Elif Batuman

'The funniest book I've read in a long time: its deadpan, dry humour and its accumulation of absurdities will leave you rolling on your floor with laughter' The Times She thought she was a lover of the great classics of Russian literature - until she met the superfans... Roaming from Tashkent to San Francisco, this is the true story of one budding writer's strange encounters with the fanatics who are devoted - absurdly! melancholically! ecstatically! - to the Russian classics. Combining fresh readings of the great Russians from Tolstoy to Dostoevsky with the sad and funny stories of the lives they continue to influence, The Possessed is comic, humane, charming, poignant and full of an infectious love for literature. 'Dazzlingly good ... very bookish, very clever and very funny... a preposterously engaging volume' Jane Shilling, Sunday Telegraph 'The highest compliment you can pay such a book is that it sends you back to the original authors refreshed. I can go one higher - I found myself simply wanting to read more from Elif Batuman' Evening Standard 'An intoxicating mix of travel memoir, autobiography, literary criticism and philosophy... Charming and hilarious' Daily Telegraph

A collection of brand-new short stories written by prize-winning, bestselling writers and inspired by Kafka - published to commemorate the centenary of his death*Chosen as a 2024 highlight in the Guardian, the Financial Times, the Daily Mail, New Statesman, Esquire and the New European*Franz Kafka is widely regarded as one of the great geniuses of twentieth-century literature. What happens when some of the most original literary minds of today take an idea, a mood or a line from his work and use it to spark something new? From a future society who ask their AI servants to construct a giant tower to reach God; to a flat hunt that descends into a comically absurd bureaucratic nightmare; to a population experiencing a wave of unbearable, contagious panic attacks, these ten specially commissioned stories are by turns mind-bending, funny, unsettling and haunting. Inspired by the visionary imagination of a writer working one hundred years ago, they speak powerfully to the strangeness of being alive today.

"Djupet i Antingen eller ligger i de många lagren av filosofiska inslag, litteraturvetenskap och intertextualitet, humor, historia och mycket mer. Boken är full av kritik och hyllningar till litteratur. ... översättningen av Maria Lundgren fångar Batumans språkliga nyanser och Selins ungdomliga naivitet på ett utmärkt sätt."- 5 av 5, BTJ Selin har klarat sig igenom första året på Harvard och genomlevt en märklig email-romans med den ungerska matematikern Ivan som skakat om henne på djupet. Deras förbindelse var dunkel och Selin är fortsatt förvirrad. Vad var det som hände, eller inte hände? Och hur ska man egentligen leva? Att vara student är på ett sätt att lösa mysterier, och ledtrådarna finns i böckerna. När Selin en dag snubblar över Kierkegaards Antingen-eller, och läser: ”Alltså lever man estetiskt eller så lever man etiskt” börjar hennes hjärta banka. Det är ju hon och Svetlana! Den übersmarta bästisen talar gärna om historia och tradition medan Selin själv dras till det estetiska livet: en serie fristående äventyr, erfarenheter som skulle gå att omvandla till litteratur. Hon vill bli författare. Antingen ellerär den hisnande roliga skildringen av hur hon tar sig framåt: det handlar om musik, sex, vänskap, att resa, om läsning och litteratur. Det är omöjligt att inte charmas av den aviga, cerebrala Selin och de pinsamheter hon hamnar i. I klassikerna, ja i alla böcker egentligen, blir en kvinnas liv en berättelse först när en man gör entré. Och i livet? Hur ska Selin lösa det mysteriet? Enormt imponerande… en sjukt rolig uppföljare till den Pulitzerprisnominerade Idioten … ’ Jag menade att humorlöshet är själva kärnan i dumhet’, tänker Selin och enligt det sättet att mäta är Selin ett geni, som återger mänsklig dårskap när den är som allra mest färgstark, på gränsen till surrealistisk. Vogue

The new novel from the bestselling author of The Idiot follows one young woman's quest for self-knowledge, as she travels abroad and tests the limits of her newfound adulthood. 'Elif Batuman is the queen of the campus novel... Enchanting' Sunday TimesSELIN IS THE LUCKIEST PERSON IN HER FAMILY:The only one who was born in America and got to go to Harvard. Now it's her second year, and Selin knows she has to make it count. The first order of business: to figure out the meaning of everything that happened over the summer... On the plus side, her life feels like the plot of an exciting novel. On the other hand, why do so many novels have crazy, abandoned women in them? And how does one live a life as interesting as a novel - a life worthy of becoming a novel - without turning into a crazy, abandoned woman oneself?'Stupendous... Hilarious... Batuman is a genius' Vogue'This novel wins you over in a million micro-observations' New York Times'Searingly smart' Evening Standard

