Popov is a writer of the “Petersburg school,” inclined toward fantasy, humor, and grotesque, which gave literature HARMs, Zabolotsky, Brodsky, Dovlatov, and Bitov. The book hero Valery Popov’s “Harem Affairs” is drawn into a chase after charming “harem slaves.” He is in for dangerous and funny adventures, and in the end— the most fortunate ending possible, which, by today’s standards, you’ll agree, is a rarity.