A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka
Signs of the Times? This may well explain the political upheaval of the Ukraine. Industry vs humanity.
A humorous look at the atypical British family dealing with mail order companions from elsewhere in Europe reflecting glamorous perceptions of western society from second world countries, exploring personality and cultural clash amidst our human condition. Sisters Vera and Nadezhda must put aside feuding to save their engineer father in England from gold-digger Valentina satin underwear and boil-in-the-bag cuisine. With her proclivity for western appliances and modern technologies, determined to educate her son for a better life, Valentina will stop at nothing in her pursuit of wealth. But the sisters' campaign to out Valentina unearths her secrets and sends her and her son back to the roots they'd much rather forget. The story touches on prostitution as a forced occupation for disadvantaged women, lack of opportunities for youth women and families in the Ukraine, and the western dream of the good life with home and family, for those who want desperately to have one. In the background we learn a little about turning tanks into tractors and visa versa, but those seeking an entry window to the history of Ukraine or human drama with more depth than a puddle would be better served elsewhere.
And now for a reading by Marina Lewycka from A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian
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A humorous look at the atypical British family dealing with mail order companions from elsewhere in Europe reflecting glamorous perceptions of western society from second world countries, exploring personality and cultural clash amidst our human condition. Sisters Vera and Nadezhda must put aside feuding to save their engineer father in England from gold-digger Valentina satin underwear and boil-in-the-bag cuisine. With her proclivity for western appliances and modern technologies, determined to educate her son for a better life, Valentina will stop at nothing in her pursuit of wealth. But the sisters' campaign to out Valentina unearths her secrets and sends her and her son back to the roots they'd much rather forget. The story touches on prostitution as a forced occupation for disadvantaged women, lack of opportunities for youth women and families in the Ukraine, and the western dream of the good life with home and family, for those who want desperately to have one. In the background we learn a little about turning tanks into tractors and visa versa, but those seeking an entry window to the history of Ukraine or human drama with more depth than a puddle would be better served elsewhere.
And now for a reading by Marina Lewycka from A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian
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