Russian literature

[Pantelej]

What do you think about Russian literature?

[Pensive]

I have heard that Crime and Punishment is a great piece of Russian Literature but I have not experienced it yet.

I know some people who think that Russian Literature is absolutely stunning.

[swapnil]

Yes, the Russian literature is among the greatest, whether it be Pushkin or Tolstoy!!!

[Pantelej]

I'm reading War and peace right now
But i have already read Crime and punishment

[Pensive]

I'm reading War and peace right now
But i have already read Crime and punishment

Cool, How was "Crime and Punishment"?

People have told me that it is a complex read.

[Pantelej]

well it's quite complex, the most i figuerd out
first after reading it, it was absolutly stunning

Has anyone read "The silent Don"?

[Logos]

I wish I could read Russian lit in Russian instead of relying on translations :confused:

[Pantelej]

yes, it would be much nicer to be able
to read every book in it's original language
But especialy Russian books, Russian
is a very diferent language, compared
to other languages, i think.

[Pensive]

I was reading a Japenese translation today and I wished a lot that somehow I would have known Japanese.

[Koa]

Russian Literature is one of the main reasons why I studied Russian at University. I am absolutely not at the level of reading Dostoevsky and co. in original, but I am reading a novel by a contemporary (is this the word?well he died in 1990) author and I am coping better than I would have ever expected.

Most Russian classics are absolutely huge, it's funny to see how much these guys could write ;) But they're mostly incredibly interesting... like Crime & Punishment, the first time I read it I just swallowed it in like 4 days... The second time took me longer and it was somehow heavier, I guess I was trying to look deeper...
I plan on re-reading Master and Margarita as soon as I've finished my current read (still Russian.. Everything Flows by Vasilij Grossman), cos I havent appreciated that much years ago and I might enjoy it more now that I have a nuch richer historical and cultural background.
Thinking about it, probably a good 70% of what I've read in the past 5 years was Russian...

[Pantelej]

I can't find anything by Vasilij Grossman anywhere

I'm living on the countryside, there aren't so many bookstores around here.

Have you read anything by Michail Sholokhov

[simona]

I like very much russian literature. I have just finished to read some short stories by Chekhov.They were very funny and well written.I have also read "The idiot" by Dostoievsky.It is a complex novel where the autor presents some of his experiences and thoughts.I would like to know more about Russia and now I am trying to learn this language( I hope I will succeed).

[Pantelej]

Russia is very exciting, huge and endless,
sometime i will go there.
Even though it,s cold.

[Koa]

Well pantelej, you're from Sweden, it's cold there too...so you might not suffer too much if you go to Russia ;)
Or just go in the summer... I went to Moscow last August and it wasn't cold at all, just the opposite for a couple of weeks... then it got fresher but still i've never suffered from cold there.

[Pantelej]

Has anyone read " Doctor Zjivago" ?

[Koa]

Yep I did...if you search the forums, there must be at least one topic about it.
And I remember at least 2 threads about War and Peace.

edit: here you can find something about Zhivago
http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4342

[Pantelej]

Actualy it's only realy cold in northern Sweden.
But you maybe find it cold, i only know that it's colder in
Russia.
But you're right, i heard it's -70 - +50 in some places.

[Koa]

I think -70 is impossible... if that's celsius...

Siberia is cold, like it can get to -40 I think, but in the summer they have +20 ore even +30.

[Pantelej]

Maybe the climate affects the writing

actualy, in Jakutsk they got - 70 deegrees celsius.

[Koa]

Maybe the climate affects the writing

LOL maybe that's why they write long stuff...they can't go out and spend the time writing ;)

Actually, one thing that is said to have greatly affected Russian culture and therefore literature is the SPACE. Russia is HUGE, and the distances are immense, even hard to imagine for us European packed in (relatively) small countries. Moscow is impressive, everything is incredibly big and everything is so distant, even by metro, which is very fast, you can take one hour to get to a place... And a lot of the space in Russia is empty...sure Moscow is crowded, but there is a lot of empty countryside, I've seen kilometres of green from the plane while I was getting there...

So all that is part of the mystery of the Russian culture: the extreme distances and the extreme temperatures some places get...

[Pantelej]

I agree with you

It is very interesting to see how
climate and space affects the writting.

What do you think is the most interesting with Russian literature?

I think it's the details and the characters

[EAP]

Crime and Punishment: Possibly the most boring book I have read. I gave this book multiple chances but it never ceased to be anything more than a tremendous yawn-fest. Organic Chemistry textbooks are more interesting and I have had more fun reading laundry bills.

War and Peace: Did these guys get paid by words? Soap Opera at it's worst.

The Brothers K...: Some more of the above. I just don't get this Dostoevsky loving. He, along with Shakespeare and Joyce, has to be the most overrated fiction author in any language.

Doctor Zhivago: Did I say boring before?

Master and Margarita: Brilliant concept, excellent execution and some of the wittiest dialogue ever penned in speculative literature. Easily the most 'flowing' translation I have ever come across, in any language.

We: The predecessor of works like 'Brave New World' and 'Slaughterhouse Five', it is considered the first modern sci-fi dystopia and a huge influence on Orwell's seminal '1984'. I consider it better than just about any dystopian novel I have read with the exception of Philip K. Dick's 'Do Andriod's Dream of Electric Sheep' and Orwell's 'Animal Farm.'

Russian non-fiction, on the other hand, I have found to be almost uniformly entertaining and thought-provoking, be it spine-tingling accounts of escape from Gulag's, descriptions of German seiges, memoirs of deserter soldiers, political shifts within the Communist Party or tales of manned exploration and taming the frosty siberian whiteness.

[Pantelej]

what exactly do you like

[EAP]

Does Not Compute.

Error: Insufficent parameters to come up with a tangible hypothesis. Please try again in a few years.

[Koa]

War and Peace: Did these guys get paid by words? Soap Opera at it's worst.



I actually agree on this: I found it terribly similar to a soap opera, and though I endured the whole thing, I appreciated let's say 20% of it. However I'm glad of having done that and having seen with my eyes what's it all about, especially being a student of Russian I couldnt really miss this part of its culture... Appreciating, well, that's another thing.
I did like Anna Karenina though, it's possibly less soap-opera, and I was particularly surprised of how well Anna's feeling were described, even by a male writer.

Crime and Punishment, well, I've already claimed my love for it... What actually got me into Russian Lit. is actually another novel by Dostoevsky, The Demons, which I adored. I havent tried the Karamazov Brothers yet, possibly soon next year.

Funnily enough, what EAP liked, ie Master & Margarita, was the one I liked less...too much fantasy, too many people flying... but as I said I'll give it another chance soon.

I'm also looking forward to reading We, I'm surprised it's so famous cos when we were meant to read it for an exam, it was impossible to find it, book shops didnt even know about its existance, and a copy was finally found at a library of an obscure village where one of my course mates lived. However I didnt get to read it and I bought a copy in Moscow, which is waiting in line to be my next Russian original read, though I suppose it's going to be extremely challenging...

[Pantelej]

well whatever, you like what you like and i like what i like.
Can we agree to these terms?

The lines above are mentioned for EAP.

I can't tell if war and peace is to much of a soap opera
since i'm still reading it.
But the Russian aristocracy was much like a soap opera.

[Jekaterina]

I was born in the USSR, so I can read all the Russian Classics in Russian.
I LOVE Russian Literature!
Bulgakov and Dostoevsky are amongst my absolute favourites!

I've started reading Dostoevsky when I was 11. It was a little early, but even then I liked it. Of course now and then I reread some of his work and suddenly see more than I used to. It's great.
I had the Brothers Karamazov as one my finals' books at high school and it was amazing to have the task to dive into a novel that deep.
At the beginning it was hard (over 1200 pages!) to find something to start with, but then everything, every sentence, every word fitted, everything had a meaning.

Of course, there are many, many other great Russian novellists.

I absolutely adore: Puschkin, Lermontow, Gogol, Turgenew and Tschechov
and if you count him as a Russian too: One of my absolute favourites is also Nabokov! Now, he's really great.

[Pantelej]

What do you think about Sholokhov,Gorki and Tolstoy?
I'm reading War and peace right now.
It's a bit like a soap, but, on the other hand
the Russian aristocracy was much like a soap.
feasts, silly secrets, overwelming wealth while the
porr starve

[Jekaterina]

What do you think about Sholokhov,Gorki and Tolstoy?
I'm reading War and peace right now.
It's a bit like a soap, but, on the other hand
the Russian aristocracy was much like a soap.
feasts, silly secrets, overwelming wealth while the
porr starve

War and Peace isn't that great because of the plot, but because it's written wonderfully. At least, that's what I think.
I've read War and Peace, Anna Karenina, Resurrection and The Kreutzer Sonata. I must say, the Kreutzer Sonata had the biggest impact on me, it was the one novel, that was nearest to the reader, but of course, that's because the plot is set in a train and mostly there's just one person talking.

Gorki didn't write bad, but there's that slight shadow of the communistic propaganda writing over his work...
Until now, I've never read Sholokhov. Is he good?

[Pantelej]

Actualy i agree with you, In War and Peace it's more the writing than
the plot that effects me.

I think i read something about Gorki being forced by the Soviet regim
to write comunist-friendly.

Sholokhov is very interesting, He dosen't write so much like Dostoyevsky,
more like Tolstoy, though not realy as good ,but still good.
The characters are very interesting. In "The silent Don" the characters
change with the time, wich is very interesting.
The content is a bit different to, becouse most of his books are about the
Don-Cosacks. The inviorment is different to, sience the Cosacks were
living on the stepp. They also had their own laws, not caring to much
about the higher authorities. In most of Sholokhovs books you
can also see the changes each generation brings with it.

What exactly do you think makes Russian literature so special?
I think it's mostly the details and the characters.
Everything is always described so beautifully and the characters
are always very interesting and realistic.
Another thing , i think, is the fact that most Russian writers
make great things out of pretty simple plots.

[caspian]

Russian literature is too realistic. I think that makes it so special. Not just literature, Russian culture in general is realistic: even a naked woman body or an erotic scene in Russian movie is quite different – I mean quite realistic -than what we get use to see in Hollywood production.
Chehkov , Lermontov is my favorites. Nothing can be compared with Gogol's works.
I gave up read Dostoyevsky at all after reading (actually I couldn’t finish it) one of his longest boring story. I’ve already listed “Master and Margerita” among my boring books.
I advise to read Anatoly Ribakov and Valentin Rasputin.

