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1940s – 1990s: a satirical epic of the Soviet soula satirical epic of the Soviet soul
The Bickford Fuse
What you need to know before your trail
The Great Patriotic War is stumbling to a close, but a new darkness has fallen over Soviet Russia.
Gorych and his driver have an empty petrol tank
The occupant of a black airship is looking down benevolently as he floats above his Fatherland
Young Andrey leaves his religious community in search of a new life
Meanwhile Kharitonov trudges from the Sea of Japan to Leningrad, carrying a fuse that, when lit, could blow all and sundry to smithereens.
Travel Guide
Soviet Russia
Saint Petersburg is Russia’s second-largest city after Moscow. It was founded by TsarPeter the Great on May 27. In 1914, Saint Petersburg became Petrograd, in 1924 Leningrad and in 1991 it was Saint Petersburg once again. Between 1713 and 1728 and in 1732–1918, Saint Petersburg was the capital of imperial Russia. In 1918, the government moved to Moscow.
This book’s real setting is the Soviet soul, exploring the origins and dead-ends of the Russian mentality from the end of World War Two to the Union’s collapse. Blending allegory and fable with real events, and as deliriously absurd as anything Kurkov has written, it is both an elegy for lost years and a song of hope for a future not yet set in stone.
Booktrail Boarding Pass: The Bickford Fuse
Destination: Moscow, St Petersburg Author/Guide: Andrey Kurkov Departure Time: 1940s – 1990s
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