Ken Kalfus

"In a future where sweeping civil conflict has forced America's young people to flee its borders, Ron Patterson begins to imagine a stable life for himself, but when political divisions become resurgent, he is suddenly on dangerous and uncertain ground"--

The acclaimed short story and novella collection by "a virtuoso of the dismal comedy of Soviet life"-and the basis for the HBO film PU-239 (The New York Times). Ken Kalfus traverses a century of Russian history in tales that range from hair-raising to comic to fabulous. The astonishing title story follows a doomed nuclear power plant worker as he attempts to hawk plutonium in Moscow's black market. In "Budyonnovsk," a young man hopes that the takeover...

Distinguished by black comedy and an international perspective, Ken Kalfus' stories demonstrate the author's chameleon-like ability to change mode, manner, and voice. They often concern the abrupt dislocation of people bumping into different cultures, be they real, hallucinated, dreamed, or desired. Kalfus' characters - which include an endless line of refugees fleeing Sarajevo with no particular destination; an Irish au pair plagued by her own...

While working at a nuclear power plant, Timofey is exposed to a deadly dose of radiation while trying to avert a plant disaster. Instead of rewarding Timofey for his efforts, the plant treats him as a scapegoat, offering no compensation to him or his family. Desperate to provide security for his wife and son, Timofey steals a small amount of PU-239 - weapons-grade- plutonium - and heads to Moscow to sell it on the black market. Timofey struggles to...