{"product_id":"the-man-who-couldnt-die-the-tale-of-an-authentic-human-being-paperback","title":"The Man Who Couldn't Die: The Tale of an Authentic Human Being - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eMarian Schwartz\u003c\/b\u003e (Translator), \u003cb\u003eOlga Slavnikova\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eMark Lipovetsky\u003c\/b\u003e (Introduction by)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the chaos of early-1990s Russia, the wife and stepdaughter of a paralyzed veteran conceal the Soviet Union's collapse from him in order to keep him--and his pension--alive until it turns out the tough old man has other plans. Olga Slavnikova's \u003ci\u003eThe Man Who Couldn't Die\u003c\/i\u003e tells the story of how two women try to prolong a life--and the means and meaning of their own lives--by creating a world that doesn't change, a Soviet Union that never crumbled. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAfter her stepfather's stroke, Marina hangs Brezhnev's portrait on the wall, edits the Pravda articles read to him, and uses her media connections to cobble together entire newscasts of events that never happened. Meanwhile, her mother, Nina Alexandrovna, can barely navigate the bewildering new world outside, especially in comparison to the blunt reality of her uncommunicative husband. As Marina is caught up in a local election campaign that gets out of hand, Nina discovers that her husband is conspiring as well--to kill himself and put an end to the charade. Masterfully translated by Marian Schwartz, \u003ci\u003eThe Man Who Couldn't Die\u003c\/i\u003e is a darkly playful vision of the lost Soviet past and the madness of the post-Soviet world that uses Russia's modern history as a backdrop for an inquiry into larger metaphysical questions.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eOlga Slavnikova was born in 1957 in Sverdlovsk (now Ekaterinburg). She is the author of several award-winning novels, including \u003ci\u003e2017\u003c\/i\u003e, which won the 2006 Russian Booker prize and was translated into English by Marian Schwartz (2010), and \u003ci\u003eLong Jump\u003c\/i\u003e, which won the 2018 Yasnaya Polyana Award. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eMarian Schwartz translates Russian contemporary and classic fiction, including Tolstoy's \u003ci\u003eAnna Karenina\u003c\/i\u003e, and is the principal translator of Nina Berberova.\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 248\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.9 x 8.5 x 5.5 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e January 29, 2019\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51754073063712,"sku":"9780231185950","price":19.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/3f79eb7a2ca31b8830132b5da12eb0a4.webp?v=1780032824","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/the-man-who-couldnt-die-the-tale-of-an-authentic-human-being-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}