REFLECTION. Michael Blekhman

Michael Blekhman's novel "Reflection" describes three generations of people living in the Soviet Union in the 20s, 30s, 40s of the XX century, as well as in a Jewish village Rechitsa in Belarus, in the XIX century. The novel is focused on a young couple, Klara Stolberg and Samuil Blekhman, their relatives and friends. The author and his characters seek to answer the central questions of human life. Together with them, Blekhman is reflecting on whether human beings can be happy, retain their individuality, be loved and love, dream and make their most cherished wishes come true despite all the tragic problems, which may seem insurmountable to the present generation. Blekhmn shows Klara and Samuil growing up, the boy becoming a man, and the girl turning into a woman, enjoying things that may seem not very important to others, but are quite significant to them. At the beginning of the novel, the female protagonist of the novel, Klara, who is 9 years old at that time, comes across an enigmatic line in a collections of poems by Alexander Pushkin: No happiness exists, just force of will and peace. In fact, Blekhman's novel is an attempt to answer the question, “Does happiness exist?” Together with his characters, the author answers, “Yes, it definitely does!”