The Review of Contemporary Fiction

Perverzion, by Yuri Andrukhovich
reviewed by Michael Pinker

Yuri Andrukhovych. Perverzion. Trans. and intro. Michael M. Naydan. Northwestern Univ. Press, 2005. 326 pp. Paper: $25.95.

This novel purports to document the last week in the life of Stanislav Perfetsky, a young Ukrainian poet unexpectedly invited to speak at a seminar in Venice on “The Post-Carnival Absurditi of the World: What is on the Horizon?” in 1993. Tracing Perfetsky’s circuitous path to apparent suicide at the conclusion of this event, Andrukhovych, ostensibly “publisher” of this phantasmagoric record of intimate access to the poet’s thoughts, those of his companions (including dispatches to “the Monsignore”—evidently Lucifer—their boss), and various other papers, creates a startlingly carnivalesque narrative, replete with “learned” notes, numerous twists, and arcane lore. Plying so many singular voices and points of view into a game seemingly designed to outwit the reader, Andrukhovych keeps us from feeling entirely at ease in his ambitious sallies while beguiling us with japes and false leads, all alike gateways to the Venice of his dreams. He takes a singular view of a city as much central to the action of his tale as his cast of characters, themselves curious specimens of contemporary learned excess. Among the more arresting scenes is a performance of “Orpheus in Venice,” a mock-opera in which Perfetsky himself suddenly takes over the lead. If the principal conflict appears to be “Stas’s” seduction by agents of Lucifer, one of whom has become his lover, a mere bolgia away reside his hosts and fellow speakers, extravagantly sounding forth on male dominance, psychedelia, antiquarian mysteries, and erotic dance. His own near-abandonment to the hipness he mocks and mimics displays Andrukhovych’s considerable range as well as abiding affection for his bewildered hero. If occasionally so many bold leaps, sly winks, and outrageous plays on words threaten to go over the top, Andrukhovych’s relentlessly in-your-face style keeps one alert throughout his fast-paced mystery-manqué.