A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka

A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian

Marina Lewycka

Feuding sisters Vera and Nadezhda forge an uneasy alliance when their 84 year old father announces he is in love....with a 36 year old Ukrainian sporting superior Botticellian breasts. You don't have to be fascinated by tractors to enjoy this book, but be prepared for humour and tragedy to run side by side as the story unfolds.

Extract
The second phone call came a few days after the first.

'Tell me, Nadezhda, do you think it would be possible for a man of eighty four to father a child?'

See how he comes straight to the point? No small talk. No 'How are you? How are Mike and Anna?' No chit-chat about the weather. Nothing frivolous will hold him up when he is in the grip of a Big Idea.

'Well, I'm not sure.....'

Why is he asking me? How would I know? I don't want to know. I don't want this kick of emotion that drags me back to the bogey-nose days, to the time when my Daddy was still my hero and I was still vulnerable to his disapproval.

Parallels
  • A History of Forgetting by Caroline Adderson
  • The Idea of Perfection by Kate Grenville
  • The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan