolmachev--friend of Ilya and Mikha; traffics in books; publishes Gamayun (samizdat mag)
* Zhenya--Edik's wife
_____________________________________________________
* Mikha Melamid (DOB: 1942)--poet; Jewish; Trianon; LORL; imprisoned for 3 years; commits suicide
* Genya (Aunt Genya)--Mikha's aunt with whom he lives
* Minna--Genya's disabled daughter whom Mikha has a relationship w/
* Samuel --Genya's older brother; sent to U.S. to establish Comm Party; arrrested in '37 & disappeared
* Fanya--Genya's sister
* Rayechka--Genya's sister
* Ella--Genya's niece
* Marlen Kogan--Genya's son/ Mikha's older cousin ; relationship w/ Tamara
* Lida--Marlen's wife
* Robik--Marlen's dog
* Alyona (DOB: 1943)--student; Mikha's wife
* Maya--Mikha & Alyona's daughter
* Sergei Borisovich Chernopyatov --Alyona's father (see also King Artur section); Sergei's father was friends with Stalin; killed in 1937; Sergei imprisoned in a children's penal colony; released in '42 & sent into exile
* Valentina--Sergei's wife; Family Members of Traitors of the Homeland--father executed when she was 17 and mother arrested; 25,000 FMTH minors sent to orphanages
* Yakov Petrovich Rink--advisor; Academy of Sciences member; helps Mikha get a job with deaf students
* Maria Moiseevna Bris--friend & associate of Yakov
* Margarita Avetisovna--Director of Deaf School
* Gleb Invanovich (Kosachev)--teacher at Deaf School
* Polina Matveevna--Deaf School cleaning woman
* Comrade Korobtsov (Igor Stepanovich)--captain; blocks Mikha's academic/professional progress because he's Jewish
* Maria Stepanovich--Voloshin's widow; hosts Edik, Mikha and wives while visiting Crimea
* Faina Lvovna--"rival" widow who hosts Edik, Mikha and wives while visiting Crimea
* Tatar family --denied room & board in Crimea; father's name is Mustafa Usmanov
* Natasha Khlopenko--receptionist; threatens to call police on Tatar family and Mikha's group
* Meloedov--investigator; questions Mikha about Ekik and samizdat mag and Tatars
* Dina Arkadievna--lawyer; Sergei Borisovich arranges lawyer to defend Mikha
* Captain Safyanov --also questions Mikha about Tatars; forces Mikha to resign his job
___________________________________________________
* Sanya Steklov (1942-1996)--piano player; frequently ill; Trianon; LORL
* Anna Alexandrovna (Nuta)--Russian teacher; Sanya's grandmother
* Nadezhda Borisovna--Xray tech; Sanya's mother
* Evgenia Danilovna--Piano teacher; friend of Anna Alexandrovna
* Liza--Ilya's distant cousin (her grandfather is Anna's cousin)
* Alexei Vailievich--Liza's father
* Vasily Innokeatievich--Anna's cousin; Liza's grandfather
* Boris (Boba)--violinist; Jewish; Liza's husband
* Grigory Lvovich--violinist; Boris's grandfather (died as a victim of the campaign against "rootless cosmopolitanism")
* Eleonora Zorakhovna--singer; Boris's grandmother
* Yury Andreevich--music theory professor; Sanya's teacher; Liza introduces Sanya to him at her wedding
* Lastochkin--man who moves in with Nadezhda (Sanya's mom) after Anna Alexandrovna (Sanya's grandmother) dies
* Debbie--American Pierre arranges for Sanya to marry (marriage never takes place)
________________________________________________
* Olga Afanasievna (DOB: 1944)--2 marriages (1st to Vova; 2nd to Ilya); kicked out of university for supporting Viktor Yulievich (LORL teacher); finds out about family history from Aunt Valentina after Antonina dies; Valentina hands over "files"
* Vova--Olga's first husband
* Kostya (Konstantin)--Olga & Vova's son
* Lena--Olga's son's wife
* Anna Antonovna--seamstress; Lena's mother
* Arkady Ivanovich--prosectutor; Kostya goes there to try and get grandfather's name "rehabilitated" so his remains can be saved; thinks he's too late but Mother Pasha rescues the bones
* Antonina Naumovna--Party Boss; Olga's mother; born 1905
* Afanasy Mikhaiovich--general; Olga's father; forced to retire because of Olga; has affair with Sophia; former friends w/ Peter Petrovich (patient whom Dimitry is made to examine)
* Valentina Naumovna--Olga's aunt/Antonina's sister; born 1915
* Naum Ignatievich--priest; Olga's maternal grandfather; exiled 1920; returned in '25; imprisoned in '28; released; disappeared for good in '34
* Tatiana Anisimovna (maiden name: Kamyshina)--Olga's grandmother; exiled; died in exile
* Praskovya--Olga's great grandmother/ Naum's mother
* Andrei--Antonina's brother; younger; died in exile
* Panteleimon--Antonina's younger brother; died in exile
* Pyotr--Antonina's older brother; not exiled (renounced old ways); married, daughter, went to war--survived?