[Pantelej]

I think Dostoyevky is very interesting, he describes the characters
so well, he did know things in the human nature long before any
scientist. He dives deep into the minds of the characters and
describes their feelings and emotions on a hole new level.

It's true, Russian literature is very realistic.Mostly there are no
heroes, more the anti-hero.

[Aurora Ariel]

I plan to read Dostoyevsky before the end of the year, after receiving quite a few recommendations.Formerly, I had only read Tolstoy's War and Peace, and Anna Karenina.Has anyone read all of his works?

[byquist]

Heavy, serious and emotional stuff. But I know a 2-yr. old adopted girl from the Motherland, and she is light as a feather, happy-go-lucky.

[BSturdy]

There are some extremely interesting opinions and suggestions here. (Note to self: read Bulgakov or Nabokov soon) .

Woah, War and Peace needs to be read together with readers notes - a list of characters (and all their alternative names) and who they are - it's so confusing. I am still 'reading' it as I moved house, mid-read, and (hoped) thought I'd lost it. I will start again/continue though, as I remember really enjoying it. Soap opera? If only Eastenders was written by Tolstoy.

Have read some Dostoevsky, very enjoyable, but find the important bits (the religious philosophy) a bit heavy going.

I thoroughly recommend - 'The First Circle' by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn: The depiction of a paranoid Stalin is just great. Also (EAP is probably referring to) 'A day in the life of Ivan Denisovich' by same Author. I'm actually reading 'Victory Parades' by him at the moment! I think he is the only modern Russian author I've read.

Thanks forumkins

[Raven Kaj]

I've seen alot of references on here for War and Peace and some of the other well knowns. But, unless I missed it somewhere scrolling through the postings, has anyone read, "Petersburg" by Andrei Bely??? Just curious if anyone has any remarks on that work.

[Anna Seis]

Hi, I like russian literature too, and I'd also rather read in the original lenguage instead of translations, but russian... it's too much for me. The last russian book I have read is Moscú-Petuchki; English translation must be Moscow to the end of the line. It's author is Venedict Erofeiev, and the subject is the last travel of an always drunk man -Vénitchka Erofeiev- who reachs the Kursk station every time he tries to find the Kremlim.
I am triying to get material to write an essay about Samizdat; suggestions will be gratefully accepted.

[Koa]

Hi, I like russian literature too, and I'd also rather read in the original lenguage instead of translations, but russian... it's too much for me. The last russian book I have read is Moscú-Petuchki; English translation must be Moscow to the end of the line. It's author is Venedict Erofeiev, and the subject is the last travel of an always drunk man -Vénitchka Erofeiev- who reachs the Kursk station every time he tries to find the Kremlim.
I am triying to get material to write an essay about Samizdat; suggestions will be gratefully accepted.


I have just written my graduation thesis about Samizdat!!!

The best material I can give you is this brilliant article
http://www.slis.ualberta.ca/issues/sbalazs/samizdat.htm
It compares samizdat to the Internet and provides a good summary of some main aspects of Samizdat...using it as a source gave a great touch of originality to my work.

Then, my main sources were books that you probably don't have available since they are written in Italian and are probably not translated anywhere (I suppose you're Spanish, by how you wrote Moscù...), the main one was written in 1976 by Jurij Mal'cev and it's called L'altra letteratura ("the other literature")...
You can find an interview to this guy here, it's in Italian but if you are Spanish as I think, you might get the idea of what it says...
http://www.instoria.it/home/MalcevI.htm

I suggest you also look for books about 'dissidents' and Russian emigration, they may give you some small idea..

You should also have a look at Solzhenytsin "The oak and the lamb" (actually I have no idea of the title in English, the Russian title would literally translated as something like "Tha lamb hit the oak", especially the first chapter when he talks of how he worked to hide his stuff...

And you have to know that just this year in Moscow was published an Anthology of Samizdat, though I dont know if you can find anything about it in languages that are not Russian...
http://antology.igrunov.ru/
http://www.pravda.ru/culture/2005/4/9/21/19994_samizdat.html

If you need more advice feel free to contact me, my work was a masterpiece ;););)

[Virgil]

I too love Russian lit, particularly that of the 19th century. War and Peace is fun for a while, but it does gets too tedious. My favorites: Anna Karinina, Brothers Karamazov, Fathers and Sons. I don't know what makes the 19th century novelists so good. They have this combination of excruciating detail and yet holding a tremendous intensity. Quite unlike the French and English realists of the 19th century. Plus they have ideas, religious and sociatal. One thing that always struck me about the 19th century Russian novelists is that they are carrying medevil conventions and views but forced to confront the modern world. That's what may make them so intense. Plus they are just great writers.

[Koa]

I guess I agree with you Virgil... it's that intensity that can leave you speechless in some parts of the books...

I'm trying to read again Master and Margarita, and just as the other time(s) I just can't concentrate on it. There's something in it that makes my mind wander instead of paying attention to the words (almost like reading War & Peace's historical parts where the same concept is expressed 300 times...almost but not quite like it obviously)... especially in the Pontius Pilatus chapter, It's the 3rd time I read it in my life, and every time I find it kinda tedious... I think I just don't understand Bulgakov...

[Mark F.]

I have read a few novels by Dostoevsky, my favorite is "Crime and Punishment" and "The Idiot" is also very good. Someone mentioned the length of his work and you should all check out his shorter stuff like "White Nights" and especially "Notes From The Underground" which is a true masterpiece.

I've also read quite a few short stories by Gogol, "The Overcoat", "The Nose" and "Diary of a Madman" are all very good pieces of fiction. I want to read a bit more by Dostoevsky and read Tchekovs' plays and short stories.

[Anna Seis]

Hi Koa, te agradezco, je vous remerci, thank you. I'm gonna visit all the sites you put into your message, this weekend. I'll fight italian difficulties. Russian Literature of 20th century is one of my caprices; in facts, all literatures of runaways and castaways and people on the run or writing in secret. I am thinking about relations between Dostoievsky's Man from underground and Moskow-Petouchki, viewing from an bakhtinian point of view. At University they refused the purpose, because they are most interested in Paul Auster, feminist literature, psychoanalysis... but I don't give up and I will keep on trying to write what I want to. Thanks again.
Ps. I must read Solkhenitsin, of course; Evgenia Semionovna Ginzburg I have readed some years ago.

[Koa]

De nada, you're welcome, de rien... ;) I particularly recommend the samizdat-internet article.

Samizdat is a really interesting topicm shame they're so into feminism at your place ;) Good luck!

[delirioussorrow]

I think I just don't understand Bulgakov...


what you have to understand about reading any of Bulgakov and especially Master and Margarita, the man was definitely not sober while writting it and hallucinating for most of it. That might be why it makes the mind wonder, cuz from my experience, whether i read him in russian or english, my mind wanders to places its never been before.

[Koa]

Is that true? Not sober? That would explain some things...:rolleyes:
My mind does wander too... just to thoughts that have nothing to do with the book...
It's actually a few days since I last picked it up, I can't say I dislike it but it doesnt make me want to read it so eagerly...

[michela]

i think russian lit. is really fascinating,but also as hard as russian language is.
I've read something of Marina I. cvetaeva apart from her poems(absolutely perfect in form and ideas) a short story whose title was "nights in Florence" which is a collection of hers letter to a man she was in love with.
I also have experienced the huge "Anna Karenina"and it left me speechless, even though i have to say i've had some problems with the names because of the "patronimic forms".

[Virgil]

Anna Karinina is fabulous. Has anyone read some of Tolstoy's short novels? Master and Man or The Death of Ivan Illich come to mind. Both are perfections of the short novel. You can't get better than that.

[Koa]

I liked Anna Karenina, I might have said that already but I was quite surprised at the end when Tolstoy described her feelings so well...

I read The Death of Ivan Ilich and also other short stuff (Chadzhi Murat comes to my mind) by Tolstoy, but I wasn't so impressed...they were ok but I am hardly ever excited about short stories, I guess I prefer novels.

[rachel]

Crime and Punishment shook my soul. I wish like my son Travis I could just decide in a week to learn a language so I could read something. He just does that. Everything from Latin to Hindi, I think he currently is fluent it about ten languages. And to think in grade three his teacher told me he was not going to amount to much.
So he gets to catch those nuances that make the text so rich. He is teaching me proper Hebrew, I love reading it and teaching baby Hasia Hebrew and Greek , Latin and the romance languages at the moment. so when she is talking I have to really pay attention. Of course he is doing that so in my despair I will learn all the same languages so we can converse. swine plan.
I like Leo Tolstoy very much and smile when I read that he wrote will nilly all over this page and that and left them everywhere in the house. His wife would gather them all up and rewrite and put all in order. What a guy.

[starrwriter]

I liked Anna Karenina, I might have said that already but I was quite surprised at the end when Tolstoy described her feelings so well...
Bleh. I was relieved when Anna lubricated the railroad tracks with her innards. Compared to Russian writers like Dostoevsky and Turgeneyev, Tolstoy was an old maid writing soap operas over his samovar of tea.

[Virgil]

I wish like my son Travis I could just decide in a week to learn a language so I could read something. He just does that. Everything from Latin to Hindi, I think he currently is fluent it about ten languages. And to think in grade three his teacher told me he was not going to amount to much.


Wow, that's some son of yours. I wish I could do that too.

From Star

Compared to Russian writers like Dostoevsky and Turgeneyev, Tolstoy was an old maid writing soap operas over his samovar of tea.

Have you tried his short novels. They are more compact. Try either of the two I mentioned above.

[Koa]

Bleh. I was relieved when Anna lubricated the railroad tracks with her innards. Compared to Russian writers like Dostoevsky and Turgeneyev, Tolstoy was an old maid writing soap operas over his samovar of tea.

Yes, but I think Anna Karenina is a quite well done soap opera.

Turgenev is still there waiting to be read by me, but Dostoevsky is like...oh there are no words, it's too deep even to describe... His first book I read was The Demons when I was 18, and that was possibly what made me decide to study Russian Language & Literature (and now, 5 years later, I've just finished to read my first (modern) book entirely in Russian...it took 3 months but it was hugely satisfying. On to the next...). He did have a huge impact on me. I'm going to try the Karamazoff Brothers soon hopefully, and re-live all that Demons/Crime & Punishment feeling.