An instant New York Times bestseller A New York Times Notable Book of 2022 "Batuman has a gift for making the universe seem, somehow, like the benevolent and witty literary seminar you wish it were . . . This novel wins you over in a million micro-observations." --The New York Times "Batuman is a genius, rendering human folly at its most colorful and borderline surreal." --Vogue From the acclaimed and bestselling author of The Idiot, the continuation of beloved protagonist Selin's quest for self-knowledge, as she travels abroad and tests the limits of her newfound adulthood Selin is the luckiest person in her family: the only one who was born in America and got to go to Harvard. Now it's sophomore year, 1996, and Selin knows she has to make it count. The first order of business: to figure out the meaning of everything that happened over the summer. Why did Selin's elusive crush, Ivan, find her that job in the Hungarian countryside? What was up with all those other people in the Hungarian countryside? Why is Ivan's weird ex-girlfriend now trying to get in touch with Selin? On the plus side, it feels like the plot of an exciting novel. On the other hand, why do so many novels have crazy abandoned women in them? How does one live a life as interesting as a novel--a life worthy of becoming a novel--without becoming a crazy abandoned woman oneself? Guided by her literature syllabus and by her more worldly and confident peers, Selin reaches certain conclusions about the universal importance of parties, alcohol, and sex, and resolves to execute them in practice--no matter what the cost. Next on the list: international travel. Unfolding with the propulsive logic and intensity of youth, Either/Or is a landmark novel by one of our most brilliant writers. Hilarious, revelatory, and unforgettable, its gripping narrative will confront you with searching questions that persist long after the last page.

«Tiene un don para hacer que el universo parezca como ese seminario de literatura agudo y ben volo al que te gustar a acudir ...] Esta novela te conquista . --Dwight Garner, The New York Times DE LA FINALISTA DEL PREMIO PULITZER POR LA IDIOTA BEST SELLER DEL NEW YORK TIMES Uno de los 21 libros m s esperados de 2022 seg n TIME Es 1996 y Selin se embarca en el segundo curso como estudiante de literatura de Harvard. Aunque el verano ha quedado atr s, no puede dejar de pensar en lo ocurrido durante esos meses en Hungr a al lado de Ivan, el chico del que est enamorada. Los ltimos emails que han intercambiado no dejan claro en qu t rminos est ahora su relaci n, y aunque en la literatura ella disfruta de las historias complejas protagonizadas por mujeres condenadas a la tragedia, en la vida real preferir a no convertirse en una de ellas. Mes a mes Selin construye su futuro como escritora en Harvard, tomando de referencia a autores como Kierkegaard y Andr Breton para hallar alg n tipo de trascendencia en la vida universitaria: las fiestas, el alcohol y -sobre todo- el sexo. Solo un viaje a Rusia le abrir un nuevo mundo de posibilidades renovadoras, mientras ve c mo se distancia cada vez m s de sus dos nicas amigas. Elif Batuman narra en esta novela los grandes interrogantes de la vida bajo la mirada de una juventud intensa. Tras el xito de La idiota, Elif Batuman regresa con una novela divertida y reveladora escrita por una de las autoras m s brillantes de su generaci n. ENGLISH DESCRIPTION An instant New York Times bestseller "Batuman has a gift for making the universe seem, somehow, like the benevolent and witty literary seminar you wish it were . . . This novel wins you over in a million micro-observations." --The New York Times From the acclaimed and bestselling author of The Idiot, the continuation of beloved protagonist Selin's quest for self-knowledge, as she travels abroad and tests the limits of her newfound adulthood Selin is the luckiest person in her family: the only one who was born in America and got to go to Harvard. Now it's sophomore year, 1996, and Selin knows she has to make it count. The first order of business: to figure out the meaning of everything that happened over the summer. Why did Selin's elusive crush, Ivan, find her that job in the Hungarian countryside? What was up with all those other people in the Hungarian countryside? Why is Ivan's weird ex-girlfriend now trying to get in touch with Selin? On the plus side, it feels like the plot of an exciting novel. On the other hand, why do so many novels have crazy abandoned women in them? How does one live a life as interesting as a novel--a life worthy of becoming a novel--without becoming a crazy abandoned woman oneself? Guided by her literature syllabus and by her more worldly and confident peers, Selin reaches certain conclusions about the universal importance of parties, alcohol, and sex, and resolves to execute them in practice--no matter what the cost. Next on the list: international travel. Unfolding with the propulsive logic and intensity of youth, Either/Or is a landmark novel by one of our most brilliant writers. Hilarious, revelatory, and unforgettable, its gripping narrative will confront you with searching questions that persist long after the last page.