* Seraphim--Antonina's older brother; not exiled (renounced old ways); disappeared in war
* Nikolai--Antonina's older brother; exiled
* Ekaterina (Aunt Katya) Anisimovna Kamyshina--Antonina & Valentina's aunt
* Sophia ("the Cow")--Afanasy's mistress
* Anna Markovna--Sophia's sister
* Iosif Markovich--Sophia's brother
* Nikolai Ignatievich--Afanasy's chauffeur
* Evgery Borisovich--Antonina's chauffeur
* Ari Lvovich Bas--Union of Writers; officiates Antonina's funeral
* Vera Leonidovna--professional typist; helps retype anti-Soviet books & poetry
* Zoya--Antonina's neighbor
* Rifat--student; Vova's friend; 2 years older than Olga; brings pilaf to her graduation party
* Vitya Bodyagin--student; graduation party guest
* Vika Travina--student; graduation party guest; goes all the way with Boris
* Boris Ivanov--student; graduation party guest; goes all the way with Vika
* Raya Kozina--student; graduation party guest; breaks out in hives
* Rosa Vasilievna--Olga & Illya consider contacting her when typewriter & manuscript go missing so she can alert the author
* Alexandrov--investigator; questions Olga after typewriter goes missing
* General Ilienko--Writers' Union liaison
* Irina Troitskaya (Mile)--university student; Olga's classmate; traffics in books; her father's copy of Nabokov gets confiscated and eventually leads to the the scandal that gets Olga kicked out of school
* Igor Vladimirovich--general; Irina's father
* Lena--Irina's older sister
* Nina--Igor's wife
* Rikhard--university student; Irina's friend; father is Latvian gov. minister
* Lyalya--university student; Irina's friend; father is ambassador to China
* Alla--university student; Irina's friend
* Voskoboinikov--university student; Irina's friend
* Karik--classmate; Writer's Union admin officer; responsible for getting Olga expelled from Komsomol & university; hires her as a translator and has her escort visiting writers; works w/ Vera Alekseevna
* Pablo--visiting writer; Olga forced to write a report on him
* The Professor (Jose)--visiting writer; Olga forced to write a report on him
_________________________________________________
* Tamara (Brinchik) Brin (DOB: 1944)--student; Jewish; scientist; friends w/ Galya and Olga; has affair with Marlen
* Raisa Ilinichna--Tamara's mother
* Maria Semenovna--secretary at Gnesin Inst. Of Music; Tamara's grandmother; dies near her graduation
* Elena Gnesina--pianist; friend of Maria Semenovna
* Elena Fabianovna--founder Gnesin musical "empire" (same Elena as line above?)
