Promotional Information

Op Ed in The New York Times
Excerpts in Body, Words without Borders, Russia Beyond the Headlines
We are hoping to arrange a reading and discussion close to BEA
Interview with author and translator in World Literature Today
Interview with translator and review in Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Vladimir Lorchenkov, writer and journalist, was born in Chisinau, Moldova, the son of a Soviet army officer, in 1979. In his childhood he traveled across the Soviet Union and other socialist countries, including Transbaikal, the Arctic, Byelorussia, Ukraine, Hungary, Mongolia. When his family returned to Moldova, he studied journalism and for ten years was in charge of crime coverage at a local newspaper. Lorchenkov is a laureate of the 2003 Debut Prize, one of Russia's highest honors given to young writers, the Russia Prize in 2008, and was short-listed for the National Bestseller Prize in 2012. Lorchenkov has published a dozen books, and his work has been translated into German, Italian, Norwegian, Finnish, Serbo-Croatian and Finnish. He is married with two children, and still lives in his hometown. Ross Ufberg: Ross Ufberg is a translator, writer, and a PhD Candidate at Columbia University in the Slavic Department. His work has appeared in various magazines and newspapers. His translation of the autobiography of Marek Hlasko, Beautiful Twentysomethings, was published in 2013.

Reviews

"Outstanding ... darkly hilarious." -- The Wall Street Journal "A simultaneously hilarious and heartbreaking tale." -- Publishers Weekly "A touching and hilarious chronicle about the age-old European yearning for one more chance. A chance that may never come ..." -- Gary Shteyngart "Firmly in the great tradition of East European black humour and stands comparison with Hasek, Hrabal and Voinovich and will have you laughing -- unless, of course, you are a sensitive soul." -- The Modern Novel "The Good Life Elsewhere revels in absurdity, right down to the over-the-top satisfying end ... Good -- though occasionally also very dark -- absurdist fun, by a talented writer." -- The Complete Review "Original, both serious and comic, and, at times, tragic." -- Profile Magazine "Vladimir Lorchenkov is a highly talented imposter -- painting a colorful, bright, and crazy life in a benighted post-Soviet corner of the world." -- Vedomosti "This is a bleeding, wild work, grotesque in every twist of its plot and in every character, written brightly, bitterly, humorously, and -- paradoxically, as we're dealing with the grotesque -- honestly." -- Krupa.ru "Is it possible for lovely Italy to take the place of both hell and paradise, as well as one's most cherished dream? Vladimir Lorchenkov explores this possibility -- in vivid colors, with a pamphleteer's spite, and a good-humored smile." -- Literaturnaya Gazeta