SELIN IS THE LUCKIEST PERSON IN HER FAMILY:The only one who was born in America and got to go to Harvard. Now it's her second year, 1996, and Selin knows she has to make it count. The first order of business: to figure out the meaning of everything that happened over the summer. Why did Selin's elusive crush, Ivan, find her that job in the Hungarian countryside? What was up with all those other people in the Hungarian countryside? Why is Ivan's ex-girlfriend now trying to get in touch with her? On the plus side, her life feels like the plot of an exciting novel. On the other hand, why do so many novels have crazy, abandoned women in them? How does one live a life as interesting as a novel-a life worthy of becoming a novel-without becoming a crazy, abandoned woman oneself? Guided by her literature syllabus and by her more worldly and confident peers, Selin reaches certain conclusions about the universal importance of parties, alcohol, and sex, and resolves to execute them in practice - no matter the cost. Next on the list: international travel. Unfolding with the propulsive logic and intensity of youth, Either / Or is a landmark novel by one of our most brilliant writers. Hilarious, revelatory, and unforgettable, its gripping narrative will confront you with searching questions that persist long after the last page.

Edith Wharton's acclaimed novel of love, duty, and half-known truths in Gilded Age New York society, with a foreword by bestselling author Elif Batuman. A Penguin Vitae Edition Dutiful Newland Archer, an eligible young man from New York high society, is about to announce his engagement to May Welland, a suitable match from a good family, when May's cousin, the beautiful and exotic Countess Ellen Olenska, is introduced into their circle. The Countess brings with her an aura of European sophistication and a hint of perceived scandal, having left her husband and claimed her independence. Her worldliness, disregard for society's rules, and air of unapproachability attract the sensitive Newland, despite his enthusiasm about a marriage to May and the societal advantages it would bring. Almost against their will, Newland and Ellen develop a passionate bond, and a classic love triangle takes shape as the three young people find themselves drawn into a poignant and bitter conflict between love and duty. Written in 1920, Edith Wharton's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about a time and place long gone by--1870s New York City--beautifully captures the complexities of passion, independence, and fulfillment, and how painfully hard it can be for individuals to truly see one another and their place in the world. Penguin Classics presents Penguin Vitae, loosely translated as "Penguin of one's life," a deluxe hardcover series featuring a dynamic landscape of classic fiction and nonfiction that has shaped the course of our readers' lives. Penguin Vitae invites readers to find themselves in a diverse world of storytellers, with beautifully designed classic editions of personal inspiration, intellectual engagement, and creative originality.

