Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by serendipitysbooks
The Museum of Abandoned Secrets by Oksana Zabuzhko
challenging
informative
reflective
4.0
The Museum of Abandoned Secrets was a challenging read for me, especially when I was initially listening to the audiobook. It’s a lengthy book with a large cast of characters, including two who share a name, a complex plot with a dual timeline and some narrative techniques which require plenty of attention. Luckily I found a Kindle deal and was able to switch. Reading worked better for me than listening.
In the early 21st century we meet Daryna, a journalist. She has found an old photograph of Olena from the World War II era, is fascinated by it and wants to discover exactly who Olena was and what happened to her in order to make a documentary. Daryna’s friend Vlada is an artist. When she dies Daryna refuses to believe it is an accident. So she is effectively investigating two mysteries sixty years apart. Her investigations encompass much interesting Ukrainian history including famine in the 1930s, the Stalin era, the fight for independence, and the 2004 Orange Revolution.
Daryna is prone to a lot of stream of consciousness narrative, similar to that in Ducky’s Newburyport but broken up with more plot developments and other narrative techniques. One of these is the use of dreams. We learn much about Olena’s life through the dream of Adrian, one of her relatives who becomes Daryna’s lover. Both techniques place demands on the reader.
Thankfully these demands were rewarded. Not only did both timelines involve satisfying stories with strong women but I learned a lot of Ukrainian history along the way. I also particularly enjoyed tracking the theme of secrets, especially those that refuse to remain hidden, which runs through the novel and seeing all the different ways it presented.
A rewarding intellectual book from a country many of us (I’m sure it’s not just me) have not read a lot from.
In the early 21st century we meet Daryna, a journalist. She has found an old photograph of Olena from the World War II era, is fascinated by it and wants to discover exactly who Olena was and what happened to her in order to make a documentary. Daryna’s friend Vlada is an artist. When she dies Daryna refuses to believe it is an accident. So she is effectively investigating two mysteries sixty years apart. Her investigations encompass much interesting Ukrainian history including famine in the 1930s, the Stalin era, the fight for independence, and the 2004 Orange Revolution.
Daryna is prone to a lot of stream of consciousness narrative, similar to that in Ducky’s Newburyport but broken up with more plot developments and other narrative techniques. One of these is the use of dreams. We learn much about Olena’s life through the dream of Adrian, one of her relatives who becomes Daryna’s lover. Both techniques place demands on the reader.
Thankfully these demands were rewarded. Not only did both timelines involve satisfying stories with strong women but I learned a lot of Ukrainian history along the way. I also particularly enjoyed tracking the theme of secrets, especially those that refuse to remain hidden, which runs through the novel and seeing all the different ways it presented.
A rewarding intellectual book from a country many of us (I’m sure it’s not just me) have not read a lot from.