Scary Fairy Tales by Ludmilla Petrushevskaya

There Once Lived a Woman Who Tried to Kill Her Neighbor’s Baby: Scary Fairy Tales is a collection of short stories by Russian writer Ludmilla Petrushevskaya (whew, that’s a mouthful) that are bizarre, surreal, and often very beautiful. There are even a couple of stories towards the end that are downright funny in a black kind of way. Divided into four sections: “Songs of the Eastern Slavs,” “Allegories,” “Requiems,” and “Fairy Tales,” these stories are impossible to describe.

They are not really “fairy tales,” though some of them may be based on older, traditional ghost stories or folk tales; they take place in Soviet Russia within the last few  decades, or even more recently than that. They tell of family life and dysfunction, poverty, corruption, loss, loneliness, and despair – the hardships that people have to go through in a place very different from here, and the cruelty and darkness they are capable of. One of the recurring themes is the selfishness that people carry out in their will to survive in a desolate environment. A couple of the stories are vague post-apocalyptic narratives. All of them are very interesting, well-written, and surreal.

Though not fable-like, they are moral tales; however, they are so much more complex and strange than fairytale morality. There’s a lot of haunting symbolism and perhaps allegory. At the same time the stories are down-to-earth and rooted in the details of ordinary people’s lives. It’s one of those books where the line between reality and fantasy cannot be defined, because those two realms are constantly being mixed; and I feel no need to define it. It’s not all just “in their heads,” but it is very psychological and explores the dark places of the mind. If I had to sum it up in one theme, what I would put it down as being about is human nature. The characters’ experiences are touching and poignant at the same time as they are bizarre and brutal.

Though they are not really like anything else out there, sometimes the stories are  sort of Kafkaesque. It won’t just leave you feeling empty, but it is wicked dark and sad. On the contrary, it really serves to prove what strange things people will do and lengths they will go to for love. And it’s a testament to Petrushevskaya’s fascinating and unique storytelling.

Quirky and powerful, it’s a quick, enjoyable, and very interesting read.

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics); Original edition (September 29, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0143114662