El debut novel stico nominado al Pulitzer sobre el gran desaf o que supone llegar a la edad adulta. Esta historia empieza en el a o 1995, cuando el e-mail era algo nuevo y emocionante. La protagonista es Selin, hija de inmigrantes turcos apasionada por la literatura que acaba de llegar a Harvard decidida a convertirse en escritora. Acostumbrada a vivir a trav s de los libros, llega a la universidad sin manual de instrucciones: c mo se hacen amigos? C mo se enamora uno? Importan m s las cosas cuando se viven que cuando se leen? Selin ve su vida como una narraci n m s pero, qu pasa cuando intentamos a adir otras personas a nuestra historia? As empieza su relaci n con Ivan, un estudiante h ngaro de matem ticas algo mayor que ella con quien comenzar a escribirse. Mediante el correo electr nico, crear n un mundo paralelo habitable (o una barrera de ficci n tras la que esconderse) que r pidamente eclipsar todas sus otras relaciones. Durante los doce meses que cubre esta novela de iniciaci n, la hero na de Batuman hace uso de un ingenio y una mordacidad entra ables para descubrirse y, sobre todo, inventarse ante el desaf o que supone llegar a la edad adulta. Este debut nominado al Pulitzer es una reflexi n perdurable sobre la relaci n entre el arte y la vida; las palabras y el mundo real; las historias que nos contamos y las narrativas en las que queremos encajar. ENGLISH DESCRIPTION A New York Times Book Review Notable Book Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction Longlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction "An addictive, sprawling epic; I wolfed it down."--Miranda July, author of The First Bad Man and It Chooses You "Easily the funniest book I've read this year." --GQ A portrait of the artist as a young woman. A novel about not just discovering but inventing oneself. The year is 1995, and email is new. Selin, the daughter of Turkish immigrants, arrives for her freshman year at Harvard. She signs up for classes in subjects she has never heard of, befriends her charismatic and worldly Serbian classmate, Svetlana, and, almost by accident, begins corresponding with Ivan, an older mathematics student from Hungary. Selin may have barely spoken to Ivan, but with each email they exchange, the act of writing seems to take on new and increasingly mysterious meanings. At the end of the school year, Ivan goes to Budapest for the summer, and Selin heads to the Hungarian countryside, to teach English in a program run by one of Ivan's friends. On the way, she spends two weeks visiting Paris with Svetlana. Selin's summer in Europe does not resonate with anything she has previously heard about the typical experiences of American college students, or indeed of any other kinds of people. For Selin, this is a journey further inside herself: a coming to grips with the ineffable and exhilarating confusion of first love, and with the growing consciousness that she is doomed to become a writer. With superlative emotional and intellectual sensitivity, mordant wit, and pitch-perfect style, Batuman dramatizes the uncertainty of life on the cusp of adulthood. Her prose is a rare and inimitable combination of tenderness and wisdom; its logic as natural and inscrutable as that of memory itself. The Idiot is a heroic yet self-effacing reckoning with the terror and joy of becoming a person in a world that is as intoxicating as it is disquieting. Batuman's fiction is unguarded against both life's affronts and its beauty--and has at its command the complete range of thinking and feeling which they entail. Named one the best books of the year by Refinery29 - Mashable One - Elle Magazine - The New York Times - Bookpage - Vogue - NPR - Buzzfeed - The Millions

Hvorfor lese russiske bøker? Og hvem er egentlig disse menneskene som vier sitt liv til russisk litteratur? Med en usedvanlig lett og underfundig penn skriver Elif Batuman om alt fra de store russiske kjempene . som Tolstoj og Dostojevskij, Tsjekhov og Gogol . til personlige, og som regel absurde opplevelser fra sin egen tilværelse som litteraturstudent ved Harvard. Batuman undersøker blant annet muligheten for at det finnes en uløst mordgåte på godset til Tolstoj, og vi får bli med henne når hun reiser i Pusjkins fotspor gjennom Kaukasus og som journalist for The New Yorker i St. Petersburg, der hun skal dekke rekonstruksjonen av det vanvittige ispalasset til Anna Ivanova. Batuman viser her en like stor begavelse for humor som for formidling av noen av litteraturhistoriens viktigste stemmer.

Et portrett av kunstneren som ung kvinne. En roman ikke bare om å oppdage, men også om å oppfinne seg selv. Året er 1995 og epost er et nytt begrep. For tyrkisk-amerikanske Selin er det året hun begynner på Harvard. Hun melder seg opp i fag hun aldri har hørt om før, blir venner med den karismatiske og verdslige Svetlana fra Serbia og begynner en epost-utveksling med Ivan, en eldre matematikkstudent fra Ungarn. Selin, som knapt har sagt et ord til Ivan, opplever at epostene fører dem inn i et stadig mer absurd forhold. Når skoleåret er over, drar Ivan til Budapest, mens Selin drar til den ungarske landsbygda for å undervise landsbybeboerne i engelsk. På veien tilbringer hun to uker i Paris sammen med Svetlana. Det er ingenting ved sommerferien i Europa som engang minner om Selins forventninger. For Selin blir det en reise i seg selv, hvor hun må kaste seg ut i spenningen og følelseskaoset som en første forelskelse fører med seg. Samtidig innser hun at hun uomtvistelig er dømt til å bli forfatter.

'I loved it and could have read a thousand more pages of it' Emma Cline, author of The Girls**SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2018** Selin, a tall, highly strung Turkish-American from New Jersey turns up at Harvard with no idea what to expect.

