Amis's short Russian novel takes us through history from Stalinism to Putin's failed state, while following a lifelong love triangle between two brothers and Zoya. Content note: the book and the podcast include descriptions of sexual assault and reference self harm.
I mention Adam Curtis's Russia 1985-1999: Trauma Zone (available in the UK on BBC iPlayer) and Kingsley Amis's novel Jake's Thing as a book that is enjoyable to read.
I spend some time trying to tease out Amis's moral point, that a person, people or nation without conscience cannot survive, but am uneasy with its application to the narrator.
