Book Review - FictionAbsurdistan (2006)
by Gary Shteyngart
What a pleasant and welcome surprise this book was! Although it - in my not-so-humble opinion - fell a hair's width short of achieving literary greatness (mostly due to inconsistency), Absurdistan is smart, insightful, relevant, funny, and shockingly poignant. In fact, I remember having "something in my eye" on more than one occasion.
Why the sentimentality of the book came so unexpectedly is primarily due to the nature of story's protagonist: Misha "Snack Daddy" Vainberg, a Russian Jew from St. Petersburg who had adopted American sensibilities while studying in the United States as a college student. Unexpectedly, his visa was revoked by the US government after his father killed an American businessman visiting Russia, seemingly without rhyme or reason.
There were definitely flashes of greatness in this novel. As a Korean-American, I was able to somewhat approach understanding Misha's transformation while back in Russia and later in Absurdistan: a fictional former-USSR satellite nation. At home, around his people and his father's friends, he learns for the first time to be proud of being Russian. To be proud of being Jewish. To be proud of being a Vainberg. And to finally feel the attachment one can only feel with this extended "family."
Now, for the weaknesses... Surprisingly, Misha remained a deeply flawed character throughout the novel. Unconventionally, the ending causes us to question whether or not he really went through any character growth at all despite all the outrageous events that thrust themselves into his life. You wonder how someone so clueless at times could suddenly become so insightful and observant at others (whenever convenient for the writer). Absurdistan is meant, I suppose, to be satire, but it is much less effective when the satirical character inexplicably assumes the author's voice rather than his own.
Still, overall, Shteyngart's sophmore novel was deeply moving, even when at times it was outright wacky. Although you have to be patient for the right moments, this is one of my new favorites. Definitely recommended. A
