Somewhere Near the Heart

Somewhere Near The Heart is a sophisticated mainstream story in a vein similar to Roth's My Life As A Man or his controversial Portnoy's Complaint. Sex is treated boldly in Somewhere, as one of life's most fascinating, and dangerous, pursuits. Essentially, the novel is a bawdy, existentialist, literary rampage through the roguish protagonist's romantic escapades during an early mid-life crisis. Chkalov is from Moscow and has been living in New York (where the story unfolds) for years. He is well integrated into the American lifestyle, with a successful career as a music producer and radio personality. Chkalov has a fine family and plenty of popularity. Yet, something is missing in his well-packaged life and he sets out to find it in a series of unfortunate extramarital affairs. Thus begins a kaleidoscopic journey into the universal male-female struggle for understanding and happiness in our turbulent, stressed out world.