1990s Russian historical fiction | Going to Zossen by A.V. Pankov

A gritty, powerful debut by author and journalist A.V. Pankov

The year is 1993. In a collapsing post-Soviet town, a former serviceman, Vasily Mikhailovich, accepts work as the director of a remote juvenile prison colony. Determined to bring order and empathy to a brutal system, he starts a programme of rehabilitation for the young boys. But he is soon thwarted by the corruption around him; as he watches the people nearby prosper through deceit and cruelty, he is forced to make a choice: to uphold his principles and risk everything, or surrender them to save his family.

Based on the real accounts of educational colonies during the Russian free-market transition, Going to Zossen offers an exploration of the bargains ordinary people make under oppressive systems – a necessary reading in today’s political climate. Ideal for fans of Claire Keegan’s Small Things Like These and Colson Whitehead’s The Nickel Boys.

A gritty, powerful debut by author and journalist A.V. Pankov

Based on the real accounts of educational colonies during the post-Soviet transition, Going to Zossen offers an exploration of the bargains ordinary people make under oppressive systems – a necessary reading in today’s political climate. Ideal for fans of Claire Keegan’s Small Things Like These and Colson Whitehead’s The Nickel Boys.

The year is 1993. In a collapsing post-Soviet town, a former serviceman, Vasily Mikhailovich, accepts work as the director of a remote juvenile prison colony. Determined to bring order and empathy to a brutal system, he starts a programme of rehabilitation for the young boys. But he is soon thwarted by the corruption around him; as he watches the people nearby prosper through deceit and cruelty, he is forced to make a choice: to uphold his principles and risk everything, or surrender them to save his family.

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