The Rehearsals
Vladimir Sharov, trans. Oliver Ready (Dedalus)
Rarely does one get this feeling when reading a translated book. The Rehearsals appears to be first and foremost a book about Russian history, but transpires to be more of a journey into an abstract few hundred years of Russian history. Written by Vladimir Sharov, who won the Russian Booker Prize in 2014 for Return To Egypt, this book is easily worthy of the same award. The basic synopsis itself is bizarre: it tells you that The Rehearsals is about a theatre production where the actors are untrained, illiterate Russian peasants, and nobody is allowed to play Christ. They are persecuted, arrested, displaced, and ultimately replaced by their own children. Yet the rehearsals continue, onwards and upwards. Carl Marsh
Price: £12.99. Info: www.dedalusbooks.com