Penguin Lost

The novel follows the life of a writer, Viktor Alekseyevich Zolotaryov, in a struggling post-Soviet society. Fleeing from the mafia to the Faraday Station in Antarctica, Viktor passes some time in a polar research station, before returning to Kyiv with a new identity. Back in Ukraine and needing a job, he starts work on the election campaign for a Mafia boss. In return he is given information as to the whereabouts of Misha, his pet penguin, which is said to be in a zoo in Chechnya. Thus begins another journey, this time across the former Soviet Union, in pursuit of his beloved pet.

The original Russian-language title of the book, The Snail Law, refers to the Mafia boss' saying that every person should have his or her own shell (that is, a protecting mob group) and he / she is alive only as long as the "shell" is not lost.

The Complete Review said of the novel:[1]

Told in a laconic, almost off-hand way, cleverly observed, with a few neat inventions, and surprisingly solid characterization despite so little space devoted to fleshing out characters, Penguin Lost is frequently surprising and affecting. Both comic and dark, its success stems from the fact that there's no cynicism at work here -- and little manipulation of feelings -- and it is a worthy complement to Death and the Penguin.

• Michel Faber, "The bird has flown". Review in The Guardian, 20 March 2004.
• Lesley Chamberlain, "Penguin Lost, by Andrey Kurkov, trans. George Bird". Review in The Independent, 16 April 2004.