Although written before the start of the war, Andrei Makine's new novel,
The Old Calendar of a Love
(Grasset), echoes the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
The Franco-Russian academician, Prix Goncourt 1995, confides in experiencing this confrontation as an intimate tension, underlining the cultural proximity between the two countries.
His statement, which espouses anti-American rhetoric, illustrates the state of mind of some Russians, nourished by imperial nostalgia.
LE FIGARO.
- Your novel, which takes us back to the turmoil of the 20th century, was written before the start of the
war in Ukraine
, yet the parallels between the two eras are striking.
Does history repeat itself?
Andrei MAKINE.
-
The book travels through the entire 20th century, relived at human height, and today's Ukrainian drama is certainly reflected in the life of the main hero, Valdas Bataeff, who lived through the Russian revolution, the fall of the empire and civil war - its terrible consequence.
The impression of “prescience”…
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