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A Constellation of Vital Phenomena

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A Constellation of Vital Phenomena

By: Anthony Marra
Narrated by: Colette Whitaker
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In a snow-covered village in Chechnya, eight-year-old Havaa watches from the woods as her father is abducted in the middle of the night by Russian soldiers. Their life-long friend and neighbour, Akhmed, has also been watching, and when he finds Havaa he knows of only one person who might be able to help.

For tough-minded doctor Sonja Rabina, it’s just another day of trying to keep her bombed-out, abandoned hospital going. When Akhmed arrives with Havaa, asking Sonja for shelter, she has no idea who the pair are and even less desire to take on yet more responsibilities and risk.

But over the course of five extraordinary days, Sonja’s world will shift on its axis, revealing the intricate pattern of connections that binds these three unlikely companions together and unexpectedly decides their fate.

'A Constellation of Vital Phenomena is simply spectacular' Ann Patchett

 Fiction Friendship Genre Fiction Literary Fiction War & Military Russia
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Critic reviews

A Constellation of Vital Phenomena is simply spectacular. Not since Everything is Illuminated have I read a first novel so ambitious and fully realized. If this is where Anthony Marra begins his career, I can't imagine how far he will go
Storytelling of magical purity, illuminated by hope... Marra is a magnificent writer (Vanora Bennett)
An extraordinary first novel... A 21st-century War and Peace
Both heart-wrenching and uplifting, a stunning, intricately plotted, brilliantly written, tour-de-force of a novel that burns into the memory
A powerful tale... rivals anything Michael Ondaatje has written in its emotional force (John Freeman)
50 Best Spring Reads
A book of violence and beauty, and the undisputed arrival of a major new talent
Remarkable and breathtaking, Anthony Marra’s A Constellation of Vital Phenomena is a spellbinding elegy for an overlooked land engulfed by an oft forgotten war. Set in the all-too-real Chechen conflict, Marra conjures fragile and heartfelt characters whose fates interrogate the very underpinnings of love and sacrifice
Powerful, convincing, beautifully realized -- it's hard to believe that A Constellation of Vital Phenomena is a first novel. Anthony Marra is a writer to watch and savor
Anthony Marra’s novel, A Constellation of Vital Phenomena, is both devastating and transcendent. The story of eight people (and a nation) navigating two brutal wars, it’s a novel of loyalty and sacrifice and enduring love. You’ll finish it transformed
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A very good story with lots of strands of horror, heartbreak, longing and compassion. I loved the slow build up and back stories of how each character was affected by the utter horror of recent the conflicts in Chechnya. A very clever tale, which although horrific at times was enthralling. I found the narrators voice very monotone and it did spoil my enjoyment of the story. I have since read the book & have recommended it to others. Brilliant writing. Congratulations to the terrific Author, Anthony Marra.

Uplifting story built from shattered lives

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a saga of family & friendship, love & betrayal, hope & hopelessness - a bit of every emotion going + a history lesson for me of a war I was only vaguely aware of. Highly recommend but maybe have a tissue handy.

excellent

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a fabulous book. beautifully read. intriguing, beguiling, original, thought provoking, with lovely turns of phrase

truly wonderful

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