A Woman Loved by Andrei Makine: book review

A Woman Loved (2013) is set in Saint Petersburg, Russia, from 1980 to 1995.

Oleg Erdmann is a young Russian filmmaker of German descent. He is a poor 26-year-old student living in a communal flat with fifteen other people. He is obsessed with Catherine the Great (1729-1796).

The novel is about Oleg’s attempt at writing a screenplay about Catherine the Great’s life. In doing so, there are many obstacles. Oleg’s girlfriend Lessya has read the first eleven pages of his screenplay and hates it. His fellow students tease him about the potential length of the film.

His university lecturer thinks Oleg’s film project is too ambitious – politically, financially, and historically. Catherine’s life has too many dramas – from German princess to Russian empress, her lovers, her desire to dominate, the coup d’etat, the murder of her husband Peter III, her rise to power, her son, her expeditions to foreign lands, too many biographical details – too many characters, too many walk-on parts. Too much detail won’t be good for the film, his teacher advises – and drop the horse! However, his teacher has some good advice: ‘try to fall in love with a present-day Catherine the Great.’

Oleg’s research and ambition is relentless, despite the criticism, including the pedantic comments from members of the State Committee for Cinematic Art. Nevertheless, Oleg moves from screenplay to production.

Has he fallen in love with a modern day Catherine? Is that even possible given his filmmaking obsession?

This is an interesting well-written way to introduce the history of Catherine the Great, the challenges in portraying true historical facts versus biographical fabrications, the pressure of other people’s expectations, and the obsession to portray Catherine’s ‘real’ character.

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).

Comments

Pir-E-Kamil - The Perfect Mentor by Umera Ahmed: book review

The Perfect Mentor pbuh (2011) is set in Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan. The novel commences with Imama Mubeen in medical university. She wants to be an eye specialist. Her parents have arranged for her to marry her first cousin Asjad. Salar Sikander, her neighbour, is 18 years old with an IQ of 150+ and a photographic memory. He has long hair tied in a ponytail. He imbibes alcohol, treats women disrespectfully and is generally a “weird chap” and a rude, belligerent teenager. In the past three years he has tried to commit suicide three times. He tries again. Imama and her brother, Waseem, answer the servant’s call to help Salar. They stop the bleeding from his wrist and save his life. Imama and Asjad have been engaged for three years, because she wants to finish her studies first. Imama is really delaying her marriage to Asjad because she loves Jalal Ansar. She proposes to him and he says yes. But he knows his parents won’t agree, nor will Imama’s parents. ...

Flaws in the Glass, a self-portrait by Patrick White: book review

The manuscript, Flaws in the Glass (1981), is Patrick Victor Martindale White’s autobiography. White, born in 1912 in England, migrated to Sydney, Australia, when he was six months old. For three years, at the age of 20, he studied French and German literature at King’s College at the University of Cambridge in England. Throughout his life, he published 12 novels. In 1957 he won the inaugural Miles Franklin Literary Award for Voss, published in 1956. In 1961, Riders in the Chariot became a best-seller, winning the Miles Franklin Literary Award. In 1973, he was the first Australian author to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature for The Eye of the Storm, despite many critics describing his works as ‘un-Australian’ and himself as ‘Australia’s most unreadable novelist.’ In 1979, The Twyborn Affair was short-listed for the Booker Prize, but he withdrew it from the competition to give younger writers the opportunity to win the award. His autobiography, Flaws in the Glass...

Sister cities discussed: Canberra and Islamabad

Two months ago, in March 2015, Australia and Pakistan agreed to explore ways to deepen ties. The relationship between Australia and Pakistan has been strong for decades, and the two countries continue to keep dialogues open. The annual bilateral discussions were held in Australia in March to continue engagements on a wide range of matters of mutual interest. The Pakistan delegation discussed points of interest will include sports, agriculture, economic growth, trade, border protection, business, and education. The possible twinning of the cities of Canberra, the capital of Australia, and Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, were also on the agenda (i.e. called twin towns or sister cities). Sister City relationships are twinning arrangements that build friendships as well as government, business, culture, and community linkages. Canberra currently has international Sister City relationships with Beijing in China and Nara in Japan. One example of existing...

FEAST OR FAMINE

Search This Blog