PU-239 and Other Russian Fantasies

Ken Kalfus presents a collection of stories drawn from Russian history across a century. Each tale focuses on individual lives set against significant historical moments. The title story follows a nuclear power plant worker who attempts to sell weapons-grade plutonium on the black market. "In Orbit" depicts the first cosmonaut preparing for spaceflight while managing unexpected complications. "In Budyonnovsk" centers on a young man whose marriage troubles intersect with a Chechen rebel takeover of his town. Set in the 1920s, "Birobidzhan" tells of a Jewish couple traveling to the Soviet Far East to establish what they envision as the modern world's first Jewish state. The novella "Peredelkino" follows a 1960s literary official whose romantic entanglements have unintended political consequences. Together, these stories present varied, distinctive characters whose personal circumstances unfold against backdrops of major historical events. The collection captures aspects of the Russian experience across different periods and circumstances.