A Constellation of Vital Phenomena
Ratings48
Average rating4.5
I shamefully admit that I knew hardly anything about Chechnya. I knew it was a country close to Russia, and I knew there had been a war there. I didn't know about the persecution and absolute atrocities the people had to endure.
This book is a marvel. It made me laugh out loud and sob like a baby. It is both harrowing and hopeful. It is a beautiful story that is bound to stay with me for a long time. There are books you read for entertainment and to escape. Then there are books that matter. This book matters.
“On the morning after the Feds burned down her house and took her father, Havaa woke from dreams of sea anemones”
Set during the Chechen conflict the book follows 8 year old Havaa who, after her father is “disappeared”, is whisked away by her neighbour Akhmed to a crumbling hospital where she meets the grim surgeon Sonja.
A host of other characters float in an ever connected periphery — but all this is just the book jacket synopsis covering the who, what, where. I won't say it's irrelevant, but these are just the facts of the story. It's the writing that's the star here. Anthony Marra hadn't reached 30 when he wrote this, his first novel, and it's incredible. There are entire paragraphs that just fucking devastated me.
These characters are defined by what they have lost, the people that have disappeared from their lives. “As a web is no more than holes woven together, they were bonded by what was no longer there.”
Just some incredible writing throughout.
If you're one of those readers who likes to read award-winners, a reader who reads all the books on the Best of... lists at the end of the year, a member of a book club that will likely read this book in the distant future, or just someone who wants to read great fiction before anyone else knows about it, A Constellation of Vital Phenomena is the perfect choice.
No words are wasted in Anthony Marra's debut novel about Chechnya. The plot is woven very intricately; every loose strand is tied before the book reaches its conclusion. And what a beautiful tapestry it is. It's lyrical and affecting, intelligent but never boring. The scenery and characters come alive. Marra does a fabulous job of crafting a moving novel without becoming overly sentimental. In short, I cannot praise this book enough.
A Constellation... is the sort of book that will likely fill a significant place on your bookshelf, but leave a hole in your understanding of the world. It will likely send you to Wikipedia or your local library, searching for information regarding Chechnya. Do yourself a favor, do the research and get the book now, before everyone else has. That way, come September, when one of your co-workers says “Oh my god, you should so read this book about Chechnya,” you can stick your nose in the error, correct your co-workers mispronunciation, and tell her all about it.
I resisted this book because I wasn't drawn to the title and I have no interest in Chechny; however, I received the book as part of my Warwick's First Editions book club and I'm so glad I did. It played with time in interesting ways, and I loved the seemingly random connections the characters made through the years with one another or with objects important to other of the characters. And it was heartbreaking to experience third-hand the misery and violence and loss the people of Chechnya have suffered for years. Highly recommended!