[MikeK]

A suggestion for some of you on this thread who've objected to Dostoevsky's works as too long or boring, etc. Try reading some of his shorter works. They usually contain the same qualities and themes of his long novels. They reach the same heights, only in shorter form. Three of his best short stories are:

"The Dream of a Ridiculous Man"
"A Meek One"/"A Gentle Creature" (Depending on the translator)
"The Eternal Husband"

I also love Chekhov's short stories. The best I've ever read. I only wish that I could read all of this in Russian, as many of you have said.

[The Unnamable]

I can't find anything by Vasilij Grossman anywhere

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/184343055X/qid=1135009357/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_11_1/202-8470234-1035833


http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1860460194/qid=1135009357/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_11_2/202-8470234-1035833

The former is fascinating, the latter sublime. The former also contains Grossman's writing about the concentration camps ('The Hell called Treblinka'), used at the Nuremberg Trials. You can download a copy in Word format here:

http://s61.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=268NCB5V0BZXW1EQJHZ6MP9TVH

[Pantelej]

Thanks, nice stuff, very interesting

[Alex E Art]

Whether you read russian fantasy or science-fiction?

[beer good]

Has anyone else read Leonid Tsypkin's "Summer In Baden-Baden"? I just read it a couple of months ago and found it absolutely enthralling...

It's not easily described, though; It is, at the same time, an account of the life of Dostoyevsky, an account of Tsypkin's life in the Soviet Union (it was written between 1977 and 1980), a meditation on Russian literature in general and a few other things... All told in some sort of homespun stream-of-consciousness where time, perspective and place shifts so subtly you often find yourself wondering if it's 1880 or 1980.

One point Tsypkin, a Jew, keeps getting stuck on is how Dostoyevsky, the man he considers the greatest and most empathic-to-human-suffering author ever, could also be an outright antisemite. Another is that of identity and nationality; Tsypkin follows Dostoyevsky's travels abroad in his mind while he himself is forced to stay in a Soviet Union where he's not wanted, yet is forbidden to leave.

Apparently, this is the only thing Tsypkin wrote, and he did so without any thought of being published; he died (in 1982) a week after it was first leaked to a Russian-American magazine. It's one of those books that's just so heartbreakingly beautiful you want to live in it, yet you're glad you don't have to...

[Pantelej]

Has anyone else read Leonid Tsypkin's "Summer In Baden-Baden"? I just read it a couple of months ago and found it absolutely enthralling...

It's not easily described, though; It is, at the same time, an account of the life of Dostoyevsky, an account of Tsypkin's life in the Soviet Union (it was written between 1977 and 1980), a meditation on Russian literature in general and a few other things... All told in some sort of homespun stream-of-consciousness where time, perspective and place shifts so subtly you often find yourself wondering if it's 1880 or 1980.

One point Tsypkin, a Jew, keeps getting stuck on is how Dostoyevsky, the man he considers the greatest and most empathic-to-human-suffering author ever, could also be an outright antisemite. Another is that of identity and nationality; Tsypkin follows Dostoyevsky's travels abroad in his mind while he himself is forced to stay in a Soviet Union where he's not wanted, yet is forbidden to leave.

Apparently, this is the only thing Tsypkin wrote, and he did so without any thought of being published; he died (in 1982) a week after it was first leaked to a Russian-American magazine. It's one of those books that's just so heartbreakingly beautiful you want to live in it, yet you're glad you don't have to...

Iv'e actually never heard of Tsypkin before...

What about Chekhov? I'm reading "Ward no. 6" right now,
it's just great. He describes good and bad, beautiful and ugly,
gentle and brutal so well, especially the differences and the likeneses
of the mentioned.

[Taliesin]

Russian literature.
Our favourite russian writers are Bulgakov, Pelevin and the Strugatski brothers.
Pelevin writes very thought-provokingly and is very postmodern.
Personally, we think that we can't speak much about the presoviet russian literature, because presoviet Russia, and Soviet and Postsoviet Russia are vastly different.
We have only read MM by Bulgakov and that we liked immensely.
Strugatskis are also interesting - they are so different from angloamerican sci-fi - those are usually very clean about the future - but Strugatskis have maintained the social problems, the dirtyness, the grimness, the decadence and the alcoholism. Plus, of course, the really good plot.
Pelevin - we have read his short stories, Omon-Ra, P-Generation and Chapajev and Pustota - and they are truly wonderful and thought-and-reality-provoking. "Any thought that occurs in the process of reading this book is subject to copyright. Unauthorized thinking of it is prohibited"

[Koa]

Pelevin seems to be quite popular here, but I haven't tried it yet.

I am posting my plea here too: someone please explain me what's so wonderful about Master And Margarita. I had to struggle to read it and I've enjoyed just some bits of it.

I have started today "We" by Zamjatin. I was impressed by the style of writing, I loved the first chapter. I hope the rest won't disappoint me after such a good start.

[Molko]

I'm absolutely in love with Russian Literature, especially a lot of the Classics from Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Pushkin etc etc. Russian literature is very passionate, honest, raw... it delves well into the complexities of life. Furthermore, I like it how there are often traces of despondency and gloom hehehe


Pelevin seems to be quite popular here, but I haven't tried it yet.

I am posting my plea here too: someone please explain me what's so wonderful about Master And Margarita. I had to struggle to read it and I've enjoyed just some bits of it.

I have started today "We" by Zamjatin. I was impressed by the style of writing, I loved the first chapter. I hope the rest won't disappoint me after such a good start.

Ooooh I've always wanted to read "We"!!! But I havent been able to find it anywhere *pouts*

[Koa]

Ooooh I've always wanted to read "We"!!! But I havent been able to find it anywhere *pouts*

It's hard to find here too, I bought it in Russia... it's damn hard to read but so beautifully written...

[Molko]

Ohhh you're so lucky Koa *pouts* heheh looks like I may have to buy it on e-bay! Lol

[LastBandit]

I was born in the USSR, so I can read all the Russian Classics in Russian.
I LOVE Russian Literature!
Bulgakov and Dostoevsky are amongst my absolute favourites!

I've started reading Dostoevsky when I was 11. It was a little early, but even then I liked it. Of course now and then I reread some of his work and suddenly see more than I used to. It's great.
I had the Brothers Karamazov as one my finals' books at high school and it was amazing to have the task to dive into a novel that deep.
At the beginning it was hard (over 1200 pages!) to find something to start with, but then everything, every sentence, every word fitted, everything had a meaning.

Of course, there are many, many other great Russian novellists.

I absolutely adore: Puschkin, Lermontow, Gogol, Turgenew and Tschechov
and if you count him as a Russian too: One of my absolute favourites is also Nabokov! Now, he's really great.


I am quite enjoying "Despair", which I picked up at the library yesterday. Just about 50 pages left...and I have "Lolita" lying on my desk to start afterwards!

Started "The Master & Margarita" recently, and i'm finding it to be a compelling read!

[caspian]

Turgenev is still there waiting to be read by me
you'll like him for sure. you'll probably start with 'fathers and sons', that's his most famoes work, 'dim' (smoke) is good as well

[rachel]

Has anyone else read Leonid Tsypkin's "Summer In Baden-Baden"? I just read it a couple of months ago and found it absolutely enthralling...

It's not easily described, though; It is, at the same time, an account of the life of Dostoyevsky, an account of Tsypkin's life in the Soviet Union (it was written between 1977 and 1980), a meditation on Russian literature in general and a few other things... All told in some sort of homespun stream-of-consciousness where time, perspective and place shifts so subtly you often find yourself wondering if it's 1880 or 1980.

One point Tsypkin, a Jew, keeps getting stuck on is how Dostoyevsky, the man he considers the greatest and most empathic-to-human-suffering author ever, could also be an outright antisemite. Another is that of identity and nationality; Tsypkin follows Dostoyevsky's travels abroad in his mind while he himself is forced to stay in a Soviet Union where he's not wanted, yet is forbidden to leave.

Apparently, this is the only thing Tsypkin wrote, and he did so without any thought of being published; he died (in 1982) a week after it was first leaked to a Russian-American magazine. It's one of those books that's just so heartbreakingly beautiful you want to live in it, yet you're glad you don't have to...

I absolutely love Dostoyevsky and am a Jewess so I intend to read this book. I have never heard of it before but just your description is riveting.thankyou for mentioning it.

[Mark F.]

Has anyone read Dostoevsky's "The House of the Dead"? I'm thinking of picking it up before reading "The Possessed" this Summer which is a bit too long as I have other stuff to do for Uni. I was just wondering you guys recommend it.

[Koa]

Yes I read that book, though the title would be a bit different... well it's definitely worth reading though I remember it being a bit 'hard', like I don't have many clear memories of it (it was ages ago, some 5 years I think) apart from it being a clear example of 'concentration camp' literature, possibly the first one... If I remember correctly, there is no clear plot, just a lot of scenes from the life in the camp... Anyway I don't see why you shouldn't give it a try.

[Mark F.]

I've been through "Crime & Punishment", "The Idiot", "White Nights" and "Notes From The Underground" and liked all of them. Just looking for some more of his stuff before reading "Brothers Karamzov".

[Kashkin]

I've noticed a few people picked The Brothers Karamazov. Good luck to you. It doesn't strike me as being of the same standard of his other works. It's exceedingly religious (yes, more so than the others), slow moving and frankly, I don't know which character to empathise with. So I gave up, for now.

Crime and Punishment... can only be disliked by the culturally devoid.
I am soon going to start Pushkin's Eugene Onegin. Any one read it? Or other Pushkin?

[The Unnamable]

If you often find yourself wondering about being here and in particular the question, 'what the hell does it all mean?', it's worth reading for the two chapters, Rebellion and The Grand Inquisitor, if nothing else.

Is empathy necessary? Anyway, what about Ivan and Alyosha?

[blp]

I've been through "Crime & Punishment", "The Idiot", "White Nights" and "Notes From The Underground" and liked all of them. Just looking for some more of his stuff before reading "Brothers Karamzov".

The Double by Dostoyevsky is short and great. It's tone is remarkably similar to Kafka.

[Mark F.]

Thanks, I liked Metamorphosis by Kafka so I'll check out as well.

