Decameron with Georgian Tea

Apartment renovation. Few people, when hearing these words, feel joy and a surge of enthusiasm. The main character, Rodion Konovalov, wasn’t thrilled about the renovation either, but putting it off wasn’t his style. For the time of the renovation, he went to stay with his sister Vera for ten days, where every evening neighbors and friends started dropping by—to have tea, and, most importantly, to listen to the witty stories Rodion Alekseevich entertained them with for those ten days straight.

All the stories in the collection are united by Rodion Konovalov and the place where the action happens. But the most important thing— the main “mountain,” if you will— in his stories is passions. And above all, love, in whatever strange forms it might appear.

Alexander Bedryanets is the author of such books as “Reactive Adventurer” and “Angel-Joker.” He lives and works in the Rostov region. He has several technical degrees, yet he is an undeniable specialist in social and humanitarian fields—something that shows itself fully in the writer’s works. In his stories, folk wisdom naturally intertwines with observation and with the ability to write truly, genuinely funny.

People have passions—noble or base, creative or destructive, harmless and amusing. Passions can plunge a person into the abyss of troubles, but they also make life vivid, give happy experiences, and to a great extent provide what is called the meaning of life. Passion is always excess—going beyond the limits of everyday life and what’s familiar, beyond what’s considered the norm. Some scientists classify the manifestations of passions as painful conditions—and sometimes even directly as illnesses.

In this audiobook, life stories about passions are gathered, and also about what strange forms belief in ideals, love, jealousy, envy, or a passion for games sometimes takes. On the other hand, life without passions would be unimaginably dull and stupid. A completely passionless person resembles a robot or an alien—and that’s even scary. And does he even live?