Rosenstone, R: King of Odessa

In 1936 Isaac Babel returned to Odessa, his hometown, and to this day the only record of his last visit home is contained in letters and postacrds from the writer to his sister and mother. In "King of Odessa,""" Robert A. Rosenstone imagines a version of this visit, including fictionalized accounts of Babel's personal relationships, the Great Purges, and other political events and imagines the "lost novel" Babel wrote during those weeks. Throughout Rosenstone captures Babel's lively wit, his exhaustion with fame and the Soviet system, and his infectious charm.