''The Kukotsky Enigma'' ( rus, Казус Кукоцкого) is a novel by acclaimed Russian novelist and public intellectual Lyudmila Ulitskaya. ''The Kukotsky Enigma'' won the 2001

Russian Booker Prize The Russian Booker Prize (russian: Русский Букер, ''Russian Booker'') was a Russian literary award modeled after the Booker Prize. It was awarded from 1992 to 2017. It was inaugurated by English Chief Executive Sir Michael Harris C ...

. With five, Ulitskaya holds the record for the most nominations for that prestigious award. In 2005, a television series based on the novel by director

Yuri Grymov Yuri Vyacheslavovich Grymov (russian: link=no, Ю́рий Вячесла́вович Гры́мов; born July 6, 1965, Moscow, USSR) is a Russian film director, clipmaker, screenwriter, producer. Member of the Public Chamber of the Moscow Oblas ...

was aired in Russia. Critics suggest that the book's focus on

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...

(from 1936 to 1955 it was allowed in USSR only for medical reasons) offers a new reading of

Stalinism Stalinism is the means of governing and Marxist-Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union from 1927 to 1953 by Joseph Stalin. It included the creation of a one-party totalitarian police state, rapid industrialization, the theory ...

through the lens of family life and the female body.

Plot summary

The novel follows the life of the family of gynecologist Pavel Alekseevich Kukotsky. The story follows him from Stalin’s 1936 ban on

s through the mid-1960s. The novel consists of four parts. The first describes the life of the Kukotsky family members before the 1960s: his wife Yelena, their adopted daughter Tanya, a classmate Toma, and a former nun working as a housekeeper in Yelena’s home. The second part is a dream Yelena experiences while hovering between life and death. The third part covers the life of the family after 1960 and up to Tanya's death. The fourth part forms a brief epilogue.

Editions

*2001, Russian Federation, Izdatelstvo Ast, Pub date 2001 *''The Kukotsky Enigma'' translated by Diane Nemec Ignashev. Northwestern University Press, 15 August 2016;

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kukotsky Enigma 2001 novels 2001 Russian novels Family saga novels