* Vera Samuilovna Vinberg--academic advisor; Tamara's advisor; endocrinologist
* Edwin Yakolevich Vinberg--professor; Vera's husband; Dimitry works in his lab;fled from fascists in Germany before the war and in the labor camps for 20 yrs; dies on same flight to Vienna that Ilya is on
* Jacob Vinberg--lawyer; Edwin's father; killed when Hitler came to power
* Dimitry Stepanovich Dulin--doctor; studies alcohol abuse & aggression
* Nina--Dimitry's wife
* Marinka--Dimitry's daughter
* Uncle Kolya--Dimitry's uncle
* Karpov--academic advisor
* Masha Vershkova--Dimitry's lab assistant
* Eleonora Viktorovna--secretary; Ex-wife of Professor Dymshitz
* Professor Dymshitz (Efim Semenovich)--Head of Special Division
* Margarita Glebovna--doctor in charge of Nichiporuk's case
* Peter Petrovich Nichiporuk --patient; Dmitry's Special Division case; started the Union of True Leninists; former friends with Olga's father before giving denounced speech;
* Zoya Vasilievna--Peter's wife
* Svetlana--Peter's friend; tries to get his medals moved to safety
* Sima--Svetlana's pupils; tasked with smuggling Peter's medals
* Tonya Mutyukin--Svetlana's pupils tasked with smuggling Peter's medals; takes them to her home
* Vitka--Tonya's nephew; finds medals, wears them outside, and gets them stolen by Artur the Armenian, Sevka, and Timak the Stump
* Tolya--Tonya's brother/ Vitka's father
________________________________________________
* (Galya / Polushka) Galina Yurievna Polukhina (DOB: 1944)--student; gymnast until injured; friends w/ Tamara & Olga
* Gennady ("the Rodent")--Galya's husband; outdoor surveillance officer
* (Sir Yury Dripsandleaks)--plumber; Galya's father
* Dr. Mironova--surgeon; fixes Galya after injury
* Nikolay --Galya's brother; takes typewriter and The Gulag Archipelago MS from Olga and turns into KGB)
* Raika--Nikolay's wife; resents Galya & urges Nikolay to turn in typewriter & MS
____________________________________________________________
* Victor (Vika) Yulievich Shengeli--teacher; founds LORLs; proponent of literature and art; lost one arm in war; most friends/classmates killed in war
* Katya Zueva--student; Victor's wife
* Ksenia--Victor & Katya's daughter
* Ksenia Nikolayevna--widow; Victor's mother
* Niniko (Nino)--Victor's father's cousin
* Lena Kurzer --Victor's former classmate
* Stas Komarnitsky--Victor's former classmate
* Mishka Kolesnik--Victor's former neighbor; has philosophical discussions w/ Victor
* Zhenya--Viktor's former classmate killed in war
* Mark--Viktor's former classmate killed in war
* Lidochka--Victor's girlfriend before marriage
* Tanya--Victor's girlfriend before marriage
* Verochka--Victor's girlfriend before marriage
OTHER TEACHERS FROM TRIANON GRADE/HIGH SCHOOL YEARS
* Natalya Ivanovna--teacher
* Larisa Stepanovna--school principle
* Itkin--shop teacher
* Andrei Ivanovich--gym teacher
* Vera Lvovna--math teacher
* Rybkina--health teacher, Party organizer
OTHER STUDENTS
* Slava Murygin--bully; friends w/ Mutyukin; dies while in a chase after stealing Mikha's ice skates
* Mutyukin--bully; friends w/ Murygin
* Igor Chetverikov--Trianon sympathizer; sides with Trianon during fight that injures Sanya's hand; finds tamizdat books of Irina Toitskaya's family after general's death and gives them to Ilya
* Senka Svinin--student that teacher remarks on last name
* Borya Rakhmanov--dies in stampede
* Tasya Smolkina--10th grader on Komsomol committee
* Yura Burkin--slaps Anya at school and Mikha challenges him to a "duel"
* Vasya Egorchkin--Yura's backup in duel with Mikha
* Volodya Lozovsky--son of sculptor Lozovsky
* Maximov--9th grader who messes up school ceremony
* Tarasov--9th grader who messes up school ceremony
* Nadia--de-virginizer of neighborhood boys; Sleeps with Ilya and Sanya
* Ryzhkov--yardkeeper at Potapovsky Lane house; Nadia's grandfather
* Lilka--Nadia's friend
