David Bezmozgis' The Free World
It's the 1970s, and a family of Latvian Jews are trying to emigrate from the Soviet Union to America--but end up stuck in Rome for bureaucratic reasons, flashing back to the paths that led them there. Bezmozgis manages to take a slew of Soviet archetypes and transform them into really believable characters, and their journeys through Italy are compelling. I did find the end a bit puzzling for some reason, but on the whole thought the novel was great. A-/B+.
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