i didn't know much about Siberia or Irkutsk when I picked this up, but the slow-burning mature of the story (event hough it takes place over a relatively short amount of time) allows for a number of historical digressions and explanations. The melancholy, dryly ironic Russian character was well conveyed, while the denouement was well handled. I could easily imagine this filmed. impressive - I'd read other books by White.