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The Flight
First English translation of this novel by the author of The Spectre of Alexander Wolf
While summering on the French Riviera, the young Seryozha secretly becomes the lover of the much older Liza - who is also his father's mistress. As autumn approaches, they reluctantly part: Liza to return to Paris, Seryozha to take up his studies at university in London. When he finds out about their affair, Seryozha's father attempts to convince Liza to leave his son, for the sake of the boy's own happiness. She finally gives in - but a sudden, fatal catastrophe changes everything...
Gazdanov's second novel is proof of his wide-ranging talents: originally written before his celebrated noir experiments The Spectre of Alexander Wolf and The Buddha's Return, The Flight blends psychological drama, illicit romance and moments of both comedy and lyricism into a modernist take on the traditional Russian nineteenth-century realist novel epitomised by Tolstoy.
Gaito Gazdanov (1903-1971) joined the White Army aged just sixteen and fought in the Russian Civil War. Exiled in Paris from the 1920s onwards, he eventually became a nocturnal taxi-driver and quickly gained prominence on the literary scene as a novelist, essayist, critic and short-story writer, and was greatly admired by Maxim Gorky, among others. Pushkin Press also publishes the celebrated The Spectre of Alexander Wolf and The Buddha's Return.
289 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1939
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About the author
Gaito Gazdanov
41 books162 followersGaito Gazdanov (Russian: Гайто Газданов; Ossetian: Гæздæнты Бæппийы фырт Гайто) (1903–1971) was a Russian émigré writer of Ossetian extraction. He was born in Saint Petersburg but was brought up in Siberia and Ukraine, where his father worked as a forester. He took part in the Russian Civil War on the side of Wrangel's White Army. In 1920 he left Russia and settled in Paris, where he was employed in the Renault factories. Gazdanov's first novel — An Evening with Claire (1930) — won accolades from Maxim Gorky and Vladislav Khodasevich, who noted his indebtedness to Marcel Proust. On the strength of his first short stories, Gazdanov was decried by critics as one of the most gifted writers to begin his career in emigration.
Gazdanov's mature work was produced after World War II. His mastery of criminal plots and understanding of psychological detail are in full evidence in his two most popular novels, The Specter of Alexander Wolf and The Return of the Buddha, whose English translations appeared in 1950 and 1951. The writer "excels in creating characters and plots in which cynicism and despair remain in precarious yet convincing balance with a courageous acceptance of life and even a certain joie de vivre." In 1953, Gazdanov joined the Radio Liberty, where he hosted a program about Russian literature until his death.
Gazdanov's mature work was produced after World War II. His mastery of criminal plots and understanding of psychological detail are in full evidence in his two most popular novels, The Specter of Alexander Wolf and The Return of the Buddha, whose English translations appeared in 1950 and 1951. The writer "excels in creating characters and plots in which cynicism and despair remain in precarious yet convincing balance with a courageous acceptance of life and even a certain joie de vivre." In 1953, Gazdanov joined the Radio Liberty, where he hosted a program about Russian literature until his death.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
August 29, 2024
The Flight is a love story or, to be more precise, a set of love stories for along with the axial romance the novel incorporates many love affairs…
Art, love, ideals – all characters strive for higher spheres and fall in love. They have earthly love affairs and they have their heads in clouds…
But first of all The Flight is also a story of ruthless kismet…
Does love engender our destiny? Or does fate create our love for us? Or is it all just a play of chance?
They had met at a concert, talked at length about music, literature and art in general; she had known nothing of the baseness of life surrounding her, just as she had no conception of money; she had been made for art and for this one unique love.
Art, love, ideals – all characters strive for higher spheres and fall in love. They have earthly love affairs and they have their heads in clouds…
But first of all The Flight is also a story of ruthless kismet…
Within this small space inside the aeroplane flying over the English Channel, there was concentrated in these final minutes a whole world of diverse and unique things, several long lives, a multitude of correctly and incorrectly understood emotions, regrets, hopes and expectations – it was a complex system of human relations, a vain account of which would perhaps take years of persistent toil. Their convergence, precisely here and now, was in turn the result of a million accidents of chance, the innumerable wealth of which was beyond human comprehension, for, in order to know the exact reason that had led each of these passengers to the aeroplane, it would be necessary to know everything that had come before this flight and to establish thus amid an evolution of sequential circumstances almost the entire history of the world.
Does love engender our destiny? Or does fate create our love for us? Or is it all just a play of chance?
February 23, 2016
"Happiness isn't deserved, Liza," said Seryozha's father curtly. "It is either given to you or it isn't."
