The Long Song of Tchaikovsky Street: a Russian adventure
About this ebook
One day in 1988, an enigmatic priest knocks on Pieter Waterdrinker’s door with an unusual request: will he smuggle seven-thousand bibles into the Soviet Union. Pieter agrees, and soon finds himself living in the midst of one of the biggest social and cultural revolutions of our time, working as a tour operator ... with a sideline in contraband.
Thirty years later, from his apartment on Tchaikovsky Street in Saint Petersburg, where he lives with his Russian wife and three cats, Pieter reflects on his personal history in the Soviet Union, as well as the century of revolutions that took place in and around his street. A master storyteller, he blends history with memoir to create an ode to the divided soul of Russia and an unputdownable account of his own struggles with life, literature, and love.
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About the author
Pieter Waterdrinker (born 1961, Haarlem) is one of the most successful novelists in contemporary Dutch literature, praised for his compelling voice. He studied Russian at the University of Amsterdam, and was a long-time correspondent at the leading Dutch daily De Telegraaf. His literary work has often been translated and longlisted for awards, and his last novel The Rat of Amsterdam is a critically acclaimed bestseller. He lives between Saint Petersburg and the South of France.
Paul Evans is a Welsh poet and writer. He has published poetry in Britain and Holland, and translations of Dutch poetry, drama, and fiction with Faber and Seren. His translated plays have been performed at The Old Vic and The Guggenheim. His latest poetry collection is Grand Larcenies (Carcanet, 2021).
