One More Year: Stories

The stories are deceptively spare, but have an emotional depth and complexity that stays with you for a long while. I thoroughly enjoyed this book -- one of the best collection of modern short stories I've read, and an interesting glimpse into the lives of the Slavic/post-Soviet Union collapse diaspora.

Like its author, One More Year has roots in both Russia and America, relying on the histories and idiosyncrasies of both parts of the world to tell its stories. This is a book of the immigrant experience, but its characters are so well written that it becomes also, much to Krasikov's credit, a book of compelling stories about compelling women. Sana Krasikov has created characters that try to fit into a new place after leaving an old one, but who find that it requires not only great acts of courage, but also the humblest and most necessary things of daily life as well: friendship, resiliency, love. Although the women whose voices populate these stories vary considerably, from a middle-aged wife trying to face her husband's infidelity to a young woman forced to take out a restraining order against her own husband, they share desires common not only to the immigrant experience-the search for a new identity to match new surroundings, a longing for home-but also desires common to all people at some point in their lives. America has, of course, a rich immigrant history, and there have therefore been countless stories and novels written about the experience. Krasikov does something interesting in One More Year. In several of the stories, she turns the expectations upside down. In "Maia in Yonkers," for example, instead of a son coming to America to find his fortune, leaving the older generation behind, the mother comes instead to work minimum wage jobs to support her son left behind in the former Soviet republic of Georgia. When he comes to America to visit her, she doesn't recognize who he has become. "The Repatriats" begins in America, but soon moves to Moscow when a husband decides he must return to chase his dreams. His wife, disappointed with having to leave America after creating a nice life for herself, must grapple with the meaning of her life and her place in a crumbling marriage. These stories are beautifully crafted, and though desolate and full of struggles, manage to contain enough hope to break your heart. Armchair Interviews says: Thoughtful stories make up this collection.

Sana Krasikov's One More Year is a collection of eight stories about the immigrant experience. Krasikov's protagonists are outsiders (primarily from the former Soviet Union) who approach America with a fresh, and often revealing, perspective. In one story, a recent immigrant from the former Soviet Republic of Georgia describes two American girls as "not fat" but "large in that full-scale American way, filling out the last corner of their natural dimensions." In another story, a woman thinks of "guests removing their shoes before entering a house" in response to a description of Fire Island as an island where "everybody leaves their cars on the dock and takes the ferry." Many of these protagonists view marriage as a way to obtain legal status in the U.S. long before considering the American ideal of a love match. These unfamiliar perspectives challenge our embedded assumptions about life in America. In addition to the unique viewpoints offered in One More Year, these stories are fulfilling reading for another reason: they are literary puzzles. Krasikov begins her stories by jumping right into the middle of the action, revealing only oblique glimpses of characters and relationships. Over time, more details and connections are exposed, ultimately creating a complete picture for the patient reader. This intelligent style results in an active and rewarding reading experience. Highly recommended.

RATING: 5 out of 5 I must preface my review with the fact that I rarely read short stories collections because I always seem to be left wanting more. I think the last collection I read and really enjoyed was The Stories of Eva Luna by Isabel Allende. This book was meant for me to read. The day I received it I was so drawn that I put my other books down and started in on it immediately. By early evening, I was about half way through, and I noticed my husband had tuned into a documentary on LINK TV. It was about the effort by AES to bring new electrical service to the people of the Georgia Republic and more specifically the town of Tbilisi. It felt like destiny to be exposed to the trials that so many Soviet citizens have had to endure since the dawning of their democracy. It is the simple stories of individuals that stick with you. The way that the trials of these people make or break them, divide and conquer relationships and families, is brought to the forefront by these stories. Ms. Krasikov has put three-dimension to her characters so you feel like you know them, they live in your town and are the person that you encountered at the doctor's office or the cab driver you had. Each story gives us all a moment's pause to have a little more understanding of the sacrifices that many are willing to make to experience what we take for granted, Freedom. Be it, religious, ethnic, political or simply economic, it is the driving force and the risk that many take every day to have a better life. Thank you to Ms. Krasikov for saying it so eloquently.

"At one in the morning, Maia awakens to a deep winter chill, sits up, and pulls a scratchy wool blanket over her comforter. In another two hours, she knows, she'll wake up again, this time damp in her flannel gown as the radiator blasts hot air." ("One More Year" pg 30*) I've never been a fan of short stories. I've tried to read a few, including some that are praised continuously- such as those by Flannery O'Conner. I could never get into them! There are only a few short pages for the audience to get to know the characters, and it never seems like enough time for me. So even before picking up this book, I was already thinking negatively about it, and I was sure I wasn't going to like it. This was just another collection of short stories that would leave me wondering why I read it in the first place. Well, "One More Year" happily proved me wrong. Sana Krasikov's book contains eight stories, many of which involve characters from the former Soviet Union, Russia, and/or Georgia. It's oddly fitting that I began to read this book at the same time that Russia invaded Georgia. I was unable to shake that information as I read, and couldn't help but feel an even deeper connection to Krasikov's characters. Krasikov herself grew up in the former of Soviet Republic of Georgia, and I'm sure she wasn't expecting these events to unfold right as her book went on sale. One of my favorite stories is "Maia in Yonkers" which tells the story of a woman and her son who comes to visit her. To me it starts slow and doesn't really evolve until the son actually arrives, but the interaction between mother and son is fantastic. The ending is perfect, and I wish I could write more about it, but I'll stop now so I don't spoil those who haven't yet read this book. I would definitely recommend this book. Once a short story hater, I have now been converted! Sana Krasikov's stories draw you in. You feel for her characters, which to me proves that Krasikov has succeeded where many have failed. Pick this one up today! *these lines may change in the final publication of the book (Originally reviewed for "Kathleen's Book Reviews")