Q Review | The Life of Insects | Victor Pelevin

I love weird books but they’re surprisingly hard to find. I don’t mean books with weird characters, or edgy themes. I mean books that turn your brain upside down and make you wonder what in the hell you’ve just read. (I’m always on the lookout, so drop me a line if you have any recommendations!)

I discovered this book by doing a Google search somewhere to the effect of: Google, show me weird books that will cause me to question my grasp of reality. The Life of Insects by Victor Pelevin appeared in a blog list of surreal novels, and I was happy to find an affordable copy on Thriftbooks.com.

Pelevin is a Russian author, and the book is set in post-USSR Russia where we encounter a cast of characters finding their way in a largely inhospitable world. They plot business ventures, give birth and raise children, work, emigrate, and go to movies. Oh, and they’re also all insects. Mosquitoes, flies, roaches, cicadas, ants. Pelevin doesn’t bother trying to be scientifically correct (a fly and a mosquito have a fling), nor does he alter the world to accommodate the viewpoint of bugs. They are simply insects living life as humans, questioning the meaning of their existence, suffering loss, hungry for some…thing that none of them really quite seem to be able to articulate.

It is, in fact, one of the most disorienting, surreal books I’ve read. At the same time, its viscerally relatable and deeply human. There’s a sadness in each of these characters’ lives, an undeniable resignation of how hard life can be, and a powerful melancholy that is typical of Russian literature. I don’t want to give away any of the plot, so I’ll tempt you with the quote that opens the book:

“In the garden where I sit a torch is burning.

I’m alone – no lady, servant, or acquaintance.

Not the humble of this world, nor yet its mighty –

Nothing but the buzzing of an insect chorus.”

– Joseph Brodsky

I do think that I’d have enjoyed reading this even more if I had a better understanding of modern Russian culture. Also, the book has been translated, which means some of the ideas may not have come through as clearly as they would be in the original Russian. Regardless, it’s fantastic. I’m so glad I stumbled on this and I’ll likely re-read it at some point in the future because it’s exactly the kind of book that reveals itself further each time its read.