Vladimir by Julia May Jonas
Name of Book: Vladimir Author: Julia May Jonas
ISBN: 978-1-9821-8763-7
Publisher: Avid Reader Press
Type of book: New England, open marriage, aging, vanity, appearances, seasons, professors, relationships, desires, gender roles, inappropriate relationships, literature, dreams, writing,
Year it was published: 2022
Summary:
A provocative, razor-sharp, and timely debut novel about a beloved English professor facing a slew of accusations against her professor husband by former students—a situation that becomes more complicated when she herself develops an obsession of her own...
“When I was a child, I loved old men, and I could tell that they also loved me.”
And so we are introduced to our deliciously incisive narrator: a popular English professor whose charismatic husband at the same small liberal arts college is under investigation for his inappropriate relationships with his former students. The couple have long had a mutual understanding when it comes to their extra-marital pursuits, but with these new allegations, life has become far less comfortable for them both. And when our narrator becomes increasingly infatuated with Vladimir, a celebrated, married young novelist who’s just arrived on campus, their tinder box world comes dangerously close to exploding.
With this bold, edgy, and uncommonly assured debut, author Julia May Jonas takes us into charged territory, where the boundaries of morality bump up against the impulses of the human heart. Propulsive, darkly funny, and wildly entertaining, Vladimir perfectly captures the personal and political minefield of our current moment, exposing the nuances and the grey area between power and desire.
Main characters include female professor who is talented, extremely vain, harsh, strict and seems to care more for appearances than she desires to admit. She and her husband, John, are both in an open marriage and she is both angry and confused about power dynamics as well as why are women claiming improper relations when it happened years ago and they were adult. She also does her best to keep up with various trends in terms of LGBTQ+ trends and is supportive of her daughter's life, although it seems despite that she has a black and white view of gender relations. Her husband John, well he did stay married to Her and is very thoughtless when it comes to her desires. Vladimir is in his forties, a married recent college professor who is good looking, talented, and has to contend with a narcotic wife and is more of a single father to his young daughter. There are a lot more characters such as female professors daughter as well as Vladimirs wife, but it will be more fun o discover them.
Theme:
Female desire is a complicated beast
Plot:
The story is told in first person narrative from female professors point of view. Quite recently, female professors husband, John, has had to face the women he recently had sexual relations. ( All of them former students.) Also at the same, Vladimir Vladinski, young and married professor has begun working at their college, where the narrator begins to develop her desire for him. Chafing at the gender roles and expectations as well as freedom men receive, the female professor dares to do something unbelievable that could either hinder or free her.
Author Information:
NA
Opinion:
Vladimir is a bit difficult to rate, as well as to understand, but I really feel as if Vladimir is focused a lot on female desire, because seriously, I could just imagine a male professor acting the way the female professor is acting. Vladimir is actually a character in the book, but he isn't fleshed out and is more of a conduit for her desires and needs. Yet female professor is very torn on what to do. More than anything, I imagine that this is a reversal novel of where male desire and gaze are shut off and are unseen while female gaze and desire are at the pinnacle of completion. It's definitely literary but was a lot of fun to read.
This was given for review
4 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)
Female desire is a complicated beast
Plot:
The story is told in first person narrative from female professors point of view. Quite recently, female professors husband, John, has had to face the women he recently had sexual relations. ( All of them former students.) Also at the same, Vladimir Vladinski, young and married professor has begun working at their college, where the narrator begins to develop her desire for him. Chafing at the gender roles and expectations as well as freedom men receive, the female professor dares to do something unbelievable that could either hinder or free her.
Author Information:
NA
Opinion:
Vladimir is a bit difficult to rate, as well as to understand, but I really feel as if Vladimir is focused a lot on female desire, because seriously, I could just imagine a male professor acting the way the female professor is acting. Vladimir is actually a character in the book, but he isn't fleshed out and is more of a conduit for her desires and needs. Yet female professor is very torn on what to do. More than anything, I imagine that this is a reversal novel of where male desire and gaze are shut off and are unseen while female gaze and desire are at the pinnacle of completion. It's definitely literary but was a lot of fun to read.
This was given for review
4 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)
Comments
Post a Comment