It is Alexander Bayliss’s birthday.   Survivor of a Soviet gulag and adopted by a Russian family, he has settled in a remote village and now, forgotten by the authorities, prepares to live out the remainder of his life in peace.   However, the fall of the Soviet Union has led to the discovery that he has survived his incarceration.   This beautifully written novel explored themes of identity, loyalty and survival through adversity.   The gentle pace of life in the village is contrasted through flashbacks with the unrelenting brutality of the gulag.