What really hit me was the writing early on about Seryozha's parents, how damaged their marriage was- how much more his mother hungered for and his fathers cold love- that had once seemed so hot for her. The sadness of his mother's abandonment, her restlessness- his father's indifference- how does a child turn out normal in all that? Why this story gets four stars from me is the character driven writing. I loved these people, even the ones who disgusted me with their boorishness.
"Who's a fool, Liza?"
"Everyone, my little one," said Liza with a sigh. "Everyone. But without a certain foolishness it wouldn't be worth living. Don't you think?"
Liza too, surely they are all fools! It's hard to ignore the relationship between the two and know it's wrong for them to entertain an affair. If this isn't disturbing... well... just who seduced who?
"Far beyond these feelings, in the very depths and silence of her being, lurked the dark, seductive taste of something illicit. " Illicit indeed! An affair doomed from the start and not just because Liza is daddy's mistress. The writing though, the thoughts and feelings are the meaty one I dined on. While I felt disgusted by the very idea of Liza and Seryozha, the author's insight into human emotions and behavior was impressive. This is a Russian story indeed!
What really hit me was the writing early on about Seryozha's parents, how damaged their marriage was- how much more his mother hungered for and his fathers cold love- that had once seemed so hot for her. The sadness of his mother's abandonment, her restlessness- his father's indifference- how does a child turn out normal in all that? Why this story gets four stars from me is the character driven writing. I loved these people, even the ones who disgusted me with their boorishness.
"Who's a fool, Liza?"
"Everyone, my little one," said Liza with a sigh. "Everyone. But without a certain foolishness it wouldn't be worth living. Don't you think?"
Liza too, surely they are all fools! It's hard to ignore the relationship between the two and know it's wrong for them to entertain an affair. If this isn't disturbing... well... just who seduced who?
"Far beyond these feelings, in the very depths and silence of her being, lurked the dark, seductive taste of something illicit. " Illicit indeed! An affair doomed from the start and not just because Liza is daddy's mistress. The writing though, the thoughts and feelings are the meaty one I dined on. While I felt disgusted by the very idea of Liza and Seryozha, the author's insight into human emotions and behavior was impressive. This is a Russian story indeed!
April 25, 2016
I was approved an ARC of this book by the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This review was originally posted at eclectictales.com: http://www.eclectictales.com/blog/201...
It’s kind of hard for me to put my thoughts into words about this book in part because the book blurb describing what it is about is a bit misleading; the events mentioned in the blurb doesn’t really come into play until the last third of the novel, and rather the first two-thirds of the novel dealt with the lives of these various characters leading up to this moment of confrontation amongst the principal characters–Seryozha, his father, Liza, Seryozha’s mother. Part of me was thinking as I was reading how this novella should’ve been a bit more condensed, could’ve stuck to the principal characters, etc. but on the other hand I understand why the author chose to delve into the lives of Sergey, Liza, Olga, etc., get into their headspace and understand where they are coming from (for the most part; Sergey still comes across as a little detached and off in his own world, whatever he says). I certainly could’ve done without Lisa’s side story, however interesting she was, if only because it felt like the point of her story was just to wrap everything up at the end and see how paths and fates cross in different ways.
But once the story hits the moment highlighted in the book blurb, it does speed up to the climax and the catastrophe that it speaks of in true Russian fashion. I admit I didn’t expect the twist. Also in true Russian fashion is how the author analyses each of his characters, has them reflecting on their life and what they want; this was especially the case for the women in this story, who want to only be in control of their life and are seen as vain or capricious because of their lot in life, their sad marriages, whatever means they have available to them.
The Flight overall was an interesting novella that examines life and relationships through this interweb of characters. The pacing was plodding, especially at the first two-thirds of the novel, but nonetheless I remained glued to the page to see how all of the characters and relationships connected to each other and in what way leading to the climax and tragedy of the novel. Readers of novellas, literary fiction, and Russian literature will want to check this book out.
It’s kind of hard for me to put my thoughts into words about this book in part because the book blurb describing what it is about is a bit misleading; the events mentioned in the blurb doesn’t really come into play until the last third of the novel, and rather the first two-thirds of the novel dealt with the lives of these various characters leading up to this moment of confrontation amongst the principal characters–Seryozha, his father, Liza, Seryozha’s mother. Part of me was thinking as I was reading how this novella should’ve been a bit more condensed, could’ve stuck to the principal characters, etc. but on the other hand I understand why the author chose to delve into the lives of Sergey, Liza, Olga, etc., get into their headspace and understand where they are coming from (for the most part; Sergey still comes across as a little detached and off in his own world, whatever he says). I certainly could’ve done without Lisa’s side story, however interesting she was, if only because it felt like the point of her story was just to wrap everything up at the end and see how paths and fates cross in different ways.
