The Zigzag of Love
Published by Diogenes as Zickzack der Liebe
Original Title: Svoja pravda
The human beings in the works of Viktorija Tokarjewa rebel against a life which unfolds with clockwork regularity and hence does not leave any room for spontaneous happiness. They dream of a delirium of joy and of passionate love – though they ultimately fail to commit to unconditional love when the opportunity comes. Life with a partner appears as an exciting struggle »between truth and lies«. Ironic and empathetic, a confident author tells of the partnership misery of emancipated Soviet women.
Contemporary Literature
352 pages
1990

978-3-257-21859-6
Viktorija
Tokarjewa

Viktorija Tokarjewa, born in St. Petersburg in 1937, worked as a music teacher before studying scriptwriting at the Institute of Cinematography in Moscow. 15 films have been made from her scripts. She published her first story in 1964 and since then has devoted herself entirely to writing. Today she is one of Russia’s most popular and bestselling authors. She now lives near Moscow.

Photo: © Isolde Ohlbaum