Strange Telescopes: Following the Apocalypse from Moscow to Siberia [Hardcover]

Daniel Kalder (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 14, 2009

A mind-bending voyage into the underground realms of Russia and beyond by the author of Lost Cosmonaut.

When Daniel Kalder descended into the sewers of Moscow in pursuit of the mythical lost city of tramps, he didn't realize that he was embarking on a bizarre, year-long odyssey that would lead him thousands of miles across Russia to the Arctic Circle via the heart of Asia. After exploring the depths of Moscow's "Underground Planet," Kalder journeyed to the Ukraine to chase down demons and exorcists in the dubious afterglow of the Orange Revolution, before meeting a man called Vissarion Christ-a one-time traffic cop, he is now messiah to thousands of followers in Siberia. Salvation and damnation collide as Daniel Kalder expertly guides us through this unique account of a modern day quest that reveals the astonishing lengths people will go to when they view the world through a "strange telescope."

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Like his first book, Lost Cosmonaut, this travelogue trips through the dark side of the former Soviet Union, finding curious societies and characters everywhere. Intrigued by a story about a Moscow group called "the Diggers," who live in a sub-city network of tunnels and secret bunkers, Kalder (a Scotsman who lived in the former S.U. for 10 years) decided to track them down; the "anti-climactic" endeavor found the Diggers hanging out in the underground maze, but living terrestrially. Inspired anyhow, Kalder decides to penetrate the "massed army of dreamers, artists, hippies and musicians that arose after perestroika." His next foray takes him to witness exorcisms "where the reality of demons was already beyond dispute," in the company of an independent film maker who is himself obsessed with Satanism. Back in Moscow, Kalder's drawn to a group leading "almost heroic" lives of discipline and self-sufficiency on a commune, led by the "Jesus of Siberia." He also pursues an odd man with an unfinished monument to freedom, who claims responsibility for inventing perestroika. Calling his trek a "metaphysical-existential-cosmic quest," Kalder can be terminally chatty and unfocused, but provides rare glimpses into the odd afterlife of a collapsed superpower.
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From Booklist

In unusual travels in Russia, Kalder, who spent a decade in the country, explored four worlds decidedly beyond the normal. Each is defined by its character, two of them religious in nature, the other two resembling hobbies taken a little too far. In Arkhangelsk, Kalder pursued the builder of what reputedly is the world’s tallest wooden house; in Moscow, he cajoled a tagalong episode with a man obsessed by the city’s tunnels; in Ukraine, he attended an exorcism; and in Siberia immersed himself in a community of believers centered on a traffic cop turned self-proclaimed Son of God, with whom he eventually secured an audience. Declining to default to cynicism toward these people, Kalder ruminates on their self-willed separation from mainstream Russian life and is impressed by their determination to define their own realities, temporal or transcendent. Without surrendering observational acuity about the oddities of the four realms he visits, and including bemusing commentary about Russian travel per se, Kalder’s venture into the eccentric extends the boundaries of ordinary travelogue, surely much to many readers’ satisfaction. --Gilbert Taylor

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Overlook Hardcover (May 14, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590202260
• ISBN-13: 978-1590202265
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,073,718 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Underground civilisations, a traffic cop Jesus, infestations of demons and massive, rampaging wood., May 14, 2009

By 

Jacqueline Elizabeth Teti - See all my reviews

This review is from: Strange Telescopes: Following the Apocalypse from Moscow to Siberia (Hardcover)

'Strange Telescopes' is Kalder's follow-up to his first book 'Lost Cosmonaut'. While 'Lost Cosmonaut' dealt predominantly with bizarre, lost or dark places, 'Strange Telescopes' deals with people - bizarre, lost or dark people. It begins with Kalder following The Digger under the surface of Moscow to try and find underground civilizations, then he follows a strange and sincere young film-maker obsessed with demons to the Ukraine on an exorcism tour. He witnesses many an exorcism by extraordinary semi-rogue priests, but also the new politics of a country that welcomed Eurovision like it was the Olympics, and celebrates western Democracy with one hand, while celebrating brutal anti-semitism with the other. His third journey takes him up a mountain in Siberia to meet Vissarion Christ, one time traffic cop and now a modern messiah claiming to be the reincarnation of you-know-who, and with thousands of ex-city followers living in hellish conditions, from pop stars to dwarves. Kalder's final trip is to the Arctic Circle, to the highest wooden skyscraper in the world, built by a Russian businessman. In his meeting with the convicted criminal and entrepreneur, Kalder finds the key to all of his experiences. 'Strange Telescopes' is written by a more mature author than 'Lost Cosmonaut' and tells incredible human stories of people with tremendous vision who lived in a brief period of chaos (Russia in the 1990s) in which time they could create the worlds that they wish existed. Kalder is sympathetic to the creators, does not patronise them, and yet is also realistic in his assessment of their visions. Kalder's trademark dark humour is present throughout, but this time he has an absolute dedication to the veracity of his and their experience. A superb book, that shows insight both into a place and time, but also into human nature in extremis. Highly recommended.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The More I Read, the Better the View through Strange Telescopes, June 4, 2009

By 

Gary Presley "author of SEVEN WHEELCHAIRS" (Springfiend in the Ozarks) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Strange Telescopes: Following the Apocalypse from Moscow to Siberia (Hardcover)

Much of Strange Telescopes is an intriguing read, a journey through the foggy, snowy hues of the mystique of Mother Russia politely rendered through the lens of Western post-modern ironic perceptions, but it isn't a straight-forward study of Russia and its people.

I closed the book knowing that Kalder loves Russia, what it was and is, and believes the best guides to its true spirit, both in the metaphysical and emotional sense, are the souls shunted aside by both despots and democrats.

[...]

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great escape into a surreal subterraneous society...., June 1, 2009

By 

Giovanna Perciballi (New York City, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Strange Telescopes: Following the Apocalypse from Moscow to Siberia (Hardcover)

This is a griping insider view on a surreal underground society. Not your typical travel memoir, it includes trips into the underground darkness of metro tunnels, overground accounts of exorcism, and encounters with some very eccentric and interesting people. Kalder takes the reader through adventure after adventure. I couldn't put the book down and certainly didn't expect any of its twists or turns! A definite recommendation for any reader interested in mystery, history, psychology, and excitement!