A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian
3 journalers for this copy...
Synopsis:
'Two years after my mother died, my father fell in love with a glamorous blonde Ukranian divorcee. He was 84 and she was 36. She exploded into our lives like a fluffy pink grenade, churning up the murky water, bringing to the surface a sludge of sloughed-off memories, giving the family ghosts a kick up the backside.'
Sisters Vera and Nadezhda must put aside a lifetime of feuding to save their emigre engineer father from voluptuous gold-digger Valentina. But the sisters' campaign to oust Valentina unearths family secrets, uncovers fifty years of Europe's darkest history and sends them back to roots they'd much rather forget.
A really lovely read.
I'm always interested in stories of refugees/immigrants/migrants and the way they meld two cultures, integrate or not, and where they find a sense of identity and belonging. (I'm mixed-race myself, which may be partly why I find this so fascinating.)
I really felt for the aged father in this story, impatient with his grown daughters who think they know better, and anxious to be left alone to finish writing his great work, a history of tractors. The excerpts from his research and writings could generate a whole discussion in themselves of the underestimated importance of 'small things' in the development of a nation.
I also understood the daughters, with so much better grasp of the workings of the nation they have come to live in and the need to fit in, but without a grasp of why their origins should matter.
The way I could sympathise with everyone, even the obnoxious new young wife at times, is one of the great strengths of the book. Highly recommended.
Offering this on International Bookray
OK this is ready to go! In this order:
EmgeeNL (Netherlands)
contraforsa (Greece)
Tinina67 (Australia)[please skip - received own copy]
amidabutsu (Canada)
If anyone still wants to join in let me know and I will add you in.
'Two years after my mother died, my father fell in love with a glamorous blonde Ukranian divorcee. He was 84 and she was 36. She exploded into our lives like a fluffy pink grenade, churning up the murky water, bringing to the surface a sludge of sloughed-off memories, giving the family ghosts a kick up the backside.'
Sisters Vera and Nadezhda must put aside a lifetime of feuding to save their emigre engineer father from voluptuous gold-digger Valentina. But the sisters' campaign to oust Valentina unearths family secrets, uncovers fifty years of Europe's darkest history and sends them back to roots they'd much rather forget.
A really lovely read.
I'm always interested in stories of refugees/immigrants/migrants and the way they meld two cultures, integrate or not, and where they find a sense of identity and belonging. (I'm mixed-race myself, which may be partly why I find this so fascinating.)
I really felt for the aged father in this story, impatient with his grown daughters who think they know better, and anxious to be left alone to finish writing his great work, a history of tractors. The excerpts from his research and writings could generate a whole discussion in themselves of the underestimated importance of 'small things' in the development of a nation.
I also understood the daughters, with so much better grasp of the workings of the nation they have come to live in and the need to fit in, but without a grasp of why their origins should matter.
The way I could sympathise with everyone, even the obnoxious new young wife at times, is one of the great strengths of the book. Highly recommended.
Offering this on International Bookray
OK this is ready to go! In this order:
EmgeeNL (Netherlands)
contraforsa (Greece)
Tinina67 (Australia)[please skip - received own copy]
amidabutsu (Canada)
If anyone still wants to join in let me know and I will add you in.
The book arrived safe and sound
august: It is a very enjoyable book to read. It is hilarious most of the time and sometimes a bit sad. Absolutely not what I expected judging by the title of the book.
august: It is a very enjoyable book to read. It is hilarious most of the time and sometimes a bit sad. Absolutely not what I expected judging by the title of the book.
Journal Entry 3 by EmgeeNL at Exchange/Trade, A Bookcrossing member -- Controlled Releases on Thursday, August 13, 2009
Released 14 yrs ago (8/13/2009 UTC) at Exchange/Trade, A Bookcrossing member -- Controlled Releases
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
The book is on it's way to the next reader
The book is on it's way to the next reader
The book has arrived today! I have read the other two boks of Lewycka and enjoyed them a lot, so I really look forward to reading it! Thank you Originalmulli for sharing and EmgeeNL for sending me the book!
