What do you think?
Fictions and Lies
In FICTIONS AND LIES, a writer dies suddenly, in fear of KGB pursuit. His last manuscript, which is thought to be dangerously anti-Soviet, is missing from his apartment, so immediately becomes the object of a rapid police search. As it is traced, whom will it implicate, and what else will it reveal? Deftly, we are led into a world where right and wrong are problematic in ways we never experienced in the West, where integrity and self-respect may prove costly for one's family and friends, where compromise may prove unexpectedly difficult to avoid, and yet where truth and honesty matter all the more for being so elusive.
- GenresRussian LiteratureRussia
288 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1999
About the author
Irina Ratushinskaya
22 books27 followersIrina Ratushinskaya was born in Odessa, Ukraine. Her father was Boris Leonidovich, an engineer, and her mother was Irina Valentinovna Ratushinsky, a teacher of Russian literature. Her mother's family originated from Poland, and her grandfather was deported to Siberia shortly after the January Uprising, a Polish uprising against forced conscription in the Russian Army in 1863.
Irina was educated at Odessa University and was graduated with a master's degree in physics in 1976. Before her graduation she taught at a primary school in Odessa from 1975–78.
On September 17, 1982, Irina was arrested for anti-Soviet agitation. In April 1983, she was convicted of "agitation carried on for the purpose of subverting or weakening the Soviet regime", sentenced to seven years in a labor camp followed by five years of internal exile. She was released on October 9, 1986, on the eve of the summit in Reykjavík, Iceland between President Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev.
While imprisoned, Irina continued to write poetry. Her previous works usually centered on love, Christian theology, and artistic creation, not on politics or policies as her accusers stated. Her new works that were written in prison, which were written on soap until memorized and then washed away, number some 250. They expressed an appreciation for human rights; liberty, freedom, and the beauty of life. Her memoir, Grey is the Colour of Hope, chronicles her prison experience. Her later poems recount her struggles to endure the hardships and horrors of prison life. Irina is a member of International PEN, who monitored her situation during her incarceration.
In 1987, Irina moved to the United States, where she received the Religious Freedom Award from the Institute on Religion and Democracy. In the same year she was deprived of Soviet citizenship by Politburo. She also was the Poet in Residence at Northwestern University from 1987–89. She lived in London, UK until December 1998, when she returned to Russia to educate her children in Russian school after a year of procedures to restore Russian citizenship.
She lives in Moscow with her husband, human rights activist Igor Gerashchenko, and two sons.
(from Wikipedia)
Irina was educated at Odessa University and was graduated with a master's degree in physics in 1976. Before her graduation she taught at a primary school in Odessa from 1975–78.
On September 17, 1982, Irina was arrested for anti-Soviet agitation. In April 1983, she was convicted of "agitation carried on for the purpose of subverting or weakening the Soviet regime", sentenced to seven years in a labor camp followed by five years of internal exile. She was released on October 9, 1986, on the eve of the summit in Reykjavík, Iceland between President Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev.
While imprisoned, Irina continued to write poetry. Her previous works usually centered on love, Christian theology, and artistic creation, not on politics or policies as her accusers stated. Her new works that were written in prison, which were written on soap until memorized and then washed away, number some 250. They expressed an appreciation for human rights; liberty, freedom, and the beauty of life. Her memoir, Grey is the Colour of Hope, chronicles her prison experience. Her later poems recount her struggles to endure the hardships and horrors of prison life. Irina is a member of International PEN, who monitored her situation during her incarceration.
In 1987, Irina moved to the United States, where she received the Religious Freedom Award from the Institute on Religion and Democracy. In the same year she was deprived of Soviet citizenship by Politburo. She also was the Poet in Residence at Northwestern University from 1987–89. She lived in London, UK until December 1998, when she returned to Russia to educate her children in Russian school after a year of procedures to restore Russian citizenship.
She lives in Moscow with her husband, human rights activist Igor Gerashchenko, and two sons.
(from Wikipedia)
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 6, 2022
Written in 1999 by dissident author Irina Ratushinskaya, Fictions and Lies takes place in 1970 in the months just prior to the celebration for the 100th anniversary of Lenin’s death in the Soviet Union. An author has just died while being tailed by KGB agents, who want to ensure that any anti-Soviet manuscripts he’s left behind are confiscated. What unfolds from there revolves around two sets of people: the artists (along with those who support them) and those working for the State to suppress them. That may sound like a dated, possibly clunky story, but it was far from it. Ratushinskaya is deft at showing the insidious ways the writers’ circles are infiltrated, and the human connections between the groups, through family members or friends, creating a nuanced, chilling story. Having been imprisoned herself for several years after being tried in Kiev, she seems to have written from direct knowledge.
