The story of a family whose life mirrors the rise and fall of the Soviet Union
With the fall of Communism, East German dissident Vlady Meyer’s life begins to fall apart. As the German nation unifies, his wife splits up with him. He loses his university job now that the times have turned against his Marxist views. He wants to tell his alienated son, Karl, what his family’s long and passionate involvement with communism really meant, but he can’t. Vlady’s story is interwoven with that of Ludwik, Kim Philby’s recruiter, and his four comrades, brilliant Galician secret agents working for the Fourth Department of the Red Army.
Thoughtful and intimate, Fear of Mirrors unfolds an expansive plot that touches on the greatest political upheavals of the twentieth century. Its protagonist captures the hopes once roused by the Bolshevik Revolution and the hard realities that followed; Vlady Meyer is a mirror reflecting impeccably the intellectual milieu of an incomparable period.
“Ali folds his drama around the tight, cultlike atmosphere of Communist Party life, peopled by idealists who find their lives encumbered by betrayals, power grabs, and corruption and who, in the post-Communist era, must come to terms with their complicity with Stalinism … This is a valuable book, especially for those interested in the current thinking of the European left.” —Publishers Weekly
“At its best in its examination of the painful and morally doubtful consequences of the compromises forced on those who live their lives in the service of political ideas … An intellectually and emotionally engaging story.” —Times Literary Supplement
“Tariq Ali constructs a stunning fresco, remarkable in its lucidity … A subtle novel in which history reveals its inner side with a moving modesty.” —Le Monde
Tariq Ali is a writer and filmmaker. He has written more than a dozen books on world history and politics—including Pirates of the Caribbean, Bush in Babylon, The Clash of Fundamentalisms and The Obama Syndrome—as well as novels including the highly acclaimed Islam Quintet. He is an editor of the New Left Review and lives in London.
The story of a family whose life mirrors the rise and fall of the Soviet Union
With the fall of Communism, East German dissident Vlady Meyer’s life begins to fall apart. As the German nation unifies, his wife splits up with him. He loses his university job now that the times have turned against his Marxist views. He wants to tell his alienated son, Karl, what his family’s long and passionate involvement with communism really meant, but he can’t. Vlady’s story is interwoven with that of Ludwik, Kim Philby’s recruiter, and his four comrades, brilliant Galician secret agents working for the Fourth Department of the Red Army.
Thoughtful and intimate, Fear of Mirrors unfolds an expansive plot that touches on the greatest political upheavals of the twentieth century. Its protagonist captures the hopes once roused by the Bolshevik Revolution and the hard realities that followed; Vlady Meyer is a mirror reflecting impeccably the intellectual milieu of an incomparable period.
Reviews
“Ali folds his drama around the tight, cultlike atmosphere of Communist Party life, peopled by idealists who find their lives encumbered by betrayals, power grabs, and corruption and who, in the post-Communist era, must come to terms with their complicity with Stalinism … This is a valuable book, especially for those interested in the current thinking of the European left.” —Publishers Weekly
“At its best in its examination of the painful and morally doubtful consequences of the compromises forced on those who live their lives in the service of political ideas … An intellectually and emotionally engaging story.” —Times Literary Supplement
“Tariq Ali constructs a stunning fresco, remarkable in its lucidity … A subtle novel in which history reveals its inner side with a moving modesty.” —Le Monde
Author
Tariq Ali is a writer and filmmaker. He has written more than a dozen books on world history and politics—including Pirates of the Caribbean, Bush in Babylon, The Clash of Fundamentalisms and The Obama Syndrome—as well as novels including the highly acclaimed Islam Quintet. He is an editor of the New Left Review and lives in London.
