Dancer
A Novel
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4.0 • 6 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
The National Book Award–winning author's biographical novel of Russian dancer Rudolf Nureyev: "Exuberant and exhilarating . . . a brilliant leap of imagination" (San Francisco Chronicle).
In Dancer, Colum McCann tells the ballet icon's story through the myriad voices of those who knew him. There is Anna Vasileva, Rudi's first ballet teacher, who rescues her protégé from the stunted life of his provincial town; Yulia, whose sexual and artistic ambitions are thwarted by her Soviet-sanctioned marriage; and Victor, the Venezuelan street hustler, who reveals the lurid underside of the gay celebrity set.
Spanning four decades and many worlds, from the horrors of the Second World War to the wild abandon of New York in the '80s, Dancer is peopled by a large cast of characters, obscure and famous: doormen and shoemakers, nurses and translators, Margot Fonteyn, Eric Bruhn, and John Lennon. And at the heart of the spectacle stands the artist himself, willful, lustful, and driven by a never-to-be-met need for perfection.
Customer Reviews
Fascinating
Colum McCann enviable finds the most unusual and interesting way to tell his stories. This book is no exception. Ever since I read, Let the Wide World Spin, years ago he remains my favorite author.
I was born in 1947 and was vaguely aware that Nureyev had defected from the Soviet Union and nothing more. McCann’s book brought him to life. It’s unimaginable that any other writer could have accomplished this in such a unique and satisfying way.