Natasha And Other Stories [Paperback]

Now a Major Motion Picture

A dazzling debutand a publishing phenomenonthe tender, savagely funny collection from a young immigrant who has taken the critics by storm

Winner of the Commonwealth Writers' First Book Prize for Canada and the Caribbean, the Toronto Book Award, Reform Judaism Prize for Jewish Fiction, Koffler Centre of the Arts' Helen and Stan Vine Canadian Jewish Book Award for Fiction, the City of Toronto Book Award, the Jewish Quarterly-Wingate Prize for Fiction, and the Moment Magazine Fiction Award

Shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award, the Los Angeles Times Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction, and the Governor Generals Award for Literature, the Danuta Gleed Literary Award for Best First Collection of Short Fiction in the English Language

Named aNew York Times Book ReviewNotable Book of the Year, aLos Angeles Times' 1 of the 25 Best Books of the Year, a New York Public Library's 25 Best Books to Remember, and aChicago TribuneandSan Francisco ChronicleBest Book of the Year

Few readers had heard of David Bezmozgis before May 2003, whenHarper's, Zoetrope,andThe New Yorkerall printed stories from his forthcoming collection. In the space of a few weeks, America thus met the BermansBella and Roman and their son, MarkRussian Jews who have fled the Riga of Brezhnev for Toronto, the city of their dreams.

Told through Mark's eyes, the stories inNatashapossess a serious wit and uniquely Jewish perspective that recall the first published stories of Bernard Malamud and Philip Roth, not to mention the recent work of Jhumpa Lahiri, Nathan Englander, and Adam Haslett.

Discussion Questions
1. In Tapka what does the dog symbolize to Rita? To Mark's mother? What is the significance of the dog to Mark, initially as a young boy and then as a ml³&