Advanced
Error loading page.
Try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, there may be a network issue, and you can use our self test page to see what's preventing the page from loading.
Learn more about possible network issues or contact support for more help.
Title details for Penguin Lost by Andrey Kurkov - Available

Penguin Lost

by Andrey Kurkov
George Bird
ebook
1 of 1 copy available
Borrow Read a sample Read a sample
1 of 1 copy available
Penguin Lost finds Viktor Zolotaryov sneaking back into Kiev under an assumed identity to undertake a dangerous mission: He wants to find Misha, his penguin, whom he fears has fallen into the hands of the criminal mob looking for Viktor himself.
Guilt-ridden and determined to do what it takes, Viktor falls in with a Mafia boss who employs him in an election-rigging campaign, in return for introducing Viktor to other mobsters who can help him find Misha. And as Viktor goes from mobster to mobster, trying to survive in Kiev’s criminal underground, the evidence mounts that Misha may be someplace even worse: the zoo of a Chechen warlord.
What ensues is for Viktor both a quest and an odyssey of atonement, and for the reader, a stirring mix of the comic and the tragic, the heartbreaking and the inspiring.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    June 7, 2011

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9781612190754

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9781612190754
      • File size: 1931 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      August 15, 2011
      In this supersonically-paced, but ultimately tedious sequel to Death and the Penguin, Viktor Zolotaryov searches for his beloved missing penguin 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. Whether disguised as Bronikovsky, dealing with a Chechen warlord, or rigging elections for a corrupt politician, Victor constantly longs for Misha. However, his journey to find Misha becomes a burdensome trudge as Kurkov piles on muddled events and an unmanageable cast of characters. 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.

    • Library Journal

      October 1, 2011

      Focusing on one man's intense search for his missing penguin, this sequel to Kurkov's Death and the Penguin is suffused with mystery and intrigue. The novel begins with Viktor's return to Kiev, Ukraine, where he embarks on a circuitous journey to locate Misha, the penguin he was forced to abandon at the end of the last book. As he searches the underworld of Kiev, Moscow, and Chechnya, Viktor becomes entangled in the activities of a series of criminal figures. Kurkov vividly renders locations afflicted by war, upheaval, and corruption. Throughout this dark yet fascinating journey, the question arises: "Why this tortured quest to find a penguin?" The answer, we discover, lies in the way Misha's fate is tied to the question of Viktor's ultimate redemption. VERDICT At times, the translation into English from the original Russian interferes with a fluid reading of the text. Still, the story delivers a level of intrigue sufficient to capture and sustain the reader's attention. This novel will be of great interest to readers of eastern European literature and lovers of intricate plotlines.--Catherine Tingelstad, Pitt Community Coll., Greenville, NC

      Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Formats

  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

Loading