A Dream of Annapurna

In this article, the author has outlined Igor Zavilinsky’s novel A Dream of Annapurna (2024) as a metamodern fiction that exploits the issues of identity, trauma, and resilience against the backdrop of personal and collective histories. Written during a period marked by displacement and conflict following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Zavilinsky’s work engages with the issues of human experience. While Italy’s Tuscany serves as the novel’s primary setting, the narrative expands globally, from the peaks of Annapurna to urban landscapes like Paris and New York, inviting readers to reflect on the interplay between place and identity. The novel exploits humanity’s attempts to assign meaning to an unpredictable world with vivid descriptions of both natural and domestic environments. It is outlined that the novel highlights the tension between expectation and reality, emphasizing the relationship between individual imagination and collective memory. The inclusion of real-world historical figures and symbolic artifacts—such as a 1950 photograph inscribed with Maurice Herzog’s motivational words—further anchors the narrative in a metahistorical framework. Furthermore, this article presents an analysis of Zavilinsky’s novel within the framework of New Sincerity. Drawing on Martin Paul Eve’s perspectives, this novel examines sincerity as a continual negotiation between trust, action, and public performance. The revelation of irony and authenticity exemplifies the tension central to metamodernism’s aesthetic. It is discussed that Zavilinsky’s novel transcends postmodern cynicism to reconnect with emotional truth in a fragmented world.