British Council and Mikhail Prokhorov Foundation are proud to support the participation of a famous British writer James Meek in Krasnoyarsk Book Fair which will take place from 3 to 7 November 2010. James Meek will present his novel The People's Act of Love was published in Amphora publishing house in 2007. James Meek’s events at Krasnoyarsk Book Fair is a part of Russia Market Focus 2011.
11 am — Presentation of the book The People's Act of Love
It is 1919 in Yazyk, Siberia, far from anywhere. The war is waning, but its ravages remain. There is an uneasy detente between a group of Czech soldiers, marooned on the losing side and longing to go home, and a fanatical Christian sect that practices castration as a means of purifying themselves. One of their number is their leader, Balashov, married to a beautiful and restive photographer, Anna Petrovna, who has come to the village of Yazyk to raise her son, after learning of her husband's castration. Her fury knows no bounds. She gives herself to anyone who is interested as a means of shaming Balashov, and satisfying her own appetites. Into this motley collection of people comes a stranger, Samarin, who says he has escaped from The White Garden, Russia's northernmost prison camp, a place of unbelievable barbarism. Shortly after his arrival, the village shaman, possessed of a third eye and an albino sidekick, is found murdered. Suspicion falls immediately on Samarin.
1 pm — The Image of Siberia in Europe
Participants: Irina Prohorova, Kerstin Holm, Marieta Chudakova, Jacek Hugo-Bader.
The participants will explore how the image of Siberia is transformed in Russian and foreign literature, the influence of historical background on the perception of Siberia, what Russian readers, writers and publishers are expecting from books about Siberia and Russia written by foreign authors.
James Meek is a British writer and journalist. He was born in London and grew up in Dundee, Scotland. Meek spent several years living in the former Soviet Union in the 1990s and now resides in London. He has published four novels and two short story collections. In 2004 he was named Foreign Correspondent and Amnesty Journalist of The Year. His third novel, The People’s Act of Love (2005), received significant critical acclaim and went on to win the Scottish Arts Council Book of Year Award and the Ondaatje Prize. It has been translated into twenty languages. His fourth novel, We Are Now Beginning Our Descent (2008) won the Prince Maurice prize. A film version of The People's Act of Love adapted by Johnny Depp is in development.
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