_______________________________________
* Artur (King Arthur) Ivanovich Korolev--bookbinder; retired sailor; Ilya's dissident friend
* Lisa (Elizabeth)--Artur's 1st wife
* Shura--Lisa's sister/Artur's 2nd wife
* Ville (the Finn)--author?; Lisa's 2nd husband; hates communism
* Vasya Rukhin--philosopher/theologian; wedding guest
* Damiani--poet; wedding guest
* Sasha Kuman--poet; Damiani's frenemy
* Alik--theoretical mathmatician; wedding guest
* Lazar--linguist/cyberneticist; wedding guest
* Lenka Vavilon--Institue of Foreign languages graduate; wedding guest; no connection to Artur
* Sinko--musician; wedding guest
* Sergei Borisovich Chernopyatov--driver; takes Lisa to border--uses her to smuggle microfiche book
____________________________________________
FUGITIVE CHAPTER
* Boris Ivanovich Muratov--artist; goes to stay w/ Nikolay Mikhailovich; friends w/ Ilya; imprisoned for porn, released after 2 years, and emigrates to Europe w/ new wife, Raika
* Natasha Muratov --Boris's wife; finds a new love while Boris is on the run and has a daugher
* Maria Nikolayevna--Boris's mother-in-law
* Captain Popov--KGB
* Sivtsev--KGB
* Emelyanenko--KGB
* Nikolay Mikhailovich--Boris stays with him
* Anastasia--Nikolay's cousin; flirts with Boris
* Kolya--Nikolay's oldest son
* Nura--old woman Boris moves in w/ (pays rents in vodka); her husband died 1930 during collectivization; her 3 sons died in the war ('41, '42, and '45)
* Marfa--Nura's friend
* Zinaida --Nura's friend
* Lyosha--shepherd; Marfa's brother
* Verka--shopkeeper; Zinaida's niece
* Nikolay Svistunov--policeman; distant relative of Nikolay Mikhailovich; comes looking for Boris
_________________________________________________
PARTIAL LIST OF BOOKS/AUTHORS MENTIONED
* Avtorkhanov, Abdurakhman Genazovich (Ganazovich)--Technology of Power (1959)
* Brodksy, Aleksandrovich
* Daniel, Yuli (aka Nikolay Arzhak)--Redemption (1964); This is Moscow Speaking (1968)
* Herzen, Alexander (Sasha)
* Mandelshtam, Osip
* Nabokov, Vladimir (aka, Vladimir Sirin)--The Gift (1952); Invitation to a Beheading (part of The Gift covers life of writer Nikolay Chernyshevsky )
* Narbut, Vladimir Allelua (1912)
* Ogarev, Nikolay (Nick)
* Orwell, George--Nineteen Eighty-four
* Pasternak, Boris--Dr. Zhivago (1957)
* Pushkin, Alexander
* Solzhenitsyn, Aleksandr--The Gulag Archipelago (1973)
What follows is a 98% complete list of characters and some book/author references I kept while reading loosely organized around main characters (in bold). I might clean it up at some point or create some sort of infographic for my own amusement (if so, I'll update, but don't count on it). Hiding it with the spoiler tag for those who care...
Spoiler
* Ilya Isayevich Bryansky (DOB: 1942)-photographer; dissident; 3 marriages--1st to Lyudmila resulting in disabled son, Ilya; 2nd to Olga--'72-'80; 3rd to Oksana; good friends with Mikha and Sanya; part of Trianon and LORLs;
* Maria (Masha) Fedarovna--Ilya's single mother
* Isay Semenovich--Ilya's father
* Sima--Isay's wife
* Efim Semenovich--Ilya's uncle
* Lyudmila--Ilya's first wife; when they divorce, Lyudmila takes Ilya jr. to Israel
* Ilya--Ilya & Lydmila's disabled son; ends up in NY where Kostya (Olga's son) is summoned after Lyudmila dies
* Nanny Klava--Lyudmila's nanny
* Ilya Ivanovich--professor; Lyudmila's father
* Alta Pinchasovna Barbanel --Lyudmila's maternal grandmother
* Pinchas Barbanel --Lyudmila's maternal great grandfather
* Olga Matveerna--"nameless old lady"; lives in same building as Ilya and Maria
* Granya Loshkarova--widow; lives in same building as Ilya and Maria
* Pierre (Petya) Zend--dissident; hangs out w/ Trianon in Moscow; first person they hear openly speak out against communism; helps mail transport things; falls in love with Alla who gets him deported when forced to denounce him
