The Sacred Book Of The Werewolf (2004) - Plot & Excerpts
To be completely honest, I've never actually read a book quite like this--and that's a shame. I was caught by the title while just browsing through books and decided to give it a try, not knowing whether I'd end up reading another stereotypical supernatural romance novel or something else. Well, it turned out to be something else!As a disclaimer, you're not going to like this if you don't have a basic background in world history, 20th century & current politics, classic/Russian/post-modern literature, and philosophy. Pelevin expects you to get his allusions, and if you miss them, the magic of the book is lost. Second, this isn't just a novel, it's more of a cross between an introspective first person narrative and a philosophic treatise on repentance. But don't be scared, this doesn't read like John Stuart Mill giving a lecture for 300 pages. It's way more engrossing than that...The premise of the story is a fresh take on a overused trope--the were-creature. So you have a virgin were-fox that's about 5000-ish years old, feeds off the sexual energy of humans to maintain her youthful vitality (I wonder where vampire legends came from?), works as a prostitute in modern-day Russia, and is searching for spiritual salvation. It's a great start for the story that follows. At times I found myself asking, "Where's the plot headed? What's the point of this character?" However, right as about the book starts to drag its feet, the plot picks up again and throws you another juicy morsel of philosophy to chew over. The discussion about George Berkeley and existence and sex was probably one of the most profound things I've read in a long time. Just alone, the philosophical realization during the climax makes the whole book worth reading.Now, I wish I could read Russian since some of the terms like "super-werewolf" probably sound a lot more impressive in the native language and a recurring theme was the critique of language and its limitations! Anyway, after reading this 5-star novel, I'll be looking for more of Pelevin's works in the future--I'll probably move onto Homo Zapiens next! Loved this book ... It's ambiguous, surreal, witty, and even a little philosophical. Stumbled across it by accident. It's a rare rare delight to uncover a book like this ... I wish it would happen more often. This isn't the type of novel where you can give a brief description of the plot and entice a friend to read. The storyline sounds ridiculous when said out loud but somehow in situ it all works perfectly. I'm always delightfully surprised when a translation is pulled off this well.
What do You think about The Sacred Book Of The Werewolf (2004)?
Welp, I got just over halfway and then had to return it. I may come back to this one, I may not
—edmanlor
