This book examines a wide range of contemporary Russian writers whose
work, after the demise of Communism, became more authoritative in
debates on Russia's character, destiny, and place in the world. Unique
in his in-depth analysis of both playful postmodernist authors and
fanatical nationalist writers, Noordenbos pays attention to not only the
acute social and political implications of contemporary Russian
literature but also literary form by documenting the decline of
postmodern styles, analyzing shifting metaphors for a "Russian identity
crisis," and tracing the emergence of new forms of authorial ethos. To
achieve this end, the book builds on theories of postcoloniality,
trauma, and conspiracy thinking, and makes these research fields
productively available for post-Soviet studies.