[caspian]

I
I am soon going to start Pushkin's Eugene Onegin. Any one read it? Or other Pushkin?
I haven't read any poems of Pushkin. though Eugene Onegin was in my school program. in exam I just used my sister's old essay of that poem. ;) and I've seen cartoons of other poems.
I just love Pushkin's stories. I've read all of them. "the captain's Daughter", "Stories of Belkin", "dubrovski" etc. all of them are excellent. Easy reading, very interesting. his discription is so well that you feel like u're watching movie. I'm interested in his last -uncompleted work- "The Negro of Peter the Great" more. you'll probably find it interesting too:

" Pushkin's story is set in the early 1700s when his maternal great grandfather, Abram (or Ibrahim) Hannibal, a black man of African descent, was brought from Europe to Russia by the Tsar (Peter the Great) and eventually given his freedom in exchange for a commitment of lifetime service. Pushkin's African heritage was widely known during his time, and Pushkin himself was very interested in his family background.
Pushkin’s "The Negro of Peter the Great" is a fictionalized biography of Ibrahim Hannibal, Pushkin’s great grandfather. The story covers Hannibal’s stay in France and the initial period after his return to Russia. Although its scope clearly suggests a work of major proportions, it remained largely uncompleted at Pushkin's death. None of the completed segments were published in his lifetime. It is significant that Pushkin chose a biographical theme for his first attempt at prose fiction. This work represented one of the earliest depictions of the Negro as a hero in world literature. Regardless of the story’s shortcomings, it was a strikingly bold characterization for its time. In two completed segments, Hannibal comes through as a strong positive figure who has an affair with a countess in France. His first marriage to a Russian woman of noble birth is central to the remaining fragment. That this black character even existed in 1827 is remarkable; that he fares well is more so.
Note the passage from Hannibal’s farewell to his lover before leaving Paris:

"Think: ought I to expose you any longer to such agitations and dangers? Why should I endeavor to unite the fate of such a tender, beautiful creature to the miserable fate of a Negro, of a pitiable creature, scare worthy of the name of man?"
Hannibal’s self-denigration reflects Pushkin’s attempt to show the prevailing attitudes toward Blacks. However, he portrays Hannibal himself as accomplished and likable, without any real hints of inferiority. Keep in mind that Pushkin was experimenting with forms of literary expression totally new to Russian literature and that he was expanding the literary language to new dimensions."-
c\p http://www.ksu.ru/eng/ahern/493/mod1-pushkin.htm

[non sum]

although i thoroughly enjoyed most of pushkin's works, both poetic and literary, and found myself enthralled by dostoyevsky's morbidly pessimistic sense of reality, i must say that many of the english translations do not do the works justice. the passion is absent in the flat monotone of the translated versions. i attempted to read mikhail bulgakov's the master and margarita, and was sorely disappointed to find that it reads like a paperback novel...there was simply something missing. it may just be my own twisted perception, or the fact that i've actually read several of the works in their original tongue, but i'm curious to see whether or not anyone else has felt the loss

[Koa]

non sum, the loss is the very essence of translation... Moreso in Russian, which has different ways to express things than English does. I am reading Zamjatin's "We" in Russian, confronting it with a translation in Italian, my native tongue (the Russian by itself is too hard :(). It's so noticeable how the translation has to jump to try and make justice of things...
I didn't appreciate Master&Margarita at all, though I've never tried the original... I loved and found Dostoevskij so deep even in translation, I just can't imagine the beauty of the original...

As for Pushkin, I read The Captain's Daughter and some of the Belkin's stories, but I'm not so excited about him... it's ok for me, but not my favourite thing...

[alv417]

I have been having some trouble reading Alexander Pushkins Eugene Onegin.

The famous ending of Eugen Onegin has evoked countless discussions. Is it just? Is it tragic? Is it realistic? Summarize Puskhin's conclusion and comment on the motives and morality of the novel's two principal characters.

Discuss Onegin as a potential date, or boyfriend, or suitor, or husband. What would attract you about him? What would repel you? Try to weigh his virtues and his vices.

I would appreciate any help from anyone. Even if it is a website that could help me.

[Evergreenleaf]

I just finished reading "We" for a global science fiction class. It was pretty good, I thought. Sometimes it was a little hard to follow, and all the commentary about "the ancients" and how confused and wrong they were could be either amusing or irritating. More often than not I found it irritating, even though I knew it was supposed to be kind of satirical on Zamyatin's part, and I usually love satire.

[genoveva]

I've noticed a few people picked The Brothers Karamazov. Good luck to you. It doesn't strike me as being of the same standard of his other works. It's exceedingly religious (yes, more so than the others), slow moving and frankly, I don't know which character to empathise with. So I gave up, for now.



Try again! One of my faves and I am a huge fan of Russian literature! It may seem religious in that it questions religion, but I don't think it means to push one religion. I think not knowing which character to empathise with is part of the experience of the book. Perhaps we can empathise with them all?

As mentioned earlier, at least read The Grand Inquisitor chapter.

I just read this whole thread, and thank you all so much for all the suggested reading!! :idea:

[Pantelej]

I just started reading "the possesed" by Dostoyevsky,
I couldn't get my hands on it before.
So far it's very interesting(i've only come to the second chapter)
What i know is that it was ment as a study of nihilism.

[Koa]

I just finished reading "We" for a global science fiction class. It was pretty good, I thought. Sometimes it was a little hard to follow, and all the commentary about "the ancients" and how confused and wrong they were could be either amusing or irritating. More often than not I found it irritating, even though I knew it was supposed to be kind of satirical on Zamyatin's part, and I usually love satire.

I'm finding it amusing instead :) I'm loving that book, the style is so wonderful, even if really hard at times. One of the best books ever, even if I'm only at 1/3 of it.

[Pantelej]

There's one thing about many storys written by russians: many of them are full of french quotes. And if you can't speak french you'll have to check them up in the end
of the books, if there is such thing as a index of french quotes used in the book at all.

[Vedrana]

I've read Evgeny Onegin, and I did enjoy it. The ending is pretty good, even if it isn't all that happy. I don't know if I like the translation I have, but since I don't read Russian, I'll have to content myself with what I have. The film is okay as well, although I do think you ought to read the poem as well.

[beer good]

Andrei Volos' "Hurramabad" was indeed an interesting book. I guess it qualifies as Russian literature, since it's written by an ethnic Russian from Tajikistan and deals with the whole issue of national/ethnic/cultural identity in a multi-cultural society that was once kept together by an iron fist, and what happens when that fist is removed... covers the whole 20th century, from the Russians who move there when the Soviet Union is in its infancy, to their children who make their home there, to their grandchildren who suddenly find themselves to be outsiders and forced to return to a "mother country" they've never even been to... all told in classic hyper-realistic prose where you can almost smell what's happening, short-story-like installments that interweave over time... very nice. Recommended.

[pearl]

Am new on this forum,stumble on the discussion of Russian literature,so I thought I should say one or two things on it.I'm presently reading Brother Kamarazov by Dostoyevsky.Am having a hard time at it,it doesnt just compare with the feelings I had when I was reading Crime and Punishment,or War and Peace by Tostoi.
Am also reading some Chekhov short stories online.
I've heard Anna Karenina is so fantastic,it should be my next target.

[Boris239]

Ok, I'm originally from Russia and I've graduated from Russian high school, so I've read a lot of Russian authors:

Pushkin- it will be difficult to read and fully appreciate hime not in Russian. He is famous not only because of his poems and stories, but as more or less the founder of the modern Russian language. I'd recommend "Captain's daughter", "Povesti Belkina", "Queen of Spades".

Dostoevsky- "Crime and Punishment", "Idiot", "Brothers Karamazov" and "Possessed(Devils)" are all masterpieces(especially the first three). "Brothers Karamazovs" can be a bit difficult because of bunch of Orthodox stuff put into it, but there are parts that I consider among the best I've ever read - like Ivan's story about Chtist and Great Inquisitor.

Tolstoy- to my great shame I haven't read "Anna Karenina", but I enjoyed "war and Peace"(though the ending about the role of individuals in history was tough), "Resurrection", short stories like "Death of Ivan Iliich", "hadgi murat", "after ball", etc.

Other interesting Russian authors of 19th century are Lermontov, Gogol(especially "Dead souls" and "Overcoat"), Chekhov(plays amd short stories), Turgenev(especially "Fathers and sons"), Saltikov-Schedrin and Griboyedov.

Among 20th century writers my favorite is probably Bulgakov. To appreciate "Master and Margarita" you have to know a lot about Soviet life during 30ths and even then the translation is far from perfect(I've read it both in russian and english). But "M&M" is not the only Bulgakov's great book- "Heart of a dog" and "White guard" are among my favorites.

Pasternak "Doctor Zhivago", sholohov "Quiet Don", Grossman "Life and Destiny", Ribakov "Children of Arbat" and "Heavy sand", Voynovich's "Adventures of soldgier Chonkin", Strugazkiy's brothers "It's difficult to be a God" are books among 20th century russian literature that I'd especially recommend to try.

Sorry for the long message

[Koa]

Dostoevsky- "Crime and Punishment", "Idiot", "Brothers Karamazov" and "Possessed(Devils)" are all masterpieces(especially the first three).

I adored "Devils". Possibly even more than Crime & Punishment (I haven't read the other two yet). It's part of the reason why I decided to study Russian..

[ZATISHYA]

Hello! Would you be so kind, accept me for yours Forum.

Dear, read Mikhail Bulgakov "The Master and Margarita". You shall unforgettable pleasure!


I think, that russian literature is thrilling, fascination, exquisite in all planet "Earth"...

I will with delight listen Your opinion.

Little bit of novel I attached.

[Koa]

You needed to look on the thread which was exactly under yours...
Or click here:

http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showthread.php?t=14658

Welcome to the forum anyway! I'll soon be in your country for a while, that's funny...
So do you speak mainly Russian or Ukrainian? :)

[Virgil]

Hello! Would you be so kind, accept me for yours Forum.

Do you read Russian literature? My modest question.. :-)


I think, that russian literature is thrilling, fascination, exquisite in all planet "Earth"...

I will with delight listen Your opinion.
Yes welcome Zatishya. I too hope you enjoy our forum. We do discuss Russian literature here, but probably not enough. Hopefully you can start a topic.

[Boris239]

"Devils" is a great book, but I enjoyed it a bit less than the other three. Koa, do u know that it wasn't studied in USSR?

[beer good]

"Devils" is a great book, but I enjoyed it a bit less than the other three. Koa, do u know that it wasn't studied in USSR?
I'm not surprised, it's not exactly pro-socialism. I wonder, were all his other books encouraged in the USSR, or was he controversial?

I wish someone would pay me to just read Dostoyevsky. Every time I read something of his I want to re-read all the others as well.

[Boris239]

I'm not surprised, it's not exactly pro-socialism. I wonder, were all his other books encouraged in the USSR, or was he controversial?

