The Literature Express (2009, English version 2013)
is set in Europe in October 2008. The narrator is 28-year-old Zaza, a Georgian
writer. The Ministry of Culture has selected Zaza and the poet, Zviad
Meipariani, to join the specially chartered train of authors to represent their
country on a month-long series of writing seminars.
On board the colourfully painted steam train, the
Literature Express, is 100 writers from various countries on a journey to major
cities across Spain, France, Belgium, Germany, Poland, and Russia. The
itinerary is Lisbon, Madrid, Paris, Brussels, Frankfurt, Malbork, Kaliningrad,
Moscow, Warsaw, and Berlin. Most nights are spent in hotels, and in each city
the authors are expected to perform or read their writing, and attend a Book
Fair.
For Zaza, the event is two months after the Russian-Georgian
conflict of August 2008, and hence he is obsessed with politics and the
wellbeing of his parents and relatives.
Heinz and Rudy are the German hosts of the event.
Heinz urges Zaza to leave politics behind and “only discuss literature on the
train.” As the train begins its journey, from Lisbon, “everyone turned into
writers. All sterotypes came to life simultaneously … they were all talking
about their novels, stories, plays and screenplays without a hint of
embarrassment.” While Zaza was modest about his profession, he was vocal about
his country’s political situation. And there were two Russians on board.
Zaza was initially daunted at the number of writers,
especially since he had only one book published, with only 400 sales, but he
had won a literary award. Immediately Iliko, a Georgian guide and translator
for the two Georgian writers, studying in Germany and hired by the hosts,
commenced criticism of his own country’s literature. Zaza stated that Georgian
literature should not be compared to German or French literature, but agreed
with the criticism: “In our country five people read books while two people
write them.”
Zaza intended to turn the journey into a novel – but
so did everyone else. When the hosts declared that there would be a writing
competition throughout the journey, with the winning article to be announced in
Berlin, the atmosphere was not one of intense competition, but rather of
pressure to perform on cue.
Apart from politics, Zaza is also obsessed with a
woman he meets on the train. Helena is a Greek music critic, married to a much
older man, Macek, an often-drunk literary critic. But Macek wants to translate
one of Zaza’s articles on the Georgian political situation, which would open
his work to the European market. Hence Zaza has a dilemma on his hands: to be
nicer to Helena, to gain her attention, or to her husband, to gain more readers
and book sales.
Due to the conflict, the Russia government has
rejected visas for the Georgians, so they remain in Poland and take the bus to
Warsaw instead of going to Moscow. This is despite one of the Russians, Mr.
Pushkov, seeking a petition to have the visas granted. Zviad is emotionally
overwhelmed with this gesture, feeling that “one Pushkov outweighed all Russian
sins.” But there is a further dilemma for Zaza because Helena decides not to
travel to Russia, but to stay in Poland for the two days, without her husband.
Zaza sees his chance to woo her, but should he?
Interspersed throughout the novel are 12 brief diary
entries from other writers. This provides an alternative to copious dialogue as
the diary notes reveal an insight, if only momentarily, into the character of
some of the other 98 writers. There is also a letter from Iliko to the hosts on
how the Georgians are settling in. Iliko’s letter is the best of these entries
(set in italics) – and more of his letters and insights would have been quite
entertaining.
The beginning is slow, jumpy, and repetitive, but
once on the train the novel becomes more interesting. The novel is about love
and literature, states Bugadze. However, it is not really about love – it is
more about lust, dalliances, and affairs. It is not really about literature –
it is more about a bunch of luckless writers. It is not really about the train,
the express, either – it is more about the cities and the hotels.
Although the hosts request that the writers discuss
literature, they rarely do so, nor do they discusse the process of writing,
their techniques, or their styles. The conversations are mostly about chasing a
good time – through alcohol and affairs. The literary seminars undertaken in
each city are unfortunately not emphasized in detail, except for Zaza’s
reaction to them, and his contributions. Nevertheless, the interesting aspects
are the concept and its portrayal of self-absorbed, distracted, and disgruntled
writers and their relationships with each other.
MARTINA NICOLLS is an international
aid and development consultant, and the author of:- The Shortness of
Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet
(2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).
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