The Yellow Arrow by Victor Pelevin - Fable

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Publisher Description

Set during the advent of perestroika, a surreal, satirical novella by a critically acclaimed young Russian writer traces the fate of the passengers on The Yellow Arrow, a long-distance Russian train headed for a ruined bridge, a train without an end or a beginning--and it makes no stops. Andrei, the mystic passenger, less and less lulled by the never-ending sound of the wheels, has begun to look for a way to get off. But life in the carriages goes on as always. This important young Russian author's first American translation garnered rave reviews.

The main character, Andrei, is a passenger aboard the Yellow Arrow, who begins to despair over the trains ultimate destination and looks for a way out as the chapters count down. Indifferent to their fate, the other passengers carry on as usual — trading in nickel melted down fro the carriage doors, attending the Upper Bunk avant-garde theatre, and leafing through Pasternak’s Early Trains. Pelevin's art lies in the ease with which he shifts from precisely imagined science fiction to lyrical meditations on past and future. And, because he is a natural storyteller with a wonderfully absurd imagination. The Yellow Arrow is full of the ridiculous and the sublime. It is a reflective story, chilling and gripping.

15 Reviews

4.0

tamaa_soto

Created about 2 months ago

Change and grow Lack of diversity Memorable Minor characters stand out Addictive Clever plotting Steady pacing Suspenseful Atmospheric Dark Dystopian Eerie Harsh Easy to read

Jen

Created over 2 years ago

Artak Torosian

Created over 2 years ago

Mariel Lopez

Created about 4 years ago

“Un libro existencialista que adoré. Lo terminé de leer y fue como wtf. I'm confused. Y volví a releer algunas partes que ya tenía subrayadas, pero con una lapicero rojo. Es corto, pero profundo, justo como me encantan. ⁣ ⁣ Esta es la premisa: Todo el mundo vive en un tren que se dirige a un puente destruido. Muchos se olvidan de esto y siguen su vida, pero hay algunos pocos que desean bajar del tren con vida. ⁣ ⁣ "A normal passenger never thinks of himself as a passenger...so if you know you're a passenger, you no longer are one. They could never imagine that it's possible to get off this train. Nothing else exists for them, apart from the train." ⁣ ⁣ Una alegoría a la vida, tal vez ¿a la Unión Soviéta? ¿Tal vez al pasado y al presente? ¿De un pensamiento ideológico a otro? ¿A la consciencia y estar consciente? ⁣ ⁣ La primera leída me mantuvo enganchada, y pensando. La segunda vez me agarró y llevó aún más profundo. Es de esos libros que terminas y sigues con él en la cabeza, como toda buena historia. Me hace mucho pensar en la vida, en como la vivimos. ⁣ ⁣ "What matters is that we can live as though there is something else. As though it reallt is possible to get off." ⁣ ⁣ Si eres de las personas que prefieren algo más concreto este no es el libro para ti. Rápido de leer, pero una ricura para preguntarte cosas. Pelevin usa la ciencia ficción para arrancarnos de nuestro día a día, y a su modo convencernos que no seamos pasajeros en el tren de nuestra vida. ⁣ ⁣ "...it's the most difficult thing in life. Riding in a train without being a passenger." ⁣”

Mariel Lopez

Created about 4 years ago

“Un libro existencialista que adoré. Lo terminé de leer y fue como wtf. I'm confused. Y volví a releer algunas partes que ya tenía subrayadas, pero con una lapicero rojo. Es corto, pero profundo, justo como me encantan. ⁣ ⁣ Esta es la premisa: Todo el mundo vive en un tren que se dirige a un puente destruido. Muchos se olvidan de esto y siguen su vida, pero hay algunos pocos que desean bajar del tren con vida. ⁣ ⁣ "A normal passenger never thinks of himself as a passenger...so if you know you're a passenger, you no longer are one. They could never imagine that it's possible to get off this train. Nothing else exists for them, apart from the train." ⁣ ⁣ Una alegoría a la vida, tal vez ¿a la Unión Soviéta? ¿Tal vez al pasado y al presente? ¿De un pensamiento ideológico a otro? ¿A la consciencia y estar consciente? ⁣ ⁣ La primera leída me mantuvo enganchada, y pensando. La segunda vez me agarró y llevó aún más profundo. Es de esos libros que terminas y sigues con él en la cabeza, como toda buena historia. Me hace mucho pensar en la vida, en como la vivimos. ⁣ ⁣ "What matters is that we can live as though there is something else. As though it reallt is possible to get off." ⁣ ⁣ Si eres de las personas que prefieren algo más concreto este no es el libro para ti. Rápido de leer, pero una ricura para preguntarte cosas. Pelevin usa la ciencia ficción para arrancarnos de nuestro día a día, y a su modo convencernos que no seamos pasajeros en el tren de nuestra vida. ⁣ ⁣ "...it's the most difficult thing in life. Riding in a train without being a passenger." ⁣”

About Victor Pelevin

Victor Pelevin is one of Russia’s most successful post-Soviet writers. He won the Russian Booker prize in 1993 Born on November 22, 1962 in Moscow, he attended the Moscow Institute of Power Engineering, and the Institute of Literature. He’s now been published throughout Europe. His books include A Werewolf Problem in Central Russia, Omon Ra, The Blue Lantern, The Yellow Arrow, and The Hall of the Singing Caryatids.