Death and the Penguin. Picknick auf dem Eis, engl. Ausgabe - A BBC Two Between the Covers Pick

All that stands between one man and murder by the mafia is a penguin.

Viktor writes obituaries for a newspaper in Kyiv; the only creature he trusts is his pet penguin, Misha. But when his 'subjects' start dying while their tributes sit in his drawer, Viktor realises he's writing death notices to order.

Bleakly funny and quietly tragic, Death and the Penguin captures life in a collapsing world where conscience and corruption blur. Kurkov's understated prose turns absurdity into menace - a masterpiece of Eastern European noir with feathers and frostbite.
'A tragicomic masterpiece' Daily Telegraph
'A black comedy of rare distinction' Spectator