Absurdistan
ABSURDISTAN (Gary Shteyngart) - Four Stars
Absurdistan is funny and sad in equal amounts for exactly the same reason.
The story is fantasy, so utterly preposterous it could never happen, and yet it remains so grounded in reality and garnished with such witty observations about international politics that it can be accepted as wholly credible. Misha Vainberg doesn't exist, the country of Absurdsvanï (Absurdistan) doesn't exist, and Vainberg's Keystone Kops adventures with American defense contractors and international politics never happened. That makes the story funny. However, people exactly like Misha Vainberg do exist, countries exactly like Absurdsvanï do exist, and (having first-hand experience with the first and reasonable knowledge of the second) I can assure you that American defense contracting and international politics operate pretty much exactly as they are portrayed in the novel. That is what makes the story sad.
Shteyngart's writing style is bold and brash; his pen equally humorous and caustic. He writes with biting sarcasm, grim observational skill and a rude crassness that will make even the most jaded and worldly reader chuckle at his graphic narration. He's at his best when lampooning/satirizing the very very serious: he makes the wry obersvation that the "American Express" logo is widely more respected and feared than the U.N. logo (and see also the quote from the novel that I've included at the end of this entry detailing an idea for one wing of a Holocaust museum). There were several spots in the novel that reminded me of Vonnegut, both for their razor-sharp observations of the world at large and their despairing attitude towards the future of humanity. Shteyngart also weaves into the novel interesting threads dealing with father-son relationships, religious/cultural adaptation and rationalization, and (in true Vonnegut fashion) even writes a parody of himself into the novel.
The protagonist, the morbidly obese, pityingly naïve and fairly wealthy Misha Vainberg (son of the 1,238th-richest man in all of Russia!), seems equal parts Winston Smith and Don Quixote: he's desperate to "do something important" with both his life and his money and yet is also a powerless pawn swept up in the cultural and international events that surround him. He falls in love too easily (both with women and with ideas) and cares too much when no one around him cares at all. Far from being an uplifting, "Schindler's List" sort of story, Absurdistan shows just how powerless the invidual is (even a wealthy individual) when powerful companies and powerful countries hatch hare-brained schemes in the utterly absurd arena of international politics.
Absurdistan is funny and sad in equal amounts for exactly the same reason.
The story is fantasy, so utterly preposterous it could never happen, and yet it remains so grounded in reality and garnished with such witty observations about international politics that it can be accepted as wholly credible. Misha Vainberg doesn't exist, the country of Absurdsvanï (Absurdistan) doesn't exist, and Vainberg's Keystone Kops adventures with American defense contractors and international politics never happened. That makes the story funny. However, people exactly like Misha Vainberg do exist, countries exactly like Absurdsvanï do exist, and (having first-hand experience with the first and reasonable knowledge of the second) I can assure you that American defense contracting and international politics operate pretty much exactly as they are portrayed in the novel. That is what makes the story sad.
Shteyngart's writing style is bold and brash; his pen equally humorous and caustic. He writes with biting sarcasm, grim observational skill and a rude crassness that will make even the most jaded and worldly reader chuckle at his graphic narration. He's at his best when lampooning/satirizing the very very serious: he makes the wry obersvation that the "American Express" logo is widely more respected and feared than the U.N. logo (and see also the quote from the novel that I've included at the end of this entry detailing an idea for one wing of a Holocaust museum). There were several spots in the novel that reminded me of Vonnegut, both for their razor-sharp observations of the world at large and their despairing attitude towards the future of humanity. Shteyngart also weaves into the novel interesting threads dealing with father-son relationships, religious/cultural adaptation and rationalization, and (in true Vonnegut fashion) even writes a parody of himself into the novel.
The protagonist, the morbidly obese, pityingly naïve and fairly wealthy Misha Vainberg (son of the 1,238th-richest man in all of Russia!), seems equal parts Winston Smith and Don Quixote: he's desperate to "do something important" with both his life and his money and yet is also a powerless pawn swept up in the cultural and international events that surround him. He falls in love too easily (both with women and with ideas) and cares too much when no one around him cares at all. Far from being an uplifting, "Schindler's List" sort of story, Absurdistan shows just how powerless the invidual is (even a wealthy individual) when powerful companies and powerful countries hatch hare-brained schemes in the utterly absurd arena of international politics.
Holocaust for Kidz
Studies have shown that it's never too early to frighten a child with images of skeletal remains and naked women being chased by dogs across the Polish snow. Holocaust for Kidz will deliver a carefully tailored miasma of fear, rage, impotence, and guilt in children as young as ten. Through the magic of Animatronics, Claymation, and Jurassic technology, the inane ramblings of underqualified American Hebrew day school teachers on the subject of the Holocaust will be condensed into a concise forty-minute bloodbath. Young participants will leave feeling alienated and profoundly depressed, feelings that will be partly redeemed and partly thwarted by the ice-cream truck awaiting them at the end of the exhibit.
posted by Kevin at 4:13 PM
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