NNO Book Club: Vita Nostra

I had something else slated for June but I just wasn’t certain about it so I wandered back through my running list of “Maybes”. Those of you who know me well will be unsurprised that book club planning lives in a multi-tabbed spreadsheet and we have over 100 books (with library availability data) just hanging around waiting to be picked.

This one has been on the list a long time, as the group seems to like, or at least are willing to try, 1) non-American perspectives and 2) books in translation. It is March 2022 as I post this event and who knows where we will be in June, but I could not pass up an “internationally bestselling, Ukrainian, fantasy/urban fantasy” novel. Also, depending what book summary you read – this gets listed as a “Russian novel” a lot – I guess because the original publication language was Russian? But no – this is 100% written and initially published in Ukraine by Ukrainian authors.

Now that we have that out of the way…initially published in 2007, first published in English translation in 2018, for June we are reading “Vita Nostra” by Marina Dyachenko and Sergey Dyachenko.

***Book summary from Goodreads***
Our life is brief . . .

While vacationing at the beach with her mother, Sasha Samokhina meets the mysterious Farit Kozhennikov under the most peculiar circumstances. The teenage girl is powerless to refuse when this strange and unusual man with an air of the sinister directs her to perform a task with potentially scandalous consequences. He rewards her effort with a strange golden coin.

As the days progress, Sasha carries out other acts for which she receives more coins from Kozhennikov. As summer ends, her domineering mentor directs her to move to a remote village and use her gold to enter the Institute of Special Technologies. Though she does not want to go to this unknown town or school, she also feels it’s the only place she should be. Against her mother’s wishes, Sasha leaves behind all that is familiar and begins her education.

As she quickly discovers, the institute’s "special technologies" are unlike anything she has ever encountered. The books are impossible to read, the lessons obscure to the point of maddening, and the work refuses memorization. Using terror and coercion to keep the students in line, the school does not punish them for their transgressions and failures; instead, their families pay a terrible price. Yet despite her fear, Sasha undergoes changes that defy the dictates of matter and time; experiences which are nothing she has ever dreamed of . . . and suddenly all she could ever want.

A complex blend of adventure, magic, science, and philosophy that probes the mysteries of existence, filtered through a distinct Russian sensibility, this astonishing work of speculative fiction—brilliantly translated by Julia Meitov Hersey—is reminiscent of modern classics such as Lev Grossman’s The Magicians, Max Barry’s Lexicon, and Katherine Arden’s The Bear and the Nightingale, but will transport them to a place far beyond those fantastical worlds.

***This month's restaurant selection***
I’ve had my eye on this place for a while and finally got the chance to visit. Nice little gastropub with seriously good food! This month we will be visiting Little Lamb Gastropub in Clearwater.

***Not sure about book club or never been to one before? ***
Read the book (or some of the book). Come to the Meetup. Eat yummy food and chat with folks about what you thought about the book. REPEAT!

***Not sure where to get the book? ***
All books we select have a decent number of copies (at least 3-4 across all formats) at both the Hillsborough and Pinellas County Library. And, of course, you can always buy a copy.

***Didn’t finish/hated this book?***
Come to the Meetup anyway! If you didn't finish - just be aware, there will be spoilers. If you hated it, come and rant! In my experience, the books that generate the best conversations and the books we really love are rarely the same books.