A Mountain of Crumbs

Informationen zum Autor Elena Gorokhova Klappentext A mesmerising memoir of a childhood in Soviet Russia: through Elena's captivating voice we learn the story of Russia through the second half of the 20th century, but also the personal account of one rebellious citizen whose love of a foreign language finally transports her to a new world. 'An enthralling read' J.M. Coetzee Zusammenfassung A Mountain of Crumbs is the moving story of a young Soviet girl's discovery of the hidden truths of adulthood and her country's profound political deception. Elena, born with a desire to explore the world beyond her borders, finds her passion in the complexity of the English language - but in the Soviet Union of the 1960s, such a passion verges on the subversive. Elena's home is no longer the majestic Russia of literature or the tsars. Instead, it is a nation humiliated by its first faltering steps after World War II, putting up appearances for the sake of its regime and fighting to retain its pride. In this deeply affecting memoir, Elena re-creates the world that both oppressed and inspired her. She recounts stories passed down to her about the horrors of the Bolshevik Revolution and probes the daily deprivations and small joys of her family's bunkerlike existence. Through Elena's captivating voice, we learn not only the personal story of Russia in the second half of the twentieth century, but also the story of one rebellious citizen whose love of a foreign language finally transports her to a new world. 'This moving memoir made me cry' The New York Times

Product details

• Authors: Elena Gorokhova
• Publisher: Windmill Books
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback
• Released: 19.08.2010
• EAN: 9780099537649
• ISBN: 978-0-09-953764-9
• No. of pages: 352
• Dimensions: 131 mm x 197 mm x 22 mm
• Subjects: Fiction > Narrative literature > Letters, diaries; Non-fiction book > Philosophy, religion > Biographies, autobiographies; Postwar 20th century history, from c 1945 to c 2000, Russia, BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Military, BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Political, HISTORY / Modern / 20th Century, Later 20th century c 1950 to c 1999, History and Archaeology, Former Soviet Union, USSR (Europe), USSR, Soviet Union