* Nikolay Ivanovich (Uncle Orlov?)--Pierre's uncle; provides books and means of communicating off the radar
* Oksana --Ilya's 3rd wife; Russian-French woman
* Colonel Chibikov (Anatoly Alexandrovich Chibikov)--KGB; helps Ilya emigrate to America
* Vera Alekseevna--KGB (accountant in Writer's Union); Chibikov's assistant; helps set-up Ilya and Olga separately
* Klaus--German journalist; Ilya sells photographs to him
* Valentin Kulkov--underground Marxist; Ilya photographed him and his wife, Zina before they were imprisoned; their daughter shows up on Ilya & Olga's doorstep
* Zina--Valentin's wife
* Marina--Valentin & Zina's daughter
* Hera--Marina's dog
* Nicole--friend; located in France
* Edik Tolmachev--friend of Ilya and Mikha; traffics in books; publishes Gamayun (samizdat mag)
* Zhenya--Edik's wife
_____________________________________________________
* Mikha Melamid (DOB: 1942)--poet; Jewish; Trianon; LORL; imprisoned for 3 years; commits suicide
* Genya (Aunt Genya)--Mikha's aunt with whom he lives
* Minna--Genya's disabled daughter whom Mikha has a relationship w/
* Samuel --Genya's older brother; sent to U.S. to establish Comm Party; arrrested in '37 & disappeared
* Fanya--Genya's sister
* Rayechka--Genya's sister
* Ella--Genya's niece
* Marlen Kogan--Genya's son/ Mikha's older cousin ; relationship w/ Tamara
* Lida--Marlen's wife
* Robik--Marlen's dog
* Alyona (DOB: 1943)--student; Mikha's wife
* Maya--Mikha & Alyona's daughter
* Sergei Borisovich Chernopyatov --Alyona's father (see also King Artur section); Sergei's father was friends with Stalin; killed in 1937; Sergei imprisoned in a children's penal colony; released in '42 & sent into exile
* Valentina--Sergei's wife; Family Members of Traitors of the Homeland--father executed when she was 17 and mother arrested; 25,000 FMTH minors sent to orphanages
* Yakov Petrovich Rink--advisor; Academy of Sciences member; helps Mikha get a job with deaf students
* Maria Moiseevna Bris--friend & associate of Yakov
* Margarita Avetisovna--Director of Deaf School
* Gleb Invanovich (Kosachev)--teacher at Deaf School
* Polina Matveevna--Deaf School cleaning woman
* Comrade Korobtsov (Igor Stepanovich)--captain; blocks Mikha's academic/professional progress because he's Jewish
* Maria Stepanovich--Voloshin's widow; hosts Edik, Mikha and wives while visiting Crimea
* Faina Lvovna--"rival" widow who hosts Edik, Mikha and wives while visiting Crimea
* Tatar family --denied room & board in Crimea; father's name is Mustafa Usmanov
* Natasha Khlopenko--receptionist; threatens to call police on Tatar family and Mikha's group
* Meloedov--investigator; questions Mikha about Ekik and samizdat mag and Tatars
* Dina Arkadievna--lawyer; Sergei Borisovich arranges lawyer to defend Mikha
* Captain Safyanov --also questions Mikha about Tatars; forces Mikha to resign his job
___________________________________________________
* Sanya Steklov (1942-1996)--piano player; frequently ill; Trianon; LORL
* Anna Alexandrovna (Nuta)--Russian teacher; Sanya's grandmother
* Nadezhda Borisovna--Xray tech; Sanya's mother
* Evgenia Danilovna--Piano teacher; friend of Anna Alexandrovna
* Liza--Ilya's distant cousin (her grandfather is Anna's cousin)
* Alexei Vailievich--Liza's father
* Vasily Innokeatievich--Anna's cousin; Liza's grandfather
* Boris (Boba)--violinist; Jewish; Liza's husband
* Grigory Lvovich--violinist; Boris's grandfather (died as a victim of the campaign against "rootless cosmopolitanism")
* Eleonora Zorakhovna--singer; Boris's grandmother
* Yury Andreevich--music theory professor; Sanya's teacher; Liza introduces Sanya to him at her wedding
* Lastochkin--man who moves in with Nadezhda (Sanya's mom) after Anna Alexandrovna (Sanya's grandmother) dies
* Debbie--American Pierre arranges for Sanya to marry (marriage never takes place)
