<DIV>Recognized as a classic since its first publication in Russia in 1880, <i>The Golovlyov Family</i> recounts the history of a family of landowners through three generations. Arina Petrovna, matriarch of the estate, maintains strict control of her world -- until the balance of power is upset by her scheming, hypocritical son, whose nickname is "little Judas."<br><br> What follows is a disquieting story of isolation and disintegration, in a place reminiscent of the elusive Macondo in Gabriel Garcia Marquez's <i>One Hundred Years of Solitude.</i> In this masterful translation "to be preferred at all costs . . . Cioran does have an edge . . . in the closeness to the original as well as sensitivity to telling phrases and expressions" <i>(Encyclopedia of Literary Translation into English)</i>.</div>