Alex, an unsinkable optimist, engineer, writer and inventor, scion of a family persecuted by Stalin, is always fighting: from the brutal Chechens at home to the Christian fundamentalists in America. An escapee from the USSR, the most tyrannical regime on Earth, he comes to the US at the age of 30 in search of love, freedom and riches. Will his newly acquired ability to vote for an elephant or an ass bring him all three? If not, which requirement does he need to sacrifice? He has only one life to answer this question.
This isn’t self-help. It’s not a parody either. It’s something stranger and smarter: a satirical, uncategorizable book about belief, leadership, algorithmic power, and the performance of divinity in modern life.
A new book of poems by Nina Kossman. “When the mythological and personal meet, something transforms for this reader…” -Ilya Kaminsky
From the myths of the ancient Near East to the secluded palaces of forgotten empires, Harems: Origins and Eunuchs uncovers how the idea of the harem first emerged — not only as a symbol of power and beauty, but also as a reflection of human desire, faith, and control. With the precision of a historian and the sensitivity of a storyteller, Sergii Mazurkevych traces the hidden world of eunuchs, devotion, and intrigue that shaped entire civilizations. A thoughtful and visually rich journey into one of history’s most secret institutions.
This excellent anthology, compiled and edited by Julia Nemirovskaya, showcases poems by Russian (and Russian-speaking) poets who express their absolute rejection of Russia’s war against Ukraine.