________________________________________________
* Olga Afanasievna (DOB: 1944)--2 marriages (1st to Vova; 2nd to Ilya); kicked out of university for supporting Viktor Yulievich (LORL teacher); finds out about family history from Aunt Valentina after Antonina dies; Valentina hands over "files"
* Vova--Olga's first husband
* Kostya (Konstantin)--Olga & Vova's son
* Lena--Olga's son's wife
* Anna Antonovna--seamstress; Lena's mother
* Arkady Ivanovich--prosectutor; Kostya goes there to try and get grandfather's name "rehabilitated" so his remains can be saved; thinks he's too late but Mother Pasha rescues the bones
* Antonina Naumovna--Party Boss; Olga's mother; born 1905
* Afanasy Mikhaiovich--general; Olga's father; forced to retire because of Olga; has affair with Sophia; former friends w/ Peter Petrovich (patient whom Dimitry is made to examine)
* Valentina Naumovna--Olga's aunt/Antonina's sister; born 1915
* Naum Ignatievich--priest; Olga's maternal grandfather; exiled 1920; returned in '25; imprisoned in '28; released; disappeared for good in '34
* Tatiana Anisimovna (maiden name: Kamyshina)--Olga's grandmother; exiled; died in exile
* Praskovya--Olga's great grandmother/ Naum's mother
* Andrei--Antonina's brother; younger; died in exile
* Panteleimon--Antonina's younger brother; died in exile
* Pyotr--Antonina's older brother; not exiled (renounced old ways); married, daughter, went to war--survived?
* Seraphim--Antonina's older brother; not exiled (renounced old ways); disappeared in war
* Nikolai--Antonina's older brother; exiled
* Ekaterina (Aunt Katya) Anisimovna Kamyshina--Antonina & Valentina's aunt
* Sophia ("the Cow")--Afanasy's mistress
* Anna Markovna--Sophia's sister
* Iosif Markovich--Sophia's brother
* Nikolai Ignatievich--Afanasy's chauffeur
* Evgery Borisovich--Antonina's chauffeur
* Ari Lvovich Bas--Union of Writers; officiates Antonina's funeral
* Vera Leonidovna--professional typist; helps retype anti-Soviet books & poetry
* Zoya--Antonina's neighbor
* Rifat--student; Vova's friend; 2 years older than Olga; brings pilaf to her graduation party
* Vitya Bodyagin--student; graduation party guest
* Vika Travina--student; graduation party guest; goes all the way with Boris
* Boris Ivanov--student; graduation party guest; goes all the way with Vika
* Raya Kozina--student; graduation party guest; breaks out in hives
* Rosa Vasilievna--Olga & Illya consider contacting her when typewriter & manuscript go missing so she can alert the author
* Alexandrov--investigator; questions Olga after typewriter goes missing
* General Ilienko--Writers' Union liaison
* Irina Troitskaya (Mile)--university student; Olga's classmate; traffics in books; her father's copy of Nabokov gets confiscated and eventually leads to the the scandal that gets Olga kicked out of school
* Igor Vladimirovich--general; Irina's father
* Lena--Irina's older sister
* Nina--Igor's wife
* Rikhard--university student; Irina's friend; father is Latvian gov. minister
* Lyalya--university student; Irina's friend; father is ambassador to China
* Alla--university student; Irina's friend
* Voskoboinikov--university student; Irina's friend
* Karik--classmate; Writer's Union admin officer; responsible for getting Olga expelled from Komsomol & university; hires her as a translator and has her escort visiting writers; works w/ Vera Alekseevna
* Pablo--visiting writer; Olga forced to write a report on him
* The Professor (Jose)--visiting writer; Olga forced to write a report on him
_________________________________________________
* Tamara (Brinchik) Brin (DOB: 1944)--student; Jewish; scientist; friends w/ Galya and Olga; has affair with Marlen
* Raisa Ilinichna--Tamara's mother
* Maria Semenovna--secretary at Gnesin Inst. Of Music; Tamara's grandmother; dies near her graduation
* Elena Gnesina--pianist; friend of Maria Semenovna
* Elena Fabianovna--founder Gnesin musical "empire" (same Elena as line above?)
