908. The Life of Insects

The Life of Insects
Victor Pelevin
1993
Around 180 pages

I love that literature can still surprise me, even in my List twilight years. I was not expecting A Bug's Life: Russian Genius Edition, especially after Pelevin's last work.

All the characters in the novel are both insects/people, although thankfully not in the creepy Jeff Goldblum way. The book contains 15 unrelated short stories, and the characters represent distinct archetypes of the time. For example, a father and son scarab beetle pair that are obsessed with dung (or as we humans see it, money). 

I really liked the structure and how the stories read as digestible fables. It took me back to our Aesop days, and felt like something a Buddhist philosopher might have come up with. An enjoyable and unique collection.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts: 

First published in the magazine Znamya.

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