But once the story hits the moment highlighted in the book blurb, it does speed up to the climax and the catastrophe that it speaks of in true Russian fashion. I admit I didn’t expect the twist. Also in true Russian fashion is how the author analyses each of his characters, has them reflecting on their life and what they want; this was especially the case for the women in this story, who want to only be in control of their life and are seen as vain or capricious because of their lot in life, their sad marriages, whatever means they have available to them.
The Flight overall was an interesting novella that examines life and relationships through this interweb of characters. The pacing was plodding, especially at the first two-thirds of the novel, but nonetheless I remained glued to the page to see how all of the characters and relationships connected to each other and in what way leading to the climax and tragedy of the novel. Readers of novellas, literary fiction, and Russian literature will want to check this book out.
April 3, 2016
I found it very hard to engage with this tale of unhappy relationships. It’s well written, often lyrical, and the author attempts some psychological depth, but I couldn’t really relate to the characters, particularly the young Seryozha, who is the focal point of the novel, and whose affair with his father’s mistress provides the narrative drive. All the characters seemed very vacuous to me, and their lives quite meaningless. Not for me this one.
August 5, 2018
The uncontrollable power of external forces, many different love stories revolving around the central one, which although not epic, does move you.
This is my first book of Gazdanov and I particularly loved his multilingual, wealthy world.
Extremely easy read with two consecutive plot twists at the very end that shock you.
This is my first book of Gazdanov and I particularly loved his multilingual, wealthy world.
Extremely easy read with two consecutive plot twists at the very end that shock you.
June 23, 2021
Maybe this was a wrong time, wrong place book, but I found it very old fashioned and meandering. It has poetic moments but in general the characters are too dramatic. Their lives seem pointless as does the book. Formulaic plot.
August 16, 2023
This was an enjoyable read, but the dramatic effect completely failed on me. Some major, life-changing events happen in the book, but probably due to the two-dimensional characters I didn't care at all.
January 29, 2017
Bit contrived at the end, but an erudite take on love - sensuality vs duty, sacred vs profane. Really, it's about the various ways one can live life, and the consequences of each path.
October 25, 2021
A Russian émigré in Paris has a philanthropic but emotionally distant father, and a reckless mother who goes from one affair to another, sometimes abandoning the family only to return months later. His parents are perpetually cheating on one another, albeit civilly, and then he himself starts having feelings for his aunt. She seems to be a source of stability, but she has a secret of her own that Gazdanov reveals in time, which makes his growing attraction to her even more complicated. Gazdanov is clearly cynical about love and marriage, as what seem to be romances are either contrived or motivated by selfishness, and he emphasizes this with a few other characters, including an aging, vain actress. The novel’s ending is brilliant, at first seeming to be destined, but then Gazdanov gives us a little surprise. His point seems to be that while humanity is certainly far from ideal, there are moments of purity and light, but regardless, our lives are short, and our troubles and triumphs small in the grand scheme of things.
Quotes:
On forgiving:
“What had happened to Lola was the same as what would have happened to any other very elderly person who, in the final stage of life, during the long hours of senility, had recalled an re-evaluated his life, drawing certain conclusions, the only ones possible: that it was necessary, above all else, to forgive people for their involuntary misdemeanors, that one should not hate anyone, that everything was fragile and uncertain, except for this peaceful and pleasant reconciliation, this undemanding love and tenderness for those dearest to us, irrespective, even, of whether they deserve it or not.”
On love, and separation:
“…in order to comprehend this happiness, he had to compare it with what had gone before it, and only then, only in so doing could he see the singularity of it. Liza’s shadow never left him; even when she was not there, everything was imbued with her presence and the expectation of her return; the air was full of her intonations, the water was suffused with her rippling reflection, and in the caress of the sea breeze Seryozha distinctly felt the approach of her lips, now forever half open, to his face.”
