The Case of Comrade Tulayev by Victor Serge

[Diane]

Rating: 4 stars


Comrade Tulayev, an important Russian official, has been murdered and a search begins to find his killer. The book is set in Russia (and other locations) during the Stalinist era (The Great Terror). This book would have been the first shed light on many of the atrocities of the time had the author not died before he had a chance to publish it.

Overall, a well-written book that delves into the motivations of the Bolsheviks and their loyalties during this frightening era. Darkness at Noon, which is curiously not on the 1001 list, similarly explores this time period in Russian history.

[George P.]

3.5 stars. This novel gives an inside look at Russia during the Stalin years, of the paranoid persecution of perceived "Trotskyists" and "counter-revolutionaries". The central connection is the assassination of a Central Committee member, Tulayev. Serge was the son of Russians but born and raised in Belgium. He lived in Russia for some years and was himself imprisoned there for a short time. He wrote in French, could also converse in other languages.

Not an easy novel to stick with; sections are sometimes only very indirectly connected to one another. The writing style is articulate and smooth but fairly dense. There are well-drawn characters. Usually I read a book start to finish in a month or less but this one took two months with several other books in progress simultaneously.
My copy had about 300 pages but in a small font, so the word count of this book would be typical of a 400-pager I think.