[ Bogtip efter Lucie Procházková ] To begin with, I have to admit that I found the photo on this book a bit confusing. The word “Taiga” in the title of Petra Hůlová’s novel is written with a small “t” (in Czech, only proper names are capitalised) and stands for Charyn, a village that lies in the taiga and is several thousand kilometres away from the town of Taiga. The story of “Taiga Station” occurs along two interweaving timelines. The one takes place in 1946; the second, in 2006. To give a brief account, the story actually begins in the year 1946, when Hablund Doran, an inexperienced idealistic Dane, travels far into the taiga to make a documentary, but doesn’t return. 60 years later, his compatriot Erske Jenkel, who is a student of anthropology, sets out to find him.  

Technically, the book is subdivided into chapters named after some of the key characters. They include Hablund; his wife Mariane, who remained in Denmark; Erske; as well as Fedorek, the train’s 'pravódnik' or 'děžurny' (something between a conductor and a steward), who works on the Trans-Siberian Railway, and married into a family in Charyn. Descriptions of the characters’ fates give insight into life in the remote regions of Russia and how it has changed over the past 60 years or, rather, how in some ways it hasn’t changed at all. Towns and villages like Charyn are in fact entirely dependent on this railway line. The biggest event is when the train stops for a few minutes at the local station. Despite the hesitant advance of the Internet and other modern achievements, people still live in almost complete isolation from the outerworld. The author gradually reveals the course of events – events in which the lives of the inhabitants of Charyn interact with those of Hablund and Erske in various ways. Moreover, Hůlová does not shy away from depicting the political backdrop, in particular that of the late 1940s. And she devotes herself to Soviet policies towards minorities when she depicts life between the native inhabitants and the new 'settlers'. In the chapter 'Mariane', the reader is also given insight into Hablund’s journey from his wife’s perspective.  

Even though this book is very gripping, I believe readers who have had no contact with the realities of Russia may have a little trouble reading it. The use of some terms – e.g., pravódnik, účastek – may also cause some difficulties. For this reason, I think the book should have had at least a small glossary. Generally speaking, I think anyone who has been to Russia or is particularly interested in Russia will enjoy the novel. Though in my opinion, it’s a bit of a pity, since it wouldn’t have taken much to make the book more accessible to a broader audience.

[ Boginfo ] Hůlová, Petra: Stanice tajga. (original language: čeština) Torst, Praha, 2008 . ISBN: 978-80-7215-336-7.