On timelessness:
“As far as the eye could see, everything was raindrops and damp fog; the wind howled softly and ominously. Amid this raw tumult, Liza could hear the shingle on the beach, and through the various noises came the rapid, simultaneous murmur of several streams; everything was there – the sobbing, the sodden squelch and smack of mouldering earth, and, cutting through the dank, leaden air, somewhere nearby a cockerel crowed. Liza could not step away from the window. Perhaps for the first time in her life, her perception of time had vanished; long ago, in the terrible abyss of vanished millennia, the very same event had repeated itself time and time again: that same violent whirl of rain, those same sounds, the noise of the vast earth and the shrill call of the cockerel – and if one were to imagine the mythical Titan, who fell sound asleep to the drumming of this rain and awoke, leaving he Stone Age behind and finding himself in the Age of Christ, everything would have been the same: the sheets of water, the damp fog, the piercing call of birds in a dank mist full of droplets.”
Quotes:
On forgiving:
“What had happened to Lola was the same as what would have happened to any other very elderly person who, in the final stage of life, during the long hours of senility, had recalled an re-evaluated his life, drawing certain conclusions, the only ones possible: that it was necessary, above all else, to forgive people for their involuntary misdemeanors, that one should not hate anyone, that everything was fragile and uncertain, except for this peaceful and pleasant reconciliation, this undemanding love and tenderness for those dearest to us, irrespective, even, of whether they deserve it or not.”
On love, and separation:
“…in order to comprehend this happiness, he had to compare it with what had gone before it, and only then, only in so doing could he see the singularity of it. Liza’s shadow never left him; even when she was not there, everything was imbued with her presence and the expectation of her return; the air was full of her intonations, the water was suffused with her rippling reflection, and in the caress of the sea breeze Seryozha distinctly felt the approach of her lips, now forever half open, to his face.”
On timelessness:
“As far as the eye could see, everything was raindrops and damp fog; the wind howled softly and ominously. Amid this raw tumult, Liza could hear the shingle on the beach, and through the various noises came the rapid, simultaneous murmur of several streams; everything was there – the sobbing, the sodden squelch and smack of mouldering earth, and, cutting through the dank, leaden air, somewhere nearby a cockerel crowed. Liza could not step away from the window. Perhaps for the first time in her life, her perception of time had vanished; long ago, in the terrible abyss of vanished millennia, the very same event had repeated itself time and time again: that same violent whirl of rain, those same sounds, the noise of the vast earth and the shrill call of the cockerel – and if one were to imagine the mythical Titan, who fell sound asleep to the drumming of this rain and awoke, leaving he Stone Age behind and finding himself in the Age of Christ, everything would have been the same: the sheets of water, the damp fog, the piercing call of birds in a dank mist full of droplets.”
March 29, 2016
A family not quite any other: Sergej and Olga have long lost the connection between each other, they live their lives together apart. Also their son Seryozha only plays a random role in their life. The fourth member of this strange family is Liza, Olga’s sister who is not much older than Seryozha and has always been his confidant. When the parents move further apart – also geographically – the son suddenly finds himself on the French Riviera alone with his aunt and falls in love with her. This love is returned, but Liza secretly has had an affair for years which could be revived due to the separation of Seryozha’s parents.
Gazdanov presents a complicated Russian family and business construct which unfolds itself slowing during the novel. Yet, hidden affairs, a lot of secrets kept from each other for a long time find their way on the surface and put the character to difficult decisions. The basic human instincts can be found in Gazdanov’s characters, their greed, envy and pride lead them into the abyss, a positive ending is not offered for them. We do not have the highly complicated novel here with masses of characters as we find in other Russian writers which makes it a lot easier to follow the plot, nevertheless there are some side plots which give insight in how the Russian community all over Europe worked and stuck together.
Gazdanov presents a complicated Russian family and business construct which unfolds itself slowing during the novel. Yet, hidden affairs, a lot of secrets kept from each other for a long time find their way on the surface and put the character to difficult decisions. The basic human instincts can be found in Gazdanov’s characters, their greed, envy and pride lead them into the abyss, a positive ending is not offered for them. We do not have the highly complicated novel here with masses of characters as we find in other Russian writers which makes it a lot easier to follow the plot, nevertheless there are some side plots which give insight in how the Russian community all over Europe worked and stuck together.
March 21, 2017
Nabokov meets Francoise Sagan. Fun.
September 9, 2018
Russian literature is something else. The blurb will tell you it's about these two characters and it's their unfortunate story, but, more often than not, it's more about the supporting cast of characters than those at the story's core. I adored Gazdanov's absurd, eccentric characters and their countless misfortunes. It was just a tragic Russian novel through and through, and it reminded me just why I love them so much.
June 22, 2016
Wat een parel van een Russische roman.
December 13, 2016
Thoroughly enjoyable in an old fashioned way.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews