A summary of Ulysses by Ivan Okhlobystin Automatic translate

The novel, created in 2019, combines a fantasy story about parallel worlds with a series of autobiographical essays. The plot begins in a Swiss salon, moves to a village near Moscow, and explores real-life childhood memories.

Swiss shopping and returning home

Watchmaker Pavel Kalugin acquires the broken mechanism of an antique "Ulysses" clock. The Swiss salon smells of furniture varnish and gun oil. This rare repeater chronometer was designed by Lorenzo Bioli, a student of Leonardo da Vinci. The clock’s creator developed the explosive devices used by the Van Helsings for the military. Pavel’s father, Sergei Anatolyevich, had previously attempted to restore this artifact. The attempt ended in failure: his father went missing, presumably drowned in a lake near their holiday village. His body was never found. Pavel returned to Russia determined to complete the work. He spent all his savings on the clock.

At a dacha near Moscow, a craftsman begins work on a mechanism. His neighbor, Elizaveta Borodina, a mother of three, lives next door. She arrived in the village in a white Volkswagen for a quiet time working on her quarterly report. Her husband, Nikolai, and their children are heading out to visit without Elizaveta, abandoning their original plans. Soon, Elizaveta’s car key battery runs out. She asks Pavel to help open the village gate, as the caretaker, Lilia Ivanovna, is temporarily absent.

The Melody of the Clock and Parallel Reality

Pavel manages to repair a Swiss chronometer. The mechanism, once started, plays a melody that transports the characters to an alternate reality. In the morning, they awaken in completely different circumstances. Elizaveta finds herself in a luxurious evening gown and with an expensive diamond necklace. Pavel learns of his father’s fate. In this reality, Sergei Anatolyevich is alive and working successfully as a watchmaker. He restores an antique silver pocket watch for First Deputy Governor Andrei Vasilyevich Mokretsov. The official’s chronometer has a white enamel dial and twisted hands.

In this reality, Pavel himself is presumed dead. The heroes climb into Elizaveta’s car and head to the Nikolo-Arkhangelskoye Cemetery to find his grave. During the journey, they encounter familiar faces whose fates have taken different turns. Photographer Ivan Fedorovich Kasatonov, who lost one ear in the original reality, is completely healthy here. Elizaveta learns the fate of her husband, Nikolai. In the alternate reality, he became a biker and is married to a woman named Masha.

Elizaveta feels the need to talk to Nikolai. The heroes find him at a biker club restaurant. Pavel initiates a conversation with Nikolai about motorcycles, inventing a story about buying a gift for the president of his company. This allows Elizaveta to hear her husband’s voice and confirm the reality of what is happening. This alternative life offers a completely different development. The heroes take a walk together, sharing childhood memories. Pavel confesses to an old desire to push Elizaveta down a well. Elizaveta herself was thinking about the anticipated kiss. During the walk, Pavel injures his leg, and Elizaveta disinfects the wound with perfume.

Return and different destinies

After these events, the characters’ paths diverge into different realities. Pavel wakes up married to Elizaveta. They have three children. In this version of life, Elizaveta worked as a milkmaid and now takes care of the household. Pavel works two jobs, taking a second position at a neighboring state farm. He experiences genuine joy in his family life. With Elizaveta by his side, everything else loses its meaning.

Elizaveta herself returns to her original reality. Pavel is no longer present in her life. She perceives what happened as a strange dream and a romantic encounter with an old childhood friend. However, she keeps the tangible proof of her trip — a diamond set. Elizaveta sells the jewelry to a jewelry store. That evening, she flies with her husband, Nikolai, and their children on vacation.

On the plane, Nikolai reads a glossy travel brochure about Ithaca, Odysseus’s birthplace. He reminds his wife that the hero’s real name is Ulysses. Nikolai quotes literary critic Arkasha Shvartser. The critic argues that there are only about four fundamental plots in world literature, all of which are found in Homer. Ulysses symbolizes the story of the eternal return to oneself. Elizabeth counters her husband, declaring that one can return from anywhere and anywhere, if there is a reason to return.

Memories of childhood and growing up

In his childhood dreams, the future author envisioned worldwide fame, three-deck yachts, a neon glow over the shore, and great literary success. While picking blackcurrants in the village garden, he reflected on the importance of family over publicity. The coming-of-age story unfolds against the backdrop of everyday life in a Soviet dacha community. Life is filled with everyday situations, memories of his father, and the gradual formation of his personal worldview.

The real biography is completely devoid of fantastical elements. One of his most vivid memories is connected to writing a single poem for the opening theme of the religious and journalistic program "Lives of the Saints." Oleg Pavlovich Tabakov read this text for free, demonstrating his nobility and generosity. The television management’s sincere reluctance to support the author’s enthusiasm did not change his attitude toward the spiritual world. After this incident, his literary experiments with poetry ceased, as the genre seemed too honest for the harsh realities of life.