New Novel Tender Handles Russian Counter Culture, Anti-Semitism, Forbidden Love in 1960s-70s USSR
NEW YORK, Oct. 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- On October 15, Passage Press released TENDER, a remarkable debut novel by Dr. Iosif Rikhter, based on his experiences growing up as the only child of Jewish intellectuals in the USSR. As numerous articles by Masha Gessen and other experts make clear, ultra-conservatism is on the rise in Putin's Russia and prevalent acts of anti-Semitism once again remind Russian citizens that some of them will never quite belong. TENDER suits this moment perfectly.
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20141020/153258
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20141020/153259
TENDER recreates in colorful detail what life was like for minorities at a similar moment in recent Russian history. It gives readers, whose interest in former Soviet Union has been piqued by the war against Ukraine and its political turn to the right, an immersion into the highs and lows of daily life for teenagers under an authoritarian regime.
TENDER tells the poignant, wry, and often funny story of a young, worldly-wise Russian Jew growing up in the USSR in the 1960s and '70s as the only child of demanding parents who want to keep him safe from anti-Semitism as well as the draft, and yet simultaneously prepare him to succeed. The boy's education takes an unexpected turn when a much older female teacher takes an interest in him, the kind of interest that could put his parents' dreams, and his own, at risk.
Reminiscent of such coming-of-age stories as Alina Bronsky's THE HOTTEST DISHES OF THE TARTAR CUISINE, and with a flair for recognizing absurdity in the mundane akin to Anya Ulinich's PETROPOLIS, TENDER draws on evocative details, vivid characters, and a unique voice to capture the complexities of growing up Jewish under Communism. It examines the role forbidden love plays in making us who we are.
Author Daniel Menaker calls TENDER "a superb coming-of-age adventure." Reviewers on Goodreads.com are similarly rapturous:
5 of 5 stars (Tender is) a psychologically intense novel about love and anti-Semitism in Soviet Russia. An unlikely romance between a high school teacher and her student will certainly grab your attention but the book goes far beyond an inauspicious love story. Iosif Rikhter crafted the music and colors, fears and hopes of the Soviet life in the mid-70-ies into an original and insightful mosaic, having transformed his seemingly unique material into a universally relevant experience. Read the book – you are in for an exciting ride. Marina Serebryanaya – Goodreads.com
This book reads in a single breath, and when you've finished, you immediately want more. This is all true. Every Jewish boy of my generation, born and brought up in Soviet Russia, can identify himself with Sasha. Rikhter is a genius! Noham Weinberg – Goodreads.com
Tender is now available on Amazon.com in both printed and e-book format.
For more information on the novel, supplemental background on the book themes, and original period photos, visit http://www.iosifrikhter.com/ and Iosif Rikhter's Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100006214276448.
For additional information, contact:
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SOURCE Iosif Rikhter
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