Igor Sakhnovsky

My first thought with Vital Needs of the dead when I started reading it was that not everyone is going to understand this book. As I continued reading I continued to feel that way. For those born in a privileged western world that have not had to deal with the experiences of something like Soviet run Russia they cannot always identify with what is going on.

Now I am one of those who was born in the Western world but I have done a lot of reading of this era and like to think I can connect with what is being told. Igor Sakhnovsky writes a very detailed story that is full of images that seemed to speak of me. Gosha is a character that I could really connect with and so I was interested in his story and what was happening to him throughout.

Some of the translation could be a little bit rough but for me that did not really take away from the book. A lot of times I think you have to read a book in its mother tongue to get all of the subtle nuances of what is being told. I would recommend this book to someone who is willing to take the time to understand what the story is telling you.
… (meer)

This book was interesting. It's written in a realistic style, and follows the coming-of-age story of Gosha Sidelnikov. Gosha, as we find out after a few chapters, is developmentally slow, so we see the world through his particularly naïve eyes. He is closer to his grandmother Rosa than to his mother, and after Rosa's death, she continues to visit him in his dreams, providing him with guidance as he grows into the world.

The story is interesting, but just that. I did not find it compelling. 2 stars.… (meer)