Rating: 5/5
Review:
Readable, Insightful and engaging
I thought The Zoo was very good. It's a sharp and original observation of the
brutality, self-delusion, self-centredness and self-regard of dictators and
their entourage which is intelligent, at times rather funny and at others
utterly horrifying.
Set in Moscow in
1953, a 12-year-old Yuri finds himself in the dying Stalin's inner circle as a
food-taster. Yuri had a serious accident
as a child which damaged his brain. This
has left him still highly intelligent but with a naïve directness and
inquisitiveness, and a face which leads people, even strangers, to confide in
him. People often also believe him to be
an "idiot boy" and forget his presence, so he hears a great deal
which is not intended for other ears.
The story is narrated by Yuri and we see Stalin, Beria,
Khrushchev and others through his eyes. It
is a clever device, showing their monstrous behaviour in a new but no less
horrifying light. We also get comments
like this from the innocent Yuri, when a friend tells him that his uncle
"got twelve years for doing precisely absolutely nothing at all. Zilch,
Zero.
But that's Life. You
don’t know what to believe for the best.
Because, everyone knows, for *nothing* you only get nine."
I found Yuri's voice very convincing (although once or twice
he does use slightly more poetic and advanced language than seems appropriate
for his character) and the whole thing extremely engaging and readable. It's a fine satire which more than one
current world leader would do well to take note of, as well as being a rather
touching story as I became more and more engaged with Yuri and his
understanding deepens of what is really happening. It's a very good read which will stay with me
and which left me with plenty to think about.
Warmly recommended.
(I received an ARC via NetGalley.)
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