Quotes:
On aging:
“You know what your problem is, old fellow? I read about it once in an American journal – it’s called a ‘mid-life crisis.’ God knows what that translates to in Russian, but the idea’s a sound one. Something happens to you at that age. The more talented you are, the worse it will be. Ailments of all sorts, depression, a feeling that everything’s in the past, and there’s nothing to look forward to.”
“The old man would lie on his bunk above the stove, while the wind howled outside and a cold new moon drew in its belly. There were times when Nikolin thought of this kind of life as a sound way of existence, and envisaged it for himself. Not now, of course, but at some time in the future. To retreat from everyone and everything, and never hurry again. Think, and tend the bees, nothing else. But what if you were to find something inside yourself that you didn’t like? It would be too late to change anything.”
On manipulation:
“The art of managing people consists of two simple things: knowing what a person most wants and what he most fears. Then acting accordingly.”
On Russian History, the emperor Paul I:
“Who had reduced the serfs’ obligatory period of work for their owners to three days a week? Why, that came to less than current taxes in some countries! And who tightened the reins on the galloping growth of aristocratic privilege? No wonder the aristocracy lined up against him, had him murdered, and slandered him posthumously: the dead can’t reply.”
Quotes:
On aging:
“You know what your problem is, old fellow? I read about it once in an American journal – it’s called a ‘mid-life crisis.’ God knows what that translates to in Russian, but the idea’s a sound one. Something happens to you at that age. The more talented you are, the worse it will be. Ailments of all sorts, depression, a feeling that everything’s in the past, and there’s nothing to look forward to.”
“The old man would lie on his bunk above the stove, while the wind howled outside and a cold new moon drew in its belly. There were times when Nikolin thought of this kind of life as a sound way of existence, and envisaged it for himself. Not now, of course, but at some time in the future. To retreat from everyone and everything, and never hurry again. Think, and tend the bees, nothing else. But what if you were to find something inside yourself that you didn’t like? It would be too late to change anything.”
On manipulation:
“The art of managing people consists of two simple things: knowing what a person most wants and what he most fears. Then acting accordingly.”
On Russian History, the emperor Paul I:
“Who had reduced the serfs’ obligatory period of work for their owners to three days a week? Why, that came to less than current taxes in some countries! And who tightened the reins on the galloping growth of aristocratic privilege? No wonder the aristocracy lined up against him, had him murdered, and slandered him posthumously: the dead can’t reply.”
May 31, 2021
A well-constructed story. Bit by bit, it is interesting to discover all the ties that bind the characters together.
Belokon and his friends show just how influential a "cult of personality" can be (something we are currently contending with in the U.S.).
It's bittersweet the way the novel ends on a hopeful note. As we all know, democracy has gone by the wayside in Russia after the hope of the late 80s/1990s. When I made a visit to Russia in 2002, I met a young man, a tour guide in St. Petersburg, who was quite vocal in his hopes for the future and who spoke disparagingly of the old regime. From time to time, I wonder about Stepan and how he is doing with Putin in charge. I hope he is safe, but can't help but have doubts. (He gave me his street map of St. Petersburg when I expressed an interest in seeing Akhmatova's house.)
I plan on seeking out other novels by this author.
Belokon and his friends show just how influential a "cult of personality" can be (something we are currently contending with in the U.S.).
It's bittersweet the way the novel ends on a hopeful note. As we all know, democracy has gone by the wayside in Russia after the hope of the late 80s/1990s. When I made a visit to Russia in 2002, I met a young man, a tour guide in St. Petersburg, who was quite vocal in his hopes for the future and who spoke disparagingly of the old regime. From time to time, I wonder about Stepan and how he is doing with Putin in charge. I hope he is safe, but can't help but have doubts. (He gave me his street map of St. Petersburg when I expressed an interest in seeing Akhmatova's house.)
I plan on seeking out other novels by this author.
August 6, 2017
Excellent novel that gives a real insight into Communist Russia, the control exerted over citizens, including the writing community and to an extent how society has changed over time. A really worthy read.
January 10, 2023
Interesting depiction of KGB bureaucracy in the Soviet Union in the 1970s. A writer dies suddenly and the KGB suspects he has written an "anti-Soviet" manuscript. They begin searching for this manuscript, an operation which ensnares several people. It is fascinating to see how various characters deal with being under surveillance and being asked to inform on each other.
March 24, 2020
It might not be a bad book but I could not get into it, it didn't keep my attention and I had a hard time keeping some characters straight.
September 14, 2022
Una obra poco conocida que me parece refleja muy bien los entresijos de la época soviética, dando una perspectiva de todas las partes e intenciones políticias.
Muy recomendable.
Muy recomendable.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews