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Penguin Lost

by Andrey Kurkov
Melville House. 2011. c.256p. tr. from Russian by George Bird. ISBN 9781935554561. pap. $14.95. F
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Focusing on one man's intense search for his missing penguin, this sequel to Kurkov's Death and the Penguin is suffused with mystery and intrigue. The novel begins with Viktor's return to Kiev, Ukraine, where he embarks on a circuitous journey to locate Misha, the penguin he was forced to abandon at the end of the last book. As he searches the underworld of Kiev, Moscow, and Chechnya, Viktor becomes entangled in the activities of a series of criminal figures. Kurkov vividly renders locations afflicted by war, upheaval, and corruption. Throughout this dark yet fascinating journey, the question arises: "Why this tortured quest to find a penguin?" The answer, we discover, lies in the way Misha's fate is tied to the question of Viktor's ultimate redemption.
VERDICT At times, the translation into English from the original Russian interferes with a fluid reading of the text. Still, the story delivers a level of intrigue sufficient to capture and sustain the reader's attention. This novel will be of great interest to readers of eastern European literature and lovers of intricate plotlines.
Reviewed by Catherine Tingelstad, Pitt Community Coll., Greenville, NC , Oct 01, 2011
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