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Death and the Penguin :A BBC Two Between the Covers Pick
Death and the Penguin :A BBC Two Between the Covers Pick
paperback
Published:
27 February, 2002
Popular Books by Andrey Kurkov
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Description
All that stands between one man and murder by the mafia is a penguin.
Viktor writes obituaries for a newspaper in Kyiv; the only creature he trusts is his pet penguin, Misha. But when his ‘subjects’ start dying while their tributes sit in his drawer, Viktor realises he’s writing death notices to order.
Bleakly funny and quietly tragic, Death and the Penguin captures life in a collapsing world where conscience and corruption blur. Kurkov’s understated prose turns absurdity into menace - a masterpiece of Eastern European noir with feathers and frostbite.
‘A tragicomic masterpiece’ Daily Telegraph
‘A black comedy of rare distinction’ Spectator
Prizes
Short-listed for Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2002
More Details
| Type | Book |
|---|---|
| ISBN13 | 9781860469459 |
| ISBN10 | 1860469450 |
| Number Of Pages | 240 |
| Item Weight | 170 g |
| Product Dimensions | 129 x 200 x 16 mm |
| Publisher / Reseller | Vintage Publishing |
| Format | paperback |
Media Reviews
The deadpan tone works perfectly and it will be a hard-hearted reader who is not touched by Viktor's relationship with his unusual pet * The Times *
A chilling black comedy * Guardian *
A striking portrait of post-Soviet isolation... In this bleak moral landscape Kurkov manages to find ample refuge for his dark humour * New York Times *
A minor tragi-comic masterpiece * Daily Telegraph *
A brilliant satirical take on life in modern-day Kiev. Watch out, though, as Kurkov's writing style is highly addictive * Punch *
'Our anti-hero finds himself writing obituaries for soon to be deceased undesirables in the chaotic and dangerous modern Ukraine, macaberly observed by his depressed pet King Penguin Misha. Immensely readable with terrifically dark humour, loved it.' * Wayne Winstone, Ottakars *
One of my favourite novels of all time -- Misha Glenny
GoodReads Reviews
Author's Bio
Andrey Kurkov was born in St Petersburg in 1961. Having graduated from the Kiev Foreign Languages Institute, he worked for some time as a journalist, did his military service as a prison warder in Odessa, then became a film cameraman, writer of screenplays and author of critically acclaimed and popular novels, including the cult bestseller Death and the Penguin.