* Vera Samuilovna Vinberg--academic advisor; Tamara's advisor; endocrinologist
* Edwin Yakolevich Vinberg--professor; Vera's husband; Dimitry works in his lab;fled from fascists in Germany before the war and in the labor camps for 20 yrs; dies on same flight to Vienna that Ilya is on
* Jacob Vinberg--lawyer; Edwin's father; killed when Hitler came to power
* Dimitry Stepanovich Dulin--doctor; studies alcohol abuse & aggression
* Nina--Dimitry's wife
* Marinka--Dimitry's daughter
* Uncle Kolya--Dimitry's uncle
* Karpov--academic advisor
* Masha Vershkova--Dimitry's lab assistant
* Eleonora Viktorovna--secretary; Ex-wife of Professor Dymshitz
* Professor Dymshitz (Efim Semenovich)--Head of Special Division
* Margarita Glebovna--doctor in charge of Nichiporuk's case
* Peter Petrovich Nichiporuk --patient; Dmitry's Special Division case; started the Union of True Leninists; former friends with Olga's father before giving denounced speech;
* Zoya Vasilievna--Peter's wife
* Svetlana--Peter's friend; tries to get his medals moved to safety
* Sima--Svetlana's pupils; tasked with smuggling Peter's medals
* Tonya Mutyukin--Svetlana's pupils tasked with smuggling Peter's medals; takes them to her home
* Vitka--Tonya's nephew; finds medals, wears them outside, and gets them stolen by Artur the Armenian, Sevka, and Timak the Stump
* Tolya--Tonya's brother/ Vitka's father
________________________________________________
* (Galya / Polushka) Galina Yurievna Polukhina (DOB: 1944)--student; gymnast until injured; friends w/ Tamara & Olga
* Gennady ("the Rodent")--Galya's husband; outdoor surveillance officer
* (Sir Yury Dripsandleaks)--plumber; Galya's father
* Dr. Mironova--surgeon; fixes Galya after injury
* Nikolay --Galya's brother; takes typewriter and The Gulag Archipelago MS from Olga and turns into KGB)
* Raika--Nikolay's wife; resents Galya & urges Nikolay to turn in typewriter & MS
____________________________________________________________
* Victor (Vika) Yulievich Shengeli--teacher; founds LORLs; proponent of literature and art; lost one arm in war; most friends/classmates killed in war
* Katya Zueva--student; Victor's wife
* Ksenia--Victor & Katya's daughter
* Ksenia Nikolayevna--widow; Victor's mother
* Niniko (Nino)--Victor's father's cousin
* Lena Kurzer --Victor's former classmate
* Stas Komarnitsky--Victor's former classmate
* Mishka Kolesnik--Victor's former neighbor; has philosophical discussions w/ Victor
* Zhenya--Viktor's former classmate killed in war
* Mark--Viktor's former classmate killed in war
* Lidochka--Victor's girlfriend before marriage
* Tanya--Victor's girlfriend before marriage
* Verochka--Victor's girlfriend before marriage
OTHER TEACHERS FROM TRIANON GRADE/HIGH SCHOOL YEARS
* Natalya Ivanovna--teacher
* Larisa Stepanovna--school principle
* Itkin--shop teacher
* Andrei Ivanovich--gym teacher
* Vera Lvovna--math teacher
* Rybkina--health teacher, Party organizer
OTHER STUDENTS
* Slava Murygin--bully; friends w/ Mutyukin; dies while in a chase after stealing Mikha's ice skates
* Mutyukin--bully; friends w/ Murygin
* Igor Chetverikov--Trianon sympathizer; sides with Trianon during fight that injures Sanya's hand; finds tamizdat books of Irina Toitskaya's family after general's death and gives them to Ilya
* Senka Svinin--student that teacher remarks on last name
* Borya Rakhmanov--dies in stampede
* Tasya Smolkina--10th grader on Komsomol committee
* Yura Burkin--slaps Anya at school and Mikha challenges him to a "duel"
* Vasya Egorchkin--Yura's backup in duel with Mikha
* Volodya Lozovsky--son of sculptor Lozovsky
* Maximov--9th grader who messes up school ceremony
* Tarasov--9th grader who messes up school ceremony
* Nadia--de-virginizer of neighborhood boys; Sleeps with Ilya and Sanya
