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A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian (Hardcover)

by Marina Lewycka (Author) "Two years after my mother died, my ferner fell in love with a glamorous blonde Ukrainian divorcée ..." (more)
3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (208 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 304 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin Press (3 Mar 2005)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 1594200440
  • ISBN-13: 978-1594200441
  • Product Dimensions: 24 x 16 x 3 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (208 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 183,389 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

From the Inside Flap

"Two years after my mother died, my father fell in love with a
glamorous blonde Ukranian divorcee. He was eighty-four and she was
thirty-six. She exploded into our lives like a fluffy pink grenade,
churning up the murky water, bringing to the surface sludge of sloughed-off
memories, giving the family ghosts a kick up the backside." --This text refers to the Paperback edition.


From the Back Cover

Praise for A SHORT HISTORY OF TRACTORS IN UKRAINIAN: 'Outstanding' Daily Mail

'Extremely funny' The Times

'Nothing short of amazing' Daily Express --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Inside This Book (Learn More)
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Two years after my mother died, my ferner fell in love with a glamorous blonde Ukrainian divorcée. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews

208 Reviews
5 star:
 (70)
4 star:
 (54)
3 star:
 (39)
2 star:
 (17)
1 star:
 (28)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.6 out of 5 stars (208 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing in many ways, 29 Dec 2006
By Ralph Blumenau (London United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)   
This review is from: A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian (Paperback)
This book has won an award for comic fiction; but, richly comic though the writing is, the story is for the most part essentially a tragic one. I am reminded of Horace Walpole's dictum, `This world is a comedy to those that think, a tragedy to those that feel.' Nikolai, an 84-year old Ukrainian-born widower who has lived in England since 1946 as an escapee from Stalinist Russia, marries a much more recent immigrant from the now independent Ukraine: Valentina, 36 years old, who is here on a visitor's visa and marries him only to be allowed permanent residence and to gain access to his money and his house. She exploits and bullies the poor and near senile old man mercilessly. His two daughters, Vera and Nadia, are outraged. They have fought with each other all their lives, and they still do; but they make common cause to try to rescue their father and what might be left of their inheritance. In the course of the story we are given glimpses of the history of Ukraine, the terrible sufferings of the civil war, the terror and the famine of the Stalin years, the Second World War, a labour camp; also of the development of tractors - those symbols of the collective farms, of which the old man, a former engineer, is writing a history. Towards the end, the book becomes a near farce, and then modulates into a happier ending than we had any reason to expect. We are even allowed for a moment to see the monstrous gold-digger as herself a victim, too. The descriptions of the individuals and the relationships between them is excellent, the somewhat fractured English spoken by the old man and the even more primitive but expressive mauling of it by Valentina is spot-on. A memorable book.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Pleasant, if not spectacular, 5 May 2006
By J. A. Turnbull "Jamie x" (uk) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian (Paperback)
The gimmicky title and the good reviews were the reasons that I decided to read this book, and I was surprised by what I found. At its heart, this book is about: the struggle to find your place within your family; how much our family history affects and influences us in the present and how you can begin to doubt your political opinions when they become issues in your own life. I wouldn't have said that this book was 'laugh out loud funny', although it did raise a wry smile every now and then. And it did make me reflect on my own family history and the issues of immigration raised within the book. Overall, this is no literary masterpiece, but it's a pleasant commuter read.
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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Funny and satisfying!, 27 May 2006
This review is from: A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian (Paperback)
This book is a quirky tale of a feisty and disjointed family. It has wildy comic moments and also very sobering educational glimpses into the histories of the characters, and a historical background into Ukrainian 20th century history (which I knew little about prior to reading this).

I enjoyed this book as it doesn't try to be anything grandiose, yet it is moving and also very funny - moments with the family that all of us can relate to in some way. The father is infuriating and selfish much of the time. However, I often felt sorry for him throughout the story as he is so blind to the deceptions and reality of the predicaments that he gets himself into.

I usually go for much grittier stories which are often harder to get to grips with and sometimes, try as I might, I just don't always "get it"! I was pleased to discover that this book was much more impressive than I expected and I enjoyed every page - Its a real page turner!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Looks naff but...
This book was in a house we had hired for the week when we stayed at the scilly isles. When i seen the book, well, it doesn't exactly have an appealing front cover and looks quite... Read more
Published 1 month ago by H. Tweedy

3.0 out of 5 stars Worthwhile but not hilarious
Good, if not fantastic, character-sketching and I'm sure I am not alone in believing in some of the stereotypes. Read more
Published 1 month ago by G. D. Busby

4.0 out of 5 stars Memorable characters
This is the story of an old Ukrainian man who decides to get married to a much younger Ukrainian divorcee and the struggle of his daughters to get their father back. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Cem Tanova

5.0 out of 5 stars fantastic debut!
I've been hearing rave reviews about this book for ages but never got around to reading it but recently i decided to give it a go and im so glad i did! Read more
Published 2 months ago by FUTURESTARdelux

4.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious
I just loved this book. It's the wackiest and most unbelievable story but at the same time, it could happen to anybody. Really really enjoyed it from beginning to end. Hilarious
Published 2 months ago by Laurence Baillie

1.0 out of 5 stars Not short enough
A tedious, repetitive 'chicklit' novel full of unpleasant characters. Did I mention it's repetitive? It's very repetitive.
Published 3 months ago by S. Arnott

5.0 out of 5 stars Splendid
I loved this book for its lack of pretence and its affectionate treatment of characters - heroes, villains and victims. Read more
Published 3 months ago by P. A. KRIJGSMAN

4.0 out of 5 stars funny, sad, moving
A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian

I have to admit that I bought this because of the crazy title. Read more
Published 3 months ago by SusieH

4.0 out of 5 stars fascinating!
ok, so the title does not really invite for a very attractive read but I was pleasantly surprised by how much i enjoyed the book. Read more
Published 5 months ago by LMW

1.0 out of 5 stars Boring from start to finish
If you are thinking of buying this book my advice to you would be not to bother. I got mine in a charity shop for 50p, now I realise why it was there. Read more
Published 5 months ago by L. Alves

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