(201 pages)
Author is imagining what Shostakovich felt during decades of compromising with the Soviet power structure. Shostakovich goes from promising early career, to a failed opera that garners criticism ("formalism!") seemingly from Stalin himself, to interrogation that seemingly could lead only to the camps, to varying levels of rehabilitation, to I guess what one could call becoming a useful idiot; he even joins the Party (surrendering his final hold-out).
Intersection of art and socialist politics (former must serve the latter).
The book received lots of favorable buzz but didn't do much for me. This book gave a more interesting overview of Shostakovich's situation. And Solzhenitsyn did a better job of conveying how the system created fear, in books such as this, or this, or this. Also Grossman.
Though I suppose this book differs a bit by its focus on the effect of the socialist system on a composer (artist).
Short read, but not particularly recommended.
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