tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post8545372467450391124..comments2024-02-26T13:12:10.143-05:00Comments on Lizok's Bookshelf: NOS-1973, Shishkin’s Letters, Chizhova’s Crimes, and Reading Russian Group in LondonLisa C. Haydenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10139281544357167953noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-81478917882554531952011-11-04T09:42:52.813-04:002011-11-04T09:42:52.813-04:00Thank you for your detailed comment, Alexander. Th...Thank you for your detailed comment, Alexander. This is all I wrote about the book: like you, I ultimately had trouble finding anything meaningful to say about the book, other than revealing more about Shishkin's techniques, the time-shifting you mention, and the death and transcendence theme. Now, for better or worse, <i>Письмовник</i> has faded in my memory after reading <i>Венерин волос</i>, which I thought was a much better book. <br /><br />As for the title, I used the one that was used for London Book Fair materials, retaining the hyphen. The term "letter book" does exist in English for this meaning, though I don't think it has high frequency. The phrase sounds a little general to me, without a strong feel for "sample." (Translation of titles is so vexing!)Lisa C. Haydenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10139281544357167953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-82909129821220876632011-11-03T15:25:10.916-04:002011-11-03T15:25:10.916-04:00re Shishkin: did you do another review of "Пи...re Shishkin: did you do another review of "Письмовник" or just this one? I read the novel in Znamya soon after it came out last year and was fascinated by his technique. <br />To add to what you've said, his trick with time-shifting and weaving in motives from traditional fairy-tales works wonders. <br />He moves the male character to the war in a kind of Golden Cockerel way - and then it turns out that it's about an almost forgotten intervention by the great powers of the day in the Boxer Rebellion (yehetuan), which today reads like something either completely incongruos, or like a caricature of Afghanistan. <br />In the same vein the woman starts with the horrors of the abortion clinic and then adopts the Snegurochka (Snow Maiden), that she'd built herself. It reads wonderfully. I've scribbled a review months ago, but didn't publish it because I couldn't decide what to make of it, is there a message at all? <br /><br />Re.title, I'de translate it as 'The Book of Sample Letters'. There must have been something similar in England and America, but I couldn't find it. <br /><br />Anyway, thanks for posting this review. I missed it and only came back to read it via the link on your last post about Nose.Alexander Anichkinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08716415983965000292noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-75565354902299792792011-03-28T20:20:14.621-04:002011-03-28T20:20:14.621-04:00@Anonymous/Anne Marie: Great, I'll watch for y...@Anonymous/Anne Marie: Great, I'll watch for you around the Russian events. I'll be at a lot of the "Hot off the Shelves" sessions. Send me an e-mail note, if you'd like. <br /><br />@Languagehat: I know! That combination of nominees really made the project odd and intriguing. It was nice to see all these works get recognition.Lisa C. Haydenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10139281544357167953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-84341003639808843722011-03-28T19:42:23.195-04:002011-03-28T19:42:23.195-04:00Man, I don't know how you could possibly choos...Man, I don't know how you could possibly choose between Москва-Петушки and Колымские рассказы. I'm glad they both won!<br /><br />(Haven't read Iskander, but am looking forward to him.)Languagehathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13285708503881129380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-39355780224169265072011-03-28T13:24:39.306-04:002011-03-28T13:24:39.306-04:00Whoops, sorry about that - my name's Anne Mari...Whoops, sorry about that - my name's Anne Marie. (I don't have a proper account.) I'll be at the book fair as well, so who knows!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-76330454148000235202011-03-28T08:30:54.998-04:002011-03-28T08:30:54.998-04:00Thank you for your comment, Anonymous. Alas, I won...Thank you for your comment, Anonymous. Alas, I won't be in town in time for the reading group meeting -- I'll be at lots of London Book Fair events the following week, though, so perhaps we'll meet up in some other place.Lisa C. Haydenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10139281544357167953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-5561023604869718102011-03-28T08:21:08.152-04:002011-03-28T08:21:08.152-04:00I will be at the Russian Reading Group on 4 April,...I will be at the Russian Reading Group on 4 April, so I will get to meet you. I've been following your blog ever since Language Hat introduced it to me a year or so ago.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com