The other three were studied if I'm not mistaken. I guess "Brothers Karamazov" a bit less than "Crime and Punishment" and "Idiot". And there are popular Soviet movies based on the books.

In "Idiot" one of the topics is that it's very sad that a man like Prince Myishkin(have no idea how to spell it, read the book in Russian) is considered an idiot. For soviet propaganda it's very convenient to portray the bourgeois society as the one that doesn't understand and accept REAL people

[ZATISHYA]

So do you speak mainly Russian or Ukrainian? :)

Ukraine speak usually on Russian. On Ukrainian speak, probably, only patriots.


Welcome to the forum anyway! I'll soon be in your country for a while, that's funny...


Yes welcome Zatishya. I too hope you enjoy our forum.

Thank You! I was reading Forum long time, but write decided only today.

[Boris239]

Hi Zatishya!
I also enjoy "Master and Margarita" and other Bulgakov's books.
I want to ask: at school have you mostly studied Russian authors or the emphasis was on the Ukrainian literature?
About the language: from what I know it depends on what part of Ukraine you are from. In Eastern Ukraine almost everybody speaks Russian, but in Western(like Lvov) most people speak Ukrainian. I have a friend from Dnepropetrovsk- she speaks Russian with me, but Ukrainian with her boyfriend who is from Western Ukraine

[Koa]

I think the whole work of Dostoevsky wasn't well considered, even if maybe not all of his books were banned...



About the language: from what I know it depends on what part of Ukraine you are from. In Eastern Ukraine almost everybody speaks Russian, but in Western(like Lvov) most people speak Ukrainian. I have a friend from Dnepropetrovsk- she speaks Russian with me, but Ukrainian with her boyfriend who is from Western Ukraine

Yeah, I've been asking around for ages and especially now, and I always get that kind of answer :)

[emily655321]

Welcome, Zatishya! :wave:

It's funny, my boyfriend was just telling me today about "Master and Margarita" and how much he liked it. He used it as an example of the work of two famously good translators, but now I forget their names. Oh, well. :D Anyway, he has the book, so I should ask to borrow it from him. :nod:

[Scheherazade]

Hello! Would you be so kind, accept me for yours Forum.

Dear, read Mikhail Bulgakov "The Master and Margarita". You shall unforgettable pleasure!Welcome to the Forum, Zatisha! :)

I read Master and Margarita last year and I can easily say that it is one of the best books I have ever read.

Another discussion thread on it: http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12896&highlight=master+margarita

[SleepyWitch]

ПРИВЕТ, КАК ДЕЛА?
Я ОЧЕНЬ РАДА ТЕБЯ УВИДЕТ

or something like that at any rate :)
hi Zatishya, welcome to the forum

[ZATISHYA]

Ladies and gentlemen, thank You very much for greeting! ;-)

My favourite words of novel is "Manuscripts don't burn." ... but what, this words proudly sounding on Russian lang.. You should hear!



I want to ask: at school have you mostly studied Russian authors or the emphasis was on the Ukrainian literature?

Yes, in school emphasis was on the Ukrainian literature, but in our literature too much struggle for independence of Ukraine. But Russian literature another thing...

[Taliesin]

Pasternak "Doctor Zhivago", sholohov "Quiet Don", Grossman "Life and Destiny", Ribakov "Children of Arbat" and "Heavy sand", Voynovich's "Adventures of soldgier Chonkin", Strugazkiy's brothers "It's difficult to be a God" are books among 20th century russian literature that I'd especially recommend to try.

Sorry for the long message

*emphasis ours*

Finally we meet someone here who has read Strugatskis!

Personally, we prefer the Maksim Kammerer trilogy, especially "Waves put out the Wind", since they are not so bleakly pessimistic, but "Hard to be God" is definitely a very good work too.

[Boris239]

I like a lot of Strugatskiys' books. "Monday starts on Saturday" is very good, "A doomed city" is one of the best antiutopias I've read. "Hard to be God" is just my favorite. Unfortunately the old soviet movie was horrible.

[Koa]

*emphasis mine*


Ehm... shouldn't this have been "emphasis ours"? ;)

[Taliesin]

Drat!
We will now edit the post and say that this had never happened.

This never happened!

[Koa]

*forgets it ever happened*

[zwag]

Hey,
Have you ever read the Russian book with the peom called the poem of the grand inquisiter? I haven't read the book but I've read the exerpt from it on the web just recently where it says that a man kisses his brother Ivan sitently on the lips. I think this is a beautiful greeting if it can be done betwen men as nothing more than that, especially if the men are flesh and blood brothers. Does anyone know if men in the Russian Orthadox church greet like that in Russia? If so, is anyone here from Russia and do you go to that church and do that?

[Mark F.]

I adored "Devils". Possibly even more than Crime & Punishment (I haven't read the other two yet). It's part of the reason why I decided to study Russian..

I just finished reading "The Possessed" yesterday, I enjoyed it as much as "The Idiot" but not as much as "Crime and Punishment". One you didn't mention is "Notes From the Underground" which is probably my favourite of Dostoevsky's books.

[zwag]

Hey,
Does anyone know aout the book called the Karamazov brothers?" I want to meet a man who has a brother he kisses on hte lips as a greeting like the nice man that does the kissing in that Russian literature book.

[bazarov]

Hey,
Have you ever read the Russian book with the peom called the poem of the grand inquisiter? I haven't read the book but I've read the exerpt from it on the web just recently where it says that a man kisses his brother Ivan sitently on the lips. I think this is a beautiful greeting if it can be done betwen men as nothing more than that, especially if the men are flesh and blood brothers. Does anyone know if men in the Russian Orthadox church greet like that in Russia? If so, is anyone here from Russia and do you go to that church and do that?
It's Brothers Karamazov from Fyodor Dostoevsky, and no, they don't do that regulary in Orthodox church. Why are you so interested about that???

[Behemoth]

Hello!! First post!! My favourite Russian work at present would have to be the Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (hence the screen name :nod: ) I think it's a brilliant work of satire and it defies the conventions of its time. I also love ANYTHING by Pushkin, specifically Evgeny Onegin and The Queen of Spades.

[pleb17]

I am looking for a good wartime romance novel. I particularly love reading about the Russian wars. Any suggestions would be appreciated

[Idril]

Well, there's always War and Peace by Tolstoy which takes place during the war of 1812. Then you could go with Quiet Flows the Don by Sholohkov which features, amoung other things, the romance of Gregor and Aksinia along with the Russian Revolution and the Civil War that followed. Quiet Flows the Don is written from the Cossacks point of view and for the most part, they fought with the Whites, if you want to look at that struggle from the Red point of view, you could go with the Fedin Trilogy, Early Joy, No Ordinary Summer and The Bonfire which is also called, The Conflagration. There's also Doctor Zhivago by Pasternak...again about the Revolution and the time afterwards. Those are the books that first spring to mind but I'm sure I'll come up with more after a bit. :)

[Nick Rubashov]

I find it unfortunate that it took me so long to get into Russian literature. The first novel I ever picked up from a Russian author was Darkness At Noon by Arthur Koestler a couple of months ago. I'm hooked. The book just knocked the breath out of me, it was so different than the American and English literature I was reading at the time. I can't wait to dive deeper into Russian lit. Wish I knew the language!

[Yelena]

I love Russian literature and I'm fortunate that I don't have to look for any translations. The originals are always better. I love the poetry of Zvetaeva and Akhmatova, and the prose by so many authors I cant even think of!

[Eagleheart]

You can try "How the steel was tempered" by Ostrovski...It features the The Great Patritioc war...If you are willing to shun the radiance of the "socialistic idealism" you may well detect the merits of the work, despite the colourful images of the now discredited communism.

[Kenny_Shovel]

I have quite a fondness for Russian literature. My review of Summer in Baden-Baden by Leonid Tsypkin can be found here:

http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showpost.php?p=313850&postcount=327

[Whifflingpin]

"I find it unfortunate that it took me so long to get into Russian literature. The first novel I ever picked up from a Russian author was Darkness At Noon by Arthur Koestler a couple of months ago."

Great book indeed.

But Koestler was not Russian - He was of Hungarian-Jewish origin, and from the early 1940s he lived in England.

http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/koestler.htm

[Boris239]

I'd also recommend "Life and Destiny" by Vassily Grossman

[Yelena]

If anyone is interested in psychology and philosophy, you might want to read Valery Sinelnikov's works...He has his PhD and he's still practising. The books are truelly interesting because of his extraordinary views and interesting stories from his own practise.

[rocket_pilot]

Russian Lit has got to be the best i've ever read. It doesn't compare to English lit, although I enjoy it very much, and I also agree, it's ashame I can't read russian because I bet the books are much more interesting. (O_O)y

[Sucdi]

I'm reading Crime and Punishment now and I find it to be very interesting. But to understand it I have to go back and reread chapters because it feels like I'm missing some points or key events. All in all, I believe that Crime and Punishment is really good.

[Elpis]

It's very interesting to read all your "remarks" about Russian literature:)
The topic I'd like to discuss is "Master & Margarita". I'm re-reading it right now (in Russian).

[Logos]

Hello Elpis

Below is a link to a discussion of Master and Margarita,
I guess if you're not finished it though you might want to
be careful reading it in case of spoilers :)

http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12896&highlight=master+margarita

[Elpis]

Thanks, but it seems to be "of 2d freshness":)
Anyway, I'll try it.

[olichka]

Russian literature is my favourite literature, as well. I think the reason a lot of people like it is because Russian writers describe their characters with so much sympathy, insight and love. There is a lot of warmth and humanity in most Russian works--particularly the 19th century ones---be it in the character development, in the description of scenes and nature, or the philosophizing which makes you feel as if you're reading about real life and living it in the moment that it's happening, rather than post-factum, "remembered" descriptions.

Tolstoy is a great master of this technique, and it's also interesting that while being very realistic in his descriptions and character development, he's also great at poeticizing the situations which imbibe them with more importance and meaning. That, I think, is also a characteristic of most Russian works---the simplest event or character is presented as very unique or special and, in turn, memorable.

This particular technique is what makes a big difference between works like "Anna Karenina" and "Madame Bovary". Although the intrigue and the situations are similar, the character of Anna Karenina creates the impression of a multi-dimensional, flesh-and-blood individual, whereas Emma Bovary lacks to a great degree individuality and uniqueness. The whole work of "Anna Kareinina" sparkles, despite the tragedy of its heroine, whereas " Madame Bovary" , although detailed and insightful, is a somewhat dull and pessimistic work.