'The funniest book I've read in a long time: its deadpan, dry humour and its accumulation of absurdities will leave you rolling on your floor with laughter' The Times She thought she was a lover of the great classics of Russian literature - until she met the superfans... Roaming from Tashkent to San Francisco, this is the true story of one budding writer's strange encounters with the fanatics who are devoted - absurdly! melancholically! ecstatically! - to the Russian classics. Combining fresh readings of the great Russians from Tolstoy to Dostoevsky with the sad and funny stories of the lives they continue to influence, The Possessed is comic, humane, charming, poignant and full of an infectious love for literature. 'Dazzlingly good... Very bookish, very clever and very funny... A preposterously engaging volume' Jane Shilling, Sunday Telegraph 'The highest compliment you can pay such a book is that it sends you back to the original authors refreshed. I can go one higher - I found myself simply wanting to read more from Elif Batuman' Evening Standard 'An intoxicating mix of travel memoir, autobiography, literary criticism and philosophy... Charming and hilarious' Daily Telegraph

Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction - A New York Times Book Review Notable Book - Nominated for the Women's Prize for Fiction "Easily the funniest book I've read this year." --GQ"Masterly funny debut novel . . . Erudite but never pretentious, The Idiot will make you crave more books by Batuman." --Sloane Crosley, Vanity Fair A portrait of the artist as a young woman. A novel about not just discovering but inventing oneself. The year is 1995, and email is new. Selin, the daughter of Turkish immigrants, arrives for her freshman year at Harvard. She signs up for classes in subjects she has never heard of, befriends her charismatic and worldly Serbian classmate, Svetlana, and, almost by accident, begins corresponding with Ivan, an older mathematics student from Hungary. Selin may have barely spoken to Ivan, but with each email they exchange, the act of writing seems to take on new and increasingly mysterious meanings. At the end of the school year, Ivan goes to Budapest for the summer, and Selin heads to the Hungarian countryside, to teach English in a program run by one of Ivan's friends. On the way, she spends two weeks visiting Paris with Svetlana. Selin's summer in Europe does not resonate with anything she has previously heard about the typical experiences of American college students, or indeed of any other kinds of people. For Selin, this is a journey further inside herself: a coming to grips with the ineffable and exhilarating confusion of first love, and with the growing consciousness that she is doomed to become a writer. With superlative emotional and intellectual sensitivity, mordant wit, and pitch-perfect style, Batuman dramatizes the uncertainty of life on the cusp of adulthood. Her prose is a rare and inimitable combination of tenderness and wisdom; its logic as natural and inscrutable as that of memory itself. The Idiot is a heroic yet self-effacing reckoning with the terror and joy of becoming a person in a world that is as intoxicating as it is disquieting. Batuman's fiction is unguarded against both life's affronts and its beauty--and has at its command the complete range of thinking and feeling which they entail. Named one the best books of the year by Refinery29 - Mashable One - Elle Magazine - The New York Times - Bookpage - Vogue - NPR - Buzzfeed -The Millions

Et portrett av kunstneren som ung kvinne. En roman ikke bare om å oppdage, men også om å oppfinne seg selv. Året er 1995 og epost er et nytt begrep. For tyrkisk-amerikanske Selin er det året hun begynner på Harvard. Hun melder seg opp i fag hun aldri har hørt om før, blir venner med den karismatiske og verdslige Svetlana fra Serbia og begynner en epost-utveksling med Ivan, en eldre matematikkstudent fra Ungarn. Selin, som knapt har sagt et ord til Ivan, opplever at epostene fører dem inn i et stadig mer absurd forhold. Når skoleåret er over, drar Ivan til Budapest, mens Selin drar til den ungarske landsbygda for å undervise landsbybeboerne i engelsk. På veien tilbringer hun to uker i Paris sammen med Svetlana. Det er ingenting ved sommerferien i Europa som engang minner om Selins forventninger. For Selin blir det en reise i seg selv, hvor hun må kaste seg ut i spenningen og følelseskaoset som en første forelskelse fører med seg. Samtidig innser hun at hun uomtvistelig er dømt til å bli forfatter. Med suveren emosjonell og intellektuell finfølelse, vidd og stil, beskriver Batuman livets usikkerheter på terskelen til voksenlivet. Idioten er en sjelden kombinasjon av hengivenhet og visdom, en heroisk, men også selvutslettende beskrivelse av gleden og skrekken ved å bli en del av en verden som på samme tid både er berusende og urovekkende.

