Peter itibaren gorod Kotovsk, Tambovskaya oblast', Rusya
Much better than I remembered it... this is the second time I've read it since my sophomore year in high school, and I enjoyed it much more this time. Can't say too much about it without going into analyzing it. Just a good read. Not as good as Grapes of Wrath.
Fantastic beach read! Yes, a lot of it is implausible, but suspend your disbelief and go along for the ride.