A Werewolf Problem in Central Russia

A Werewolf Problem in Central Russia (1994) Victor Pelevin translated by Andrew Bromfield

I really really really like the title story to this collection, “A Werewolf Problem in Central Russia.” A young man wanders into a small central Russian village in search of a place he saw in a photograph. He arrives and discovers the place is nothing as he had imagined, and somehow ends up amidst a very strange gathering.

This story had perhaps the strongest fantasy elements of the collection, while many of the other stories tended towards more of a science fiction or perhaps surrealist bent. They also tended towards darkness, which apparently I don’t like, since they make me depressed.

But the first story? I loved.
Rating: 5/10

Published by New Directions Publishing Corporation

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