On two 2018 novels in the context of the coming-of-age problem

Abstract

E. Pogorelaya discusses two contemporary books with the children theme: A. Ivanov’s Food Unit [ Pishcheblok ] and X. Buksha’s Opens In [ Otkryvayetsya vnutr ]. Both focus on the problem of children’s relationship with grown-ups, as well as coming of age and the discovery of a mature self, shown as a trial that the characters must undergo. In his novel that breaks away from the logic of classic Soviet young-adult literature, Ivanov depicts the ordeal as a fight against the vampires who have taken to frequenting a children’s summer camp and use it as their ‘food unit’, while Buksha’s collected stories are about children deprived of adult help and care. Buksha and Ivanov could not be more different: they have different stylistic methods and philosophy; their work is based on dissimilar experiences and character backgrounds. Both writers, nonetheless, maintain that only through internal maturity one can overcome existing threats to personality and family. The possibility for a person to reconcile their inner adult and child selves is the problem that Buksha and Ivanov are trying to resolve. In addition to the coming-of-age stories, their books centre on rebuilding a child’s relationship with the outside world.