Petersburg. It’s Normal.A book by Olga Sverchkova about the St Petersburg you begin to notice when you have lived there long enough
St Petersburg is known for its palaces, canals, drawbridges and White Nights. But live there long enough and other things stay with you: rain travelling almost horizontally along Nevsky Prospekt, words Petersburgers use to recognise one another, old entrances where a bicycle with a missing wheel stands beneath nineteenth-century plasterwork, and the phrase “we’ll make it”, after which it may be wise to start looking for another route.
I lived and worked in St Petersburg for more than twenty years. Long enough to stop being surprised by almost anything.
Almost.
I lived and worked in St Petersburg for more than twenty years. Long enough to stop being surprised by almost anything.
Almost.
The St Petersburg You Won’t Find on a Postcard
This is not a guidebook or a list of things you need to see. These are stories about things that gradually become perfectly ordinary. The weather forecast you still check even though you know what its promises are worth. The words Petersburgers use to recognise one another. Old houses, White Nights, drawbridges and everyday absurdities that stop seeming absurd after a few years.
There is very little need to invent anything. St Petersburg manages perfectly well on its own.
At some point, none of it seems particularly strange any more. You simply look at what is happening and think: well, yes.
This is Petersburg. It’s normal.
There is very little need to invent anything. St Petersburg manages perfectly well on its own.
At some point, none of it seems particularly strange any more. You simply look at what is happening and think: well, yes.
This is Petersburg. It’s normal.
Read the First Three Chapters for FreeChapters One to Three: “On Weather You Can’t Trust”, “On the Language St Petersburg Speaks” and “On Entrances, Counts and Food Delivery”
Three chapters are enough to find out whether this is your kind of book. You can read them here for free, with no sign-up required.
Start with St Petersburg weather, discover how a single word can sometimes tell you whether someone is local, and then step into an old entrance where more than a century of the city’s history sits quite comfortably alongside modern life.
Start with St Petersburg weather, discover how a single word can sometimes tell you whether someone is local, and then step into an old entrance where more than a century of the city’s history sits quite comfortably alongside modern life.
You Might Enjoy This Book If…
You live or have lived in St Petersburg
And you know the peculiar feeling when several sunny days in a row begin to inspire suspicion rather than delight.
You have visited St Petersburg
And suspect that beyond the palaces, Nevsky Prospekt and White Nights there is another city that a few days are not quite enough to see.
You like getting to know cities through everyday life
Through language, houses, weather, neighbours, chance conversations and the small things that make up ordinary life.
You enjoy quiet irony
The humour comes from things being recognisable rather than invented.
About Petersburg. It’s Normal.
Petersburg. It’s Normal. by Olga Sverchkova is a collection of short, ironic stories about everyday life in St Petersburg, written by someone who lived and worked there for more than twenty years.
There are no sightseeing itineraries or tips for tourists. Instead, there is St Petersburg weather, the city’s particular language, old entrances, White Nights, drawbridges and the everyday absurdities you gradually stop noticing.
The book is written in both Russian and English. The English edition keeps the same stories, tone and humour, while giving enough context for St Petersburg words and local details that may be unfamiliar to readers who have never lived there.
The first three chapters are free to read on the author’s website.
There are no sightseeing itineraries or tips for tourists. Instead, there is St Petersburg weather, the city’s particular language, old entrances, White Nights, drawbridges and the everyday absurdities you gradually stop noticing.
The book is written in both Russian and English. The English edition keeps the same stories, tone and humour, while giving enough context for St Petersburg words and local details that may be unfamiliar to readers who have never lived there.
The first three chapters are free to read on the author’s website.
About the Author
My name is Olga Sverchkova. I've been practising law in St Petersburg for more than twenty years, and for many years I've also written about the law and the people behind legal problems. My legal column won the Golden Pen of Russia award.
It was in St Petersburg that I discovered, fairly quickly, that almost anything begins to seem normal if you see it often enough.
This book grew out of those observations: the things you begin to notice once you have stopped looking at the city as a visitor.
It was in St Petersburg that I discovered, fairly quickly, that almost anything begins to seem normal if you see it often enough.
This book grew out of those observations: the things you begin to notice once you have stopped looking at the city as a visitor.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Petersburg. It’s Normal. about?
It is a collection of ironic stories about everyday life in St Petersburg: its weather, local language, old houses and entrances, White Nights, drawbridges and habits that gradually begin to seem perfectly ordinary.
Is it a guidebook to St Petersburg?
No. Real places and a recognisable St Petersburg are part of the stories, but there are no tourist itineraries or lists of things to see. The book is about the city as it becomes part of ordinary life.
Is the book autobiographical?
It draws on my own experience of living in St Petersburg, but it is not an autobiography. The city and everyday life there are at the centre of each story.
What genre is it?
It is contemporary humorous prose made up of short, self-contained stories about St Petersburg and the people who live there.
Can I read Petersburg. It’s Normal. for free?
Yes. The first three chapters are available to read free on the website, with no sign-up required.
Is there a Russian edition?
Yes. The first three chapters are available to read free on the website, with no sign-up required.
Start with Weather You Can’t Trust
Then comes the language St Petersburg speaks to its own, followed by an old entrance where what lies behind the door may not be quite what you expect from a magnificent nineteenth-century building.
Contact the Author
Questions about the book, reviews, interviews, or collaborations? You can reach me directly.