[Demona]

A tough question: what do you think about Russian lit?
I think it is great on the one hand and terrible on the other. Just as any other. There're its heroes and those who have failed. It's just a matter of taste. I enjoy reading in Russian once in a while, but I confess I read the old stuff...so, if anyone's willing to recommend works of contemporary authors--please do!

[Moira]

Among Russian classics i love Dostoievsky and Lermontov's poems. Dostoievsky is the best ever, one can almost say he is contemporary. I wolud be interested to read something modern though, so if someone has some recommandations that would be much appreciated.

Bye

[.closed.]

I can unreservedly say that 19th century is the finest for literature. However Tolstoy, Turgenev, Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, Chekhov, Goncharov et al excelled in creating timeless themes and characters. Russian novels and novellas of this period were social and political commentaries for people who wanted to express their ideas and thoughts.

[olichka]

I can unreservedly say that 19th century is the finest for literature. However Tolstoy, Turgenev, Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, Chekhov, Goncharov et al excelled in creating timeless themes and characters. Russian novels and novellas of this period were social and political commentaries for people who wanted to express their ideas and thoughts.


I fully agree with you ! I think that Russian writers created a wonderful world of flesh-and-blood characters. They're so real that one can even speculate about their further growth once the book is finished. I take it from your user name that you really like Prince Andrei ( is that the Bolkonsky one ? ). Now, there's a character that captures the imagination !

What do you think his life would have been like if he didn't die at that particular place in the book ?

[Robert Jordan]

The Russians were obsessed with delving into human interaction and the psyche. They probably did it better than anyone. Just read a book like The Idiot by Dostoevsky or Ward.9 and other stories by Chekov or Fathers and Sons by Turgenev. Russian stories are bleak and very psychological. They are also some of the most well crafted as far as characterization and dialogue goes. This is just my opinion, but I really believe that Russia produced the best and most abundant authors of the 19th century.

[Spiros]

I believe that the Russian literature, specifically in Dostoyevsky’s work, has made unrivalled the effort to underline the reactions of human souls who are under pressure. The heroes are almost between options of morality or religious issues that make them feel unstable. That creates a state of isolation and misery for them and thanks to Russian authors we are able to see those people of the 19th century to strive for a better life under Tsar government.
Anyway, the point is what one likes to read and help him feel nice or live him in a soul-searching situation.

Has anyone read Greek literature?

[.closed.]

Olichka

Prince Andrei Bolonsky was my favourite character from Tolstoy's masterpiece War and Peace. If Tolstoy did not kill off Andrei in a valiant but rather slow and painful death I think he would have lived an unhappy life, growing old and cynical. Andrei was searching for the meaning of life and found peace and maybe happiness in the last few days alive.

A part from War and Peace, which still touches me deeply, is scene between the eccentric Prince and his daughter Maria Bolkonskaya. The Old Prince calls for his daughter when he is dieing to try and explain that he may have seemed like an overbearing father but it was because he loved her. Just thinking about this makes me emotional.


I fully agree with you ! I think that Russian writers created a wonderful world of flesh-and-blood characters. They're so real that one can even speculate about their further growth once the book is finished. I take it from your user name that you really like Prince Andrei ( is that the Bolkonsky one ? ). Now, there's a character that captures the imagination !

What do you think his life would have been like if he didn't die at that particular place in the book ?

Olichka

Prince Andrei Bolonsky was my favourite character from Tolstoy's masterpiece War and Peace. If Tolstoy did not kill off Andrei in a valiant but rather slow and painful death I think he would have lived an unhappy life, growing old and cynical. Andrei was searching for the meaning of life and found peace and maybe happiness in the last few days alive.

A part from War and Peace, which still touches me deeply, is scene between the eccentric Prince and his daughter Maria Bolkonskaya. The Old Prince calls for his daughter when he is dieing to try and explain that he may have seemed like an overbearing father but it was because he loved her. Just thinking about this makes me emotional.

[rielgenius1688]

If you are going to read Russian, you have to read The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky. It is by far the best book I have ever read.

[Simao]

I have been checking these forums for quite some time now but I never really posted anything. I want some advise from people who are interested in reading Russina Litrature in the old days (Dostoevskey and Tolstoy's days) I have read War and Peace and Anna karanina for Tostloy and Crime and Punishment and The Brothers karmazov for Dostoevesky but I was wondering if there are any other famous novels/novelists from that era and I really would appreciate if anyone would suggest a few for me.
Thank you in advance :yawnb:

[Etienne]

There's already a topic on this but here's some...

Gogol - Petersburg Tales, Dead Souls, The Revizor
Gontcharov - Oblomov
Dostoevsky - The Idiot, Notes from the Underground, The Possessed, The Gambler
Tolstoy - Resurrection, The Death of Ivan Illitch, The Cossacks
Lermontov - A Hero of Our Time
Turgenev - Fathers and Sons
Chekhov - Short Stories and Plays
Pushkin - Eugene Onegin, Short Stories

[bazarov]

Adding:
Dostoevsky - Notes from Dead House, Injured and Insulted, Adolescent, The Double
Tolstoy - Childhood, Boyhood, Youth


Pushkin isn't from their time but Boris Godunov, Captain's daughter, Mozart and Salieri are also some of his famous works.

[Nico87]

This thread can probably be of some help;

http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29370

[Etienne]

Pushkin (and Lermontov as well) is still 19th century, and he didn't mention any specific generation.

[grace86]

Thanks for starting the thread, and thanks Nico for adding the link. Reminding me of my love for Russian literature

I very highly recommend Crime and Punishment. I think it actually took me a whole summer to get through, which is unusual, but it is so worth it. At times it is a little depressing, but after completing it and looking at the novel as a whole, it is so wonderful to have read it.

[Simao]

Thanks guys for the suggestions ^^ and the link. I am trying right now to find translations for the novels mentioned especially Dead Souls. I hope I can find any here.



I very highly recommend Crime and Punishment. I think it actually took me a whole summer to get through, which is unusual, but it is so worth it. At times it is a little depressing, but after completing it and looking at the novel as a whole, it is so wonderful to have read it.

I read Crime and Punishment already and it was really good and intense at some points and yeah it was kindda depressing but that's how I like them lol.

[bazarov]

I want some advise from people who are interested in reading Russina Litrature in the old days (Dostoevskey and Tolstoy's days)

He did specify, a little bit.

[Nico87]

Simao, if you like hardcovers, I suggest you get those russian books you want from Everyman's Library. They never seem to fail with their translations.

Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky has translated most of the classic russian books published by Everyman's Library, Dead Souls too.

You can find most of Everyman's Library's books on www.amazon.co.uk and www.amazon.com for a decent price.

[mansoor alam]

hi simao, i am from pakistan.i appreciate your in interest in tolstoy and dostovesky.keeping in mind your interest i would advise you a short novel of tolstoy.it is none than ''the death of ivan illych''.though i have not read tolstoy's other novels,but i till you that after reading the above novel i went berserk. i remember i wrote this after reading it for the first time '' THERE IS NO NEED TO READ OTHER NOVELS''

[Simao]

I am looking for arabic translations everywhere for some of Dostoevsky's work but can't find any except the ones I already read :flare: .. Do they by any chance sell books translated to other languages in Amazon or ebay etc? I only saw english transaltions but if anyone saw or bought please tell me.
Thank you.

[Nico87]

I'm afraid the books on amazon are in English language only.

[Etienne]

though i have not read tolstoy's other novels,but i till you that after reading the above novel i went berserk. i remember i wrote this after reading it for the first time '' THERE IS NO NEED TO READ OTHER NOVELS''

"There is no need to read other novels"... what the hell... even after admitting yourself that you haven't read any other by Tolstoy. I'd add this in a list of ridiculous quotes if I held one..

[Nico87]

Haha, well said, Etienne!

[JBI]

Correction, Pushkin and Lermontov are 19th century.

[Etienne]

Correction, Pushkin and Lermontov are 19th century.

Yes sorry, that's what I meant, it's corrected.

[mS_?]

Nikolai Gogol's Dead Souls is one of the better books I've read.

[B-Mental]

"There is no need to read other novels"... what the hell... even after admitting yourself that you haven't read any other by Tolstoy. I'd add this in a list of ridiculous quotes if I held one..

Mansoor was merely stating that the book was masterfully written. The Death of Ivan Illych is an incredible book and you either get it or you don't. I believe that Mansoor gets it. Nothing ridiculous about the quote, that book is overwhelming.

Of course I'll recommend it to you, you'll read it, and then you'll complain because you don't get it, and I'll be to blame. Thats when my signature comes in handy.

[Simao]

I guess I could try reading an english version but I was wondering if they have the old english language like saying for example the "thou" "art" words because I don't think I'll get that lol.

[bazarov]

Correction, Pushkin and Lermontov are 19th century.
But they are not realism, they are romantism.

[Etienne]

Of course I'll recommend it to you, you'll read it, and then you'll complain because you don't get it, and I'll be to blame. Thats when my signature comes in handy.

But I have read it and I loved it.

[Nico87]

I guess I could try reading an english version but I was wondering if they have the old english language like saying for example the "thou" "art" words because I don't think I'll get that lol.

Most of the books are translated into what we call modern english, e.g "you are" instead of "thou art".

[Dori]

Can anyone recommend some Russian Literature? My current collection is comprised of the following:

Chekhov ~ Selected Stories
Dostoevsky ~ The Idiot ~ Crime and Punishment ~ The Brothers Karamazov ~ The Double ~ Notes from Underground ~ The House of the Dead ~ The Meek One ~ Poor Folk ~ White Nights
Tolstoy ~ Anna Karenina ~ War and Peace ~ The Death of Ivan Ilych
Boris Pasternak ~ Dr. Zhivago

My collection could probably use some Pushkin and Gogol, but what else should I add?\

P.S.: Also, if you have a translation preference, please mention it.

[bazarov]

Dostoevsky - The Possessed (must have), The Gambler
Pushkin - Eugene Onegin (must have)
Turgenev - Fathers and Sons
Bulgakov- Master and Margarita
Gogol - Dead Souls, The Cloak
Nabokov (maybe he is considered as an American writer) - Lolita, Ada
Lermontov - The Hero of Our Times

[Dori]

I forgot to mention I had Fathers and Sons by Turgenev. Thanks for the other recommendations.

