"Pineapple water for a beautiful lady" is a collection of short stories by Victor Pelevin, which was released in 2010. The book consists of two unequal parts, the smaller of which is called “Mechanisms and gods”, and the larger - “Gods and mechanisms”. It includes novels and stories. The work was highly appreciated by literary critics and entered the short list of the Big Book Prize.
Author's collection
According to many literary critics, "Pineapple Water for a Beautiful Lady" was Viktor Pelevin's best book in the last few years. Readers could fully appreciate the stories that echoed among themselves, and three independent stories written in the best traditions of the Yellow Arrow. At the same time, although the stories were good on their own, critics noted that their author added, most likely, for a more solid volume.
In "Pineapple Water for a Beautiful Lady," Victor Pelevin deliberately abandons his diligent, but somewhat monotonous gags, returning to the tonality in which his earlier works belonging to the category of great creations are written.
It creates a confident impression that both main characters of the writer have a lot in common with the author himself. In this article, we will take a closer look at the works that were included in Viktor Pelevin's collection, Pineapple Water for a Beautiful Lady.
"Operation Burning Bush"
"Operation Burning Bush" - a story that is included in the first part of Pelevin's book "Pineapple Water for a Beautiful Lady." The main character in it is Semyon Levitan, who has a very unusual hobby. From childhood, he has been trying to parody and imitate the voice of the famous Soviet announcer, who so often spoke on the radio - Yuri Levitan.
When Semyon grows up, he begins to work in the Russian capital, which recently survived perestroika. Semen has a low-demand profession at that time - an English teacher, but at the same time he manages to find a job without any problems. Moreover, his knowledge is directly applicable. He is involved in a secret operation organized by state security. Semen's task is to portray the voice of God, which he must first confuse, and then force himself to obey the American president of those years - George W. Bush.
For Semyon, an accelerated training course in theology is quickly organized, since he grew up in the Soviet Union, he does not know much about religious issues. He takes these courses at a secret base, on which he studies texts of religious content, while simultaneously using drugs. During this very unusual experience for himself, he regularly experiences strong mystical experiences.
During the operation, unexpected circumstances are revealed. It turns out that the Americans are planning a similar action, hoping to influence the leaders of the USSR and Russia, only they are looking for a person who could broadcast on behalf of the devil. As a result, Semyon portrays not only God, but also the devil. When the operation ends, his talent is so in demand that he is immediately transferred to Israel. So he again works for some kind of intelligence, until the end without even realizing which one. Most likely, this is the CIA, said Semyon.
The story is written on behalf of the protagonist with gloomy humor, which is present in many works of the writer. Moreover, unlike many other books, in this mystical experience of the main characters fit into the framework of European culture, which is monotheistic. In most of his other books, the writer transfers mystical experience to eastern soil.
Interestingly, Victor Pelevin got the idea to write this story from a real speech by American President George W. Bush. He repeatedly stated that God speaks through him, even claiming that it was God who ordered him to attack Al-Qaeda and Saddam Hussein. He often enlisted the support of God in his speeches, especially when it came to the outbreak of war.
Al-Efesby Anti-aircraft Codes
This is the second story, which is included in Pelevin's collection "Pineapple Water for a Beautiful Lady." It has two parts. The first begins with the fact that the Americans in Afghanistan are losing their effectiveness due to the disclosures of WikiLeaks. Because of them, the world community constantly accuses them of cruel and inhumane methods of warfare. In addition, they decide to use autonomous artificial intelligence based on unmanned aerial vehicles.
It is worth noting that the devices work very effectively until an agent from Russia Savely Skotenkov arrives in Afghanistan. He is offended by both the West and Russia, so he begins to use reliable protection against drones. He writes slogans on the earth, on which artificial intelligence is constantly forced to be distracted. All this leads to regular accidents of these advanced devices.
When relations between America and Russia deteriorate, Skotenkova is recalled, and then abducted when he returns to his homeland. This part is notable for deep philosophical discussions about the possibility of the appearance of artificial intelligence in the future.
"Soviet Requiem"
Under this title, the second part of the story "Anti-aircraft Codes Al-Efesbi." Again, Skotenkov is in the spotlight again. Almost the entire part consists of a monologue of the protagonist, written in the US CIA prison, in which he intends to turn him into a chronic player on the exchange rate.
Ultimately, it turns out that the monologue itself is not genuine. It is noteworthy that the story itself was written based on the "German Requiem" by Borges.
Shadow Contemplator
Apart in the book "Pineapple Water for a Beautiful Lady" are several stories. A small work entitled "The Contemplator of the Shadow" tells about the Russian guide Oleg, who lives in India. He is trying to learn lengthy meditations from his own shadow.
As a result, because of his experiments, he almost dies, and from the work it still does not remain clear whether everything that the hero saw was an illusion or happened in reality.
The story contains a lot of irony about the attempts of Russian people to penetrate Indian culture. In this part of the collection "Pineapple Water for the Lady," Pelevin returns to Eastern culture.
Thagi
In the story "Thagi" comes to the fore a minor character of a previous work named Boris. He is looking for members of the mysterious thaga sect, who are considered fans of the Indian goddess Kali. They bring her human sacrifices.
Boris is trying to penetrate this sect himself. He succeeds, but he himself becomes the next victim. This story from the collection "Pineapple Water for a Beautiful Lady" first saw the light in the magazine "Snob".
"Hotel of good incarnations"
The final work from this collection tells about the soul belonging to the girl, whom her angel suggests turning into the daughter of an oligarch.
After she finds out the details of this reincarnation, refuses to go on this adventure, and eventually loses her own personality. It is in this story that there is a jar of pineapple water, which fell into the title of the book.