* Ryzhkov--yardkeeper at Potapovsky Lane house; Nadia's grandfather
* Lilka--Nadia's friend
_______________________________________
* Artur (King Arthur) Ivanovich Korolev--bookbinder; retired sailor; Ilya's dissident friend
* Lisa (Elizabeth)--Artur's 1st wife
* Shura--Lisa's sister/Artur's 2nd wife
* Ville (the Finn)--author?; Lisa's 2nd husband; hates communism
* Vasya Rukhin--philosopher/theologian; wedding guest
* Damiani--poet; wedding guest
* Sasha Kuman--poet; Damiani's frenemy
* Alik--theoretical mathmatician; wedding guest
* Lazar--linguist/cyberneticist; wedding guest
* Lenka Vavilon--Institue of Foreign languages graduate; wedding guest; no connection to Artur
* Sinko--musician; wedding guest
* Sergei Borisovich Chernopyatov--driver; takes Lisa to border--uses her to smuggle microfiche book
____________________________________________
FUGITIVE CHAPTER
* Boris Ivanovich Muratov--artist; goes to stay w/ Nikolay Mikhailovich; friends w/ Ilya; imprisoned for porn, released after 2 years, and emigrates to Europe w/ new wife, Raika
* Natasha Muratov --Boris's wife; finds a new love while Boris is on the run and has a daugher
* Maria Nikolayevna--Boris's mother-in-law
* Captain Popov--KGB
* Sivtsev--KGB
* Emelyanenko--KGB
* Nikolay Mikhailovich--Boris stays with him
* Anastasia--Nikolay's cousin; flirts with Boris
* Kolya--Nikolay's oldest son
* Nura--old woman Boris moves in w/ (pays rents in vodka); her husband died 1930 during collectivization; her 3 sons died in the war ('41, '42, and '45)
* Marfa--Nura's friend
* Zinaida --Nura's friend
* Lyosha--shepherd; Marfa's brother
* Verka--shopkeeper; Zinaida's niece
* Nikolay Svistunov--policeman; distant relative of Nikolay Mikhailovich; comes looking for Boris
_________________________________________________
PARTIAL LIST OF BOOKS/AUTHORS MENTIONED
* Avtorkhanov, Abdurakhman Genazovich (Ganazovich)--Technology of Power (1959)
* Brodksy, Aleksandrovich
* Daniel, Yuli (aka Nikolay Arzhak)--Redemption (1964); This is Moscow Speaking (1968)
* Herzen, Alexander (Sasha)
* Mandelshtam, Osip
* Nabokov, Vladimir (aka, Vladimir Sirin)--The Gift (1952); Invitation to a Beheading (part of The Gift covers life of writer Nikolay Chernyshevsky )
* Narbut, Vladimir Allelua (1912)
* Ogarev, Nikolay (Nick)
* Orwell, George--Nineteen Eighty-four
* Pasternak, Boris--Dr. Zhivago (1957)
* Pushkin, Alexander
* Solzhenitsyn, Aleksandr--The Gulag Archipelago (1973)
somekramers's review against another edition
4.0
The narrative jumps around in time quite a bit, but in the end it all comes together. Not an easy book to read - many distasteful things happen, but fit within the cultural context.
dayroom0063's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
eunicek82's review against another edition
emotional
informative
3.0
There were moments that were wonderful. A few chapters could even standalone as an excellent short story. While the start of the book had me invested, the very large cast of characters, the confusing timeline and my difficulty (and this could be a me problem) at finding a good throughline made this feel like a slog in the back half.
tia_54's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-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
2.25
jayco's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This is the second book of Ulitskaya's that I have read. I really enjoy the breadth of her work and how seamlessly she moves through time and perspective. It does sometimes take a moment to remember characters and their relation to each other. However that didn’t diminish my enjoyment and, just like Jacob's Ladder, this book taught me a lot about Russian/Soviet culture. A pleasure.