[Idril]

I would add Mikhail Sholokhov's Quiet Flows the Don and Gogol's Taras Bulba to Baz's list and then I think you'd be good for awhile. ;)

[Etienne]

Gontcharov's Oblomov is a must as well.

[Old Crow]

Can anyone recommend some Russian Literature? My current collection is comprised of the following:

Chekhov ~ Selected Stories
Dostoevsky ~ The Idiot ~ Crime and Punishment ~ The Brothers Karamazov ~ The Double ~ Notes from Underground ~ The House of the Dead ~ The Meek One ~ Poor Folk ~ White Nights
Tolstoy ~ Anna Karenina ~ War and Peace ~ The Death of Ivan Ilych
Boris Pasternak ~ Dr. Zhivago

My collection could probably use some Pushkin and Gogol, but what else should I add?\

P.S.: Also, if you have a translation preference, please mention it.

The short stories of Isaac Babel. Cannot reccomend these enough.

Some of the major works of Solzhenytsin (I always have trouble spelling his name.): One day in the life of Ivan Denisovich is probably his most digestable work, but personally, I find some of his speeches on Western culture (after he moved to America) more interesting.

[Dori]

Thanks Idril, Etienne, and Old Crow for your suggestions. I'll be on the look out for them :) .

[MGegishov]

I think you have a wonderful collection so far. I would certainly add Lermontov's A Hero of Our Time and possibly The Romance of Leonardo de Vinci by Merejkowski. There is also Chandler's Russian Short Stories. And, of course, one mustn't forget, although you can if you like, Dr. Zhavago.

[Etienne]

I think you have a wonderful collection so far. I would certainly add Lermontov's A Hero of Our Time and possibly The Romance of Leonardo de Vinci by Merejkowski. There is also Chandler's Russian Short Stories. And, of course, one mustn't forget, although you can if you like, Dr. Zhavago.

I started reading The Birth of Gods (or Tuthakanmun) by Merejkovsky and I don't think it's that great. It's not bad by any stretch of imagination, but I was expecting something better. Petersburg by Biely is supposed, according to Nabokov, to be be great, I'm still on the look for it as it's really hard to get (in french, in english it's easier) and the only edition of it is expensive (it's not pocket format) but I'm going to order it this week.

The russian symbolists are quite hard to get our hands on in the west, but I'm trying to.

[ex ponto]

Maybe the climate affects the writing

actualy, in Jakutsk they got - 70 deegrees celsius.

Well, that's just not possible.

[Dori]

Has anyone read " Doctor Zjivago" ?

I'm not sure if you still visit this forum, Pantelej, but I am currently reading this book.


There's one thing about many storys written by russians: many of them are full of french quotes. And if you can't speak french you'll have to check them up in the end
of the books, if there is such thing as a index of french quotes used in the book at all.

Personally, I like having the French phrases not translated for me. It's the one part of the book I can read in the original. :p


I started reading The Birth of Gods (or Tuthakanmun) by Merejkovsky and I don't think it's that great. It's not bad by any stretch of imagination, but I was expecting something better. Petersburg by Biely is supposed, according to Nabokov, to be be great, I'm still on the look for it as it's really hard to get (in french, in english it's easier) and the only edition of it is expensive (it's not pocket format) but I'm going to order it this week.

The russian symbolists are quite hard to get our hands on in the west, but I'm trying to.

Forgive my ignorance, but who exactly are the "Russian symbolists"?

[bazarov]

Well, that's just not possible.

It is.

[Etienne]

Forgive my ignorance, but who exactly are the "Russian symbolists"?

Symbolism is an artistic movement, in France such poets as Baudelaire or Mallarmé were symbolists, but in Russia, the movement became strong in the early 20th century with writers such as Sologlub, Merejkovsky, Blok, Bely, etc. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_Symbolism


It is.

Indeed, the lowest temperature recorded is -89C in Antarctic. So -70 is very possible.

[Dorian Gray]

I'll be reading War and Peace this year. It's been gathering dust in my house so far but I will persevere!

[*Classic*Charm*]

Perfect timing for this thread! I've decided to make 2008 the year of the Russian authors for myself. I've The Master and Margarita. So far, I'm loving it but I'm not far in as I've just started school again.

[Kafka's Crow]

When I started reading, one of the earliest books that my father bought me was 'Russian Folk Tales', wonderful, wonderful book. It was printed in Moscow by the Publishing House for Foreign Languages. Absolutely fascinating stuff, The Bear and the Ploughman, Nakita the Tanner, Elia of Mooram, the dragons, the girl who rode a hare wearing a fishing net. Everything is etched on my brain. I haven't even seen the book in almost three decades. Then I moved on to 'grown up' Russian books in my Dad's library, starting with 'A Hero of Our Time' I was hardly 10 years old then. 'Taras Bulba' and 'Hadji Murad' followed. Then there was a long gap and I went back to Russian Literature in my late teens starting with no other book than the greatest, the most rewarding novel ever, 'The Brothers Karamazov' followed by all other Dostoevskian novels and moved on to 'War and Peace', 'Anna Karenina', 'Redemption', 'The Death of Ivan Illyich'. Then I read 'Fathers and Sons' and short stories by Turgenev, Read 'Overcoat', 'Doctor Zhivago', started reading 'And Quiet Flows the Dawn' but at that time things happened and I had to give up everything. Have been out of touch with the good old Russian literature for over a decade now and would love to go back. Somebody mentioned the French phrases in these books, well the memories of these lines in A Hero of Our Time led me to eventually learn the French language and I consider this a result of inspiration from the Russian novels, specially Lermontov's book. I would love to go back to these books. I have copies of 'The Master and the Margarita' and 'The Gulag Archipelago' waiting to be read and I think this is where I should make my comeback.

[bazarov]

started reading 'And Quiet Flows the Dawn'

It's Don, not Dawn (Dawn is something else on English:)). Impressive list, really! :thumbs_up

[Kafka's Crow]

It's Don, not Dawn (Dawn is something else on English:)). Impressive list, really! :thumbs_up

Thanks for the correction. It's been 12 years since I last saw my beloved four volume set of Sholokhov's masterpiece. It was a Soviet publication, published by the excellent Foreign Language Publishing House in Moscow. It had pictures and a very sturdy binding. They produced such excellent books. You could break somebody's head with those books, the binding used to be so strong.

[hellsapoppin]

I mentioned the following link on another thread but it is worth repeating:

http://www.sovlit.com/


This contains a great many examples of some of the very best literature created during Soviet times. Much of it features anti-Soviet writings.

[JoanS]

Since i have read the crime and punishment, i have started dedicating my life to the literature. Above all the Dostoievki's fiction has something magical..

[Tersely]

So far for me it has been Tolstoy's Anna Karenina. I read it before Oprah made it cool. Thats about as far as I've gotten with Russian Literature so I guess I can't say quite yet whether I find it good or not. A.K. was good though.

[ex ponto]

Symbolism is an artistic movement, in France such poets as Baudelaire or Mallarmé were symbolists, but in Russia, the movement became strong in the early 20th century with writers such as Sologlub, Merejkovsky, Blok, Bely, etc. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_Symbolism



Indeed, the lowest temperature recorded is -89C in Antarctic. So -70 is very possible.

Maybe I hastened to reply to that statement, but at the time I heard Russians on TV complaining about temperatures which in Siberia riched -55, so -70 seemed preety imposible to me.
Wikipedia mentiones -67, Britannica -68 as the lowest, so if the temperature was -70, it was rather extreme and disastrous.

[Idril]

I mentioned the following link on another thread but it is worth repeating:

http://www.sovlit.com/


This contains a great many examples of some of the very best literature created during Soviet times. Much of it features anti-Soviet writings.

That is a great site! I've really gotten into Soviet Lit and am always looking for new authors and new books so I've bookmarked that page and then I can refer to it when I do my book buying. Right now I'm reading The Foundation Pit by Andrey Platonov.

And Kafka's Crow, I love the Quiet Flows the Don series. I too have read all four volumes and count them among my favorites. I don't have the wonderful editions you have but they are cherished tomes nonetheless.

[Simao]

That is a great site! I've really gotten into Soviet Lit and am always looking for new authors and new books so I've bookmarked that page and then I can refer to it when I do my book buying. Right now I'm reading The Foundation Pit by Andrey Platonov.

And Kafka's Crow, I love the Quiet Flows the Don series. I too have read all four volumes and count them among my favorites. I don't have the wonderful editions you have but they are cherished tomes nonetheless.

I have read few pages of Quite Flows the Don but for someone reason it didn't click with me. For a Dostoyevsky lover and Russian literature in general, do you think that it is worth it to read it? I mean it is a long read after all and a huge commitment lol. Does it have arguments between characters about God, politics and other stuff? I really like novels with a touch of philoshpy here and there and if this one has that then I'll probably read it as well.

[Etienne]

And Quiet Flows the Don, is more an attempt to create a WW1 War and peace. It's not even close to doing it, however it's still very good. There is two part, the second is The Don Flows Home to the Sea and while I don't think it's as good as the first, it's still quite good. Don't worry about it being very didactic, it's not. It's also not very much psychological

[Idril]

I have read few pages of Quite Flows the Don but for someone reason it didn't click with me. For a Dostoyevsky lover and Russian literature in general, do you think that it is worth it to read it? I mean it is a long read after all and a huge commitment lol. Does it have arguments between characters about God, politics and other stuff? I really like novels with a touch of philoshpy here and there and if this one has that then I'll probably read it as well.

It's certainly not Dostoevsky but that doesn't mean it's not worthwhile. I do think it's an important book for a fan of Russian Literature to read because of the historical and societal aspect of it. A couple things that struck me about this book, first of all is the almost sensual language of Sholokhov. I'm not talking about sensual as in sexual, just an incredible appreciation of the land of the Don and the culture of the Cossacks. His descriptions are so evocative, along with seeing the scenes, you can almost smell and feel them. The other thing I really liked about it was the balance, the Reds don't come off that well and neither to the Whites. Both sides have their victories and defeats both in terms of war and morality. And Gregor is a wonderfully complex character. I really think it's worth persevering.

And there are actually 2 more books past The Don Flows Home To The Sea; Seeds of Tomorrow and Harvest on the Don. The last two are about the collectivization of the farms after the Civil War and they aren't as good but still culturally and historically interesting.

[eyemaker]

I wish I could read Russian lit in Russian instead of relying on translations :confused:

Russian Literature is indeed good! I have read some of those Russian novels and I find it interesting! Logos right...
However beautiful a translation is, it can never capture the original beauty of a manuscript. There is no translation even more than an approximation of the original; but the sound of the original is completely lost and only the sense is preserved.;)

I wish also I could read Russian stuffs too!:D
But I, myself love to read different Russian novels it's great!

