The Life of Leo

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven," Christ said in the Sermon on the Mount. The hero of Repina’s novel, a librarian named Lev, is a modern holy fool who, at age 32, has never touched a woman—but understands birds and animals. Lev is obsessed with the fate of a poet from the Mandelstam circle, Kliment Syzrantsyev, and gradually draws closer to the inhabitants of the poet’s museum apartment. Then one day the terrible truth is revealed… The novel stuns with its penetration into the most hidden mechanisms of a suffering soul. To see the familiar world through the eyes of the blessed is an amazing experience. For those who feel close to the prose of Alla Gorbunova, Maria Stepanova, and Marianna Ionova.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for yours is the Kingdom of God,” Christ said in the Sermon on the Mount. Repina’s hero, the librarian Lev, is a modern holy fool who, at 32, has never touched a woman—but understands birds and animals. Lev is obsessed with the fate of a poet from the Mandelstam circle, Kliment Syzrantsyev, and intends to write a monograph about him. One day the terrible truth is revealed: Syzrantsyev never existed. And all this mystification was invented by descendants for one single purpose… The novel stuns with its ability to reach the other side of madness, into the most hidden mechanisms of a suffering soul. To see the familiar world through the eyes of the blessed is an amazing experience. For those who feel close to the prose of Alla Gorbunova, Maria Stepanova, and Marianna Ionova.

“Nataliya Repina has a unique voice, special—like no one else. And only with such a voice could this story be told: piercing, clear, full of sadness and light.” — Marina Степнова