great, funny short stories, but can be samey, 01 Jun 2008
This is a collection of 39 short stories set in Russia in the 1920's, 30's and 40's. They are about ordinary people leaving in Russia and some of the trials and tribulations they go through.

These are all very funny little stories about every day life of 'normal' people and I enjoyed all of them. The main reason I did not give the book 5 stars is that the stories can seem a bit repetitive after a while. I would definitely suggest buying this book but don't do what I did and read it in one go. Instead take your time and read a few at a time and then leave for a week.

Another slight criticism is that these stories are written over several decades and you cannot detect any development of the author's style over time, which seems strange when reading through it. However, as they are all so funny this is not a major problem at all