Good Day everyone!!!:D :D :D :D

[Logos]

eyemaker, I posted just the other day regarding translations in this topic:
http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31955

I think I will re-post it here :)

--

By the efforts of Constance Clara Garnett (1861–1946) readers in North America, Europe, etc. were finally able to access Russian literature. She was educated at Cambridge, obtained first class, and qualified for a BA; but as was the Victorian more at the time regarding women not awarded a degree.

She was a distinguished librarian, taught, and was friends with many literary types of the day including Y. B. Yeats, D. H. Lawrence, and Joseph Conrad. She was also friends with Russian journalist Felix Volkhovsky, in exile in England at the time. He was the one who taught her Russian and assisted her in her first translations. She also met many other Russian revolutionary figures and writers and travelled to Russia a few times.

Her first translations appeared in 1894. She also translated Tolstoy, Goncharov, Chekhov, Gogol, Turgenev, Rudin etc. It was her work on Dostoyevsky, published first in 1912, that brought her much acclaim.

From the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography:

http://www.oxforddnb.com/

"Constance Garnett's requirements for a good translation were sympathy for the author and a love of words and their meanings. She herself had faults: her dialogues are sometimes stiff; her transliteration of Russian names is illogical and inconsistent; she makes many errors. But the speed at which she worked, which was partly to blame for these, allowed her to maintain stylistic unity. Her descriptive passages are often exquisitely done and she eschews linguistic fads or slang. Conrad, for whom Turgenev was Constance Garnett, compared her to a great musician interpreting a great composer. For Katherine Mansfield, Constance Garnett transformed the lives of younger authors by revealing a new world. Without her translations, H. E. Bates believed, modern English literature itself could not have been what it is (Bates, 120)."

--

So, yes, her works have been heavily criticised *since*, but she was a remarkable figure in her devotion to Russian culture and literature, and the first person to translate many works we now have access to today--many of which are still the English standard--most still in print (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/102-5157993-1569761?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Constance+Garnett&x=0&y=0).

--

[Latin]

I do think it's an important book for a fan of Russian Literature to read because of the historical and societal aspect of it.
Of course...Tastes differ...But....what I could tell...When The foreign reader "gets acquainted" with Russian literature, especially, 20 centuries...Sometimes it's hard to accept differing in many respects point of view on succession of events, which were interpreted in The western countries a little in another way..?...What do you think of it?..;)

[Idril]

Of course...Tastes differ...But....what I could tell...When The foreign reader "gets acquainted" with Russian literature, especially, 20 centuries...Sometimes it's hard to accept differing in many respects point of view on succession of events, which were interpreted in The western countries a little in another way..?...What do you think of it?..;)

I think that's exactly why it's a good thing to read those accounts, you can't trust the western media to get anything right ;) , especially when it comes to anything Soviet. As a child of the Cold War, I find it fascinating to see the other side, to get a fuller more balanced picture of events and to be able to see past Stalin and the Red Guard to the average Russian citizen of that time and what their experiences were.

[Latin]

As a child of the Cold War, I find it fascinating to see the other side, to get a fuller more balanced picture of events and to be able to see past Stalin and the Red Guard to the average Russian citizen of that time and what their experiences were.
You at once have understood to what I had a conversation....;)
Other mentality...;)
From this point of view the book undoubtedly is of interest..."The Gulag Archipelago" which was written by Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn...:thumbs_up... I have started to read it at school, but could not promote further 200 pages...It has appeared too hard for me...:bawling:
It is too much emotions,...

[Dori]

eyemaker, I posted just the other day regarding translations in this topic:
http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31955

I think I will re-post it here :)

--

By the efforts of Constance Clara Garnett (1861–1946) readers in North America, Europe, etc. were finally able to access Russian literature. She was educated at Cambridge, obtained first class, and qualified for a BA; but as was the Victorian more at the time regarding women not awarded a degree.

She was a distinguished librarian, taught, and was friends with many literary types of the day including Y. B. Yeats, D. H. Lawrence, and Joseph Conrad. She was also friends with Russian journalist Felix Volkhovsky, in exile in England at the time. He was the one who taught her Russian and assisted her in her first translations. She also met many other Russian revolutionary figures and writers and travelled to Russia a few times.

Her first translations appeared in 1894. She also translated Tolstoy, Goncharov, Chekhov, Gogol, Turgenev, Rudin etc. It was her work on Dostoyevsky, published first in 1912, that brought her much acclaim.

From the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography:

http://www.oxforddnb.com/

"Constance Garnett's requirements for a good translation were sympathy for the author and a love of words and their meanings. She herself had faults: her dialogues are sometimes stiff; her transliteration of Russian names is illogical and inconsistent; she makes many errors. But the speed at which she worked, which was partly to blame for these, allowed her to maintain stylistic unity. Her descriptive passages are often exquisitely done and she eschews linguistic fads or slang. Conrad, for whom Turgenev was Constance Garnett, compared her to a great musician interpreting a great composer. For Katherine Mansfield, Constance Garnett transformed the lives of younger authors by revealing a new world. Without her translations, H. E. Bates believed, modern English literature itself could not have been what it is (Bates, 120)."

--

So, yes, her works have been heavily criticised *since*, but she was a remarkable figure in her devotion to Russian culture and literature, and the first person to translate many works we now have access to today--many of which are still the English standard--most still in print (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/102-5157993-1569761?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Constance+Garnett&x=0&y=0).

--

Thanks, Logos, for posting this information. Personally, I like Constance Garnett as a translator. :)

[Idril]

From this point of view the book undoubtedly is of interest..."The Gulag Archipelago" which was written by Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn...:thumbs_up... I have started to read it at school, but could not promote further 200 pages...It has appeared too hard for me...:bawling:
It is too much emotions,...

I have read that book and it is very hard to read, very depressing. I certainly knew Stalin was a bad guy but I had no idea of the depth of the devastation. I would sometimes have to take breaks because it would become a little too overwhelming but I did eventually finish it.

[Zeruiah]

Thanks, Logos, for posting this information. Personally, I like Constance Garnett as a translator. :)

I hate to go off topic, but I'd like to ask you a question, Dori, being that you're a Hugoist and all. How do you feel about Charles E. Wilbour's translation of Les Miserables? I hear French is easily translated into English so I suspect not much meaning is lost from the original, but I've seen a lot of criticism on Wilbour (without any evidence to back these claims up, however). What do you think?

[Dori]

I hate to go off topic, but I'd like to ask you a question, Dori, being that you're a Hugoist and all. How do you feel about Charles E. Wilbour's translation of Les Miserables? I hear French is easily translated into English so I suspect not much meaning is lost from the original, but I've seen a lot of criticism on Wilbour (without any evidence to back these claims up, however). What do you think?

I like the Wilbur translation, although I'm hardly an expert on translations. :thumbs_up

[Latin]

There's one thing about many storys written by russians: many of them are full of french quotes.
It concerns to the Russian literature of times of Ekaterina Great and further....
Ekaterina corresponded in French with Diderot and other figures of The Age of Enlightenment...After war of 1812 " Russian have seen Paris " and have closely adjoined to the French culture...
Certainly, it concerned basically nobility..To children employed the French governesses... And, when they grew - they knew language in perfection (Pushkin - a good example))...so the majority of readable books, were in French and ...was considered by itself understood in a society to quote in French..
Ideas of the French revolution also have received the development in movement of Decembrists (Here again Pushkin too has distinguished))
In the end 19 - the beginnings of 20 centuries the situation has changed...
Russia has familiarized with Marx's ideas and Engels... During the Soviet authority - already German language was studied at schools...

[thelastmelon]

Since Russia is a part of Euroasia (both Europe and Asia) which of the contintents would Russia be considered as? I'm doing this project this year to read books by authors from every continent, and I have some russian writers on my to-read-list, but under what continent should they be placed?

And, what are the top three Russian writers in your opinion?

[Idril]

Since Russia is a part of Euroasia (both Europe and Asia) which of the contintents would Russia be considered as? I'm doing this project this year to read books by authors from every continent, and I have some russian writers on my to-read-list, but under what continent should they be placed?

And, what are the top three Russian writers in your opinion?

Those are darn good questions. I don't know what the official word is on what continent Russia is on but in my own mind, I use the Ural mountains to divide the country, to the west of the Urals, I consider that European, to the east, Asia.

And as for the 3 top Russian authors...that's really tough, there are so many. I guess it would depend on what era you want to go with, 19th century, Soviet, post Soviet. Maybe you would want to pick one author from each, I don't know. As for my opinion, for 19th Century, I would go with the 3 giants, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy and Turgenev...although that would leave out Pushkin and Gogol and that's almost blasphemous. For Soviet writers, I would go with Bulgakov, Solzhenitsyn, Sholokov...but then there's also Pasternak and Zamyatin, again, important writers it seems wrong to forget. Post Soviet is an era I haven't explored all that much yet, Pelevin is probably the author I've read the most of so that's really all I have for that era. I don't think I helped you at all but at least there are a few names to pick from. :lol:

[thelastmelon]

And as for the 3 top Russian authors...that's really tough, there are so many. I guess it would depend on what era you want to go with, 19th century, Soviet, post Soviet. Maybe you would want to pick one author from each, I don't know. As for my opinion, for 19th Century, I would go with the 3 giants, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy and Turgenev...although that would leave out Pushkin and Gogol and that's almost blasphemous. For Soviet writers, I would go with Bulgakov, Solzhenitsyn, Sholokov...but then there's also Pasternak and Zamyatin, again, important writers it seems wrong to forget. Post Soviet is an era I haven't explored all that much yet, Pelevin is probably the author I've read the most of so that's really all I have for that era. I don't think I helped you at all but at least there are a few names to pick from. :lol:

Haha, thanks for all the names! :)
I have plans to read The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov and Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. I've heard a lot of good things about them, but have never gotten around to actually read these books.

Are there any famous or good Russian female authors that anyone knows of? I can only think of male authors.

[Idril]

Are there any famous or good Russian female authors that anyone knows of? I can only think of male authors.

The only female Russian author I've read is Olga Grushin and while she was born and raised in Russia, she's a US citizen now so I don't know if she even counts. The book I read, The Dream Life of Sukhanov takes place in Russia so that's at least something but really, I'm afraid I can't help you much with that. :(

And the books you've