The Sarabande of Saras Band

Released on the eve of the Independence Day in the Ukraine in 2002, Saraband Sarah's Bandis a light family comedy that turns things upside down in the life of its main character Emile Polonsky, journalist by profession, happily married to Sarah.One day Emile receives guests who decide to stay - although they do ask the host's permission first. But how can he refuse, for they are his new wife's family and denying them access to his place would mean creating trouble he'd rather avoid...Oh no, he can't avoid trouble all together, despite his best efforts. Emile wakes up one morning in the home he cannot recognize, and things he sees everywhere - on the walls, on the floor, on the ceiling and in the least expected corners of his house - pretty quickly turn into a form of daunting domestic insanity. His wife's family, Sarah's band, certainly means well, but their overrated enthusiasm suffocates Emile and becomes his biggest challenge. Will Polonsky survive the test? Will his marriage survive?Denisenko's entertaining novel isn't based on mere escapism; it's introspective, reflective, filled with folk wisdom and subtle irony - the characteristics of top-notch classic humor.Saraband Sarah's Band is a non-pretentious work of prose, aiming to inspire healthy criticism and a detached look at the society it plays out in, with its recognizable Jewish and Russian-Orthodox theme so particularly filigree and enjoyable in this novel.