It may turn out to be a minor classic and get Russian literature going again after the post-Soviet hiatus.' - Lesley Chamberlain, The Independent ' Death and the Penguin lives and breathes the puzzled, dislodged dignity of its better-than-human hero.Daß der Autor vor allem als Drehbuchautor arbeitet, merkt man seiner Prosa an (.) Diese Unterkühltheit ist aber auch das stilistische Äquivalent einer Haltung, ohne die ein Leben in dieser Gesellschaft nicht mehr zu ertragen ist.' - Martin Ebel, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung 'Literarisch ist Picknick auf dem Eis nicht weiter bemerkenswert, rechnet man die Erkenntnis ab, daß auch die russische Literatur Unterhaltungsromane zuproduzieren in der Lage ist.

(.) This appears at first to be a bizarre comedy but it darkens, gripping the reader and drawing him into the grey world of post-Communist Russia, where serious crime flourishes, revenge and greed are paramount, violence gratuitous and terrifyingly sudden, and where anything can be bought with a crisp American dollar bill' - Martin Booth, Daily Telegraph

'Andrey Kurkov's novel is a minor tragi-comic masterpiece.

General information | review summaries | our review | links | about the author Despite its seemingly simple premise, the novel suffers from an uncoordinated plot and an awkward translation: 'Viktor was struck by one full-face portrait showing scar and broken nose to maximum advantage, with the plus of an animal-at-bay expression much at variance with the smug Hollywood smile of the airbrush portrait.' Readers should be prepared for confusion.Trying to meet all your book preview and review needs. However, his journey to find Misha becomes a burdensome trudge as Kurkov piles on muddled events and an unmanageable cast of characters.

Whether disguised as Bronikovsky, dealing with a Chechen warlord, or rigging elections for a corrupt politician, Victor constantly longs for Misha. At the behest of ailing Muscovite Bronikovsky, heartbroken Viktor leaves the Drake Passage and returns to Kiev, where, under an assumed identity, he becomes involved in a hodge-podge of shady dealings. In this supersonically-paced, but ultimately tedious sequel to Death and the Penguin, Viktor Zolotaryov searches for his beloved missing penguin Misha.

Penguin Lost by Andrey Kurkov