Hon är den sortens läsare som lockar dig tillbaka till din egen bokhylla med ett sublimt surrande i huvudet. Du vill känna det hon känner. The New York Times Book ReviewUtifrån en hängiven kärlek till den ryska litteraturens största klassiker har Elif Batuman skrivit en personlig, smart och oavbrutet underhållande samling berättelser om böcker, litteratur och läsning. Bara i Besatta får du läsa om litterära forskarkonferenser, Samarkands sevärdheter, vad som binder samman King Kong med Isaak Babel, Lev Tolstojs död, pojkbenstävlingar, vokalharmonins betydelse, kejsarinnan Annas ispalats, det intellektuella livet och själens uppgivenhet – och lära dig något om gammaluzbekiskans över hundra ord för att gråta. Elif Batuman (född 1977) är författare, forskare och journalist, bl. a. medverkar hon regelbundet i The New Yorker. Hennes föräldrar är från Turkiet, men hon är uppväxt i USA. Hon har examen från både Harvard och Stanford, där hon också har undervisat. För närvarande är hon bosatt i Istanbul. År 2007 belönades hon med Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers’Award. Hon är den sortens läsare som lockar dig tillbaka till din egen bokhylla med ett sublimt surrande i huvudet. Du vill känna det hon känner. The New York Times Book ReviewDet är inte ofta man skrattar högt när man läser en bok om litteraturkritik ... i en blandning av reseskildring, memoarer och litteraturkritik, tar Elif Batuman oss på en osannolik resa genom den ryska litteraturen. Christian Science MonitorTycker man om att läsa, så tycker man om den här boken! Yukiko Duke, Gomorron SverigeJag längtar redan efter att läsa om Elif Batumans fantastiska bokSvenska Dagbladet... alltsammans är lika förbannat roligt, lärorikt och underhållande. Helsingborgs DagbladVälskriven, smart och humoristiskSmålandspostenDet är uppfriskande att läsa Batuman. Hennes vetgirighet och passion driver henne vidare och det är ett engagemang som inspirerar. Besatta är inte likt något annat. Norrländska SocialdemokratenBesatta får mig att minnas varför litteraturen är så fantastisk och varför jag mest av allt älskar att läsa böcker. BokhoraEn oemotståndlig, hisnande berättelse om äventyr med ryska böcker och människorna som läser dem. Turkisk-amerikanska Elif Batuman har skrivit en bok som inte liknar något jag tidigare läst. Hon är rolig och bildad och skildrar sina husgudar Babel, Tolstoj och Dostojevskij med flammande kärlek, samtidigt som hon i förbifarten serverar osannolika historier om Dantenördar, vampyrfolk och tsaritsan Anna Ivanovnas ispalats. Ingalill Mosander, AftonbladetElif Batuman har full koll på Tjechov, Tolstoj, Pusjkin och deras kollegor, hyser stor kärlek till dem, och kan därför leka med dem på sitt sätt. Snillrikt, med både humor och allvar, gör hon passionerad litteratur om litteratur. Besatta är så nödvändigt uppiggande att den omedelbart botar en litterär depression. Lina Kalmteg, Svenska DagbladetTurkisk-amerikanska Batuman tar sig an de där riktigt tjocka och dystra ryska romanerna och diktböckerna som ger så många läsare så dåligt samvete. Efter hennes lustfyllda, roliga och mycket personliga essäer är det inte svårt att lystet kasta sig over Turgenjev, Tolstoj, Pusjkin och Babel. Jonas Thente, Dagens Nyheter

One of The Economist's 2011 Books of the Year From the author of Either/Or and The Idiot, Elif Batuman's The Possessed presents the true but unlikely stories of lives devoted--Absurdly Melancholically Beautifully --to the Russian Classics. No one who read Batuman's first article (in the journal n+1) will ever forget it. "Babel in California" told the true story of various human destinies intersecting at Stanford University during a conference about the enigmatic writer Isaac Babel. Over the course of several pages, Batuman managed to misplace Babel's last living relatives at the San Francisco airport, uncover Babel's secret influence on the making of King Kong, and introduce her readers to a new voice that was unpredictable, comic, humane, ironic, charming, poignant, and completely, unpretentiously full of love for literature. Batuman's subsequent pieces--for The New Yorker, Harper's Magazine, and the London Review of Books-- have made her one of the most sought-after and admired writers of her generation, and its best traveling companion. In The Possessed we watch her investigate a possible murder at Tolstoy's ancestral estate. We go with her to Stanford, Switzerland, and St. Petersburg; retrace Pushkin's wanderings in the Caucasus; learn why Old Uzbek has one hundred different words for crying; and see an eighteenth-century ice palace reconstructed on the Neva. Love and the novel, the individual in history, the existential plight of the graduate student: all find their place in The Possessed. Literally and metaphorically following the footsteps of her favorite authors, Batuman searches for the answers to the big questions in the details of lived experience, combining fresh readings of the great Russians, from Pushkin to Platonov, with the sad and funny stories of the lives they continue to influence--including her own.