Description

National Book Foundation 5 Under 35 honoree and author of Such Good Work Johannes Lichtman returns with a novel that is strikingly relevant to our timesabout an American who takes a job in Ukraine in 2018 only to find that his struggle to understand the customs and culture is eclipsed by a romantic entanglement with deadly consequences

Shortly after his thirtieth birthday John Turner receives a call from an old college friend who makes him an odd job offer move to Ukraine to teach customer service agents at a startup how to sound American Johns never been to Ukraine doesnt speak Ukrainian and is supposed to be a journalist not a consultant But having just gone through a breakup and still grieving his fathers death it might just be the new start hes been looking for

In Ukraine John understands very littlethe language and social customs are impenetrable to him At work his employees are fluent in English but have difficulty grasping the concept of small talk And although he told himself not to get romantically involved while abroad he cant help but be increasingly drawn to one of his colleagues

Most distressing however is the fact that John can hear through their shared wall his neighbor beating his wife Desperate to help John offers the neighbor 100000 hryvnias to stop Its a plan born out of the best intentions but one that has disastrous repercussions that no amount of money or altruism can solve

A biting comedy Vanity Fair that calls to mind Garth Greenwells What Belongs to You Calling Ukraine reimagines the Americanabroad novel Moving effortlessly between the comic and the tragic Johannes Lichtman deploys his signature wry humor and startling moral insight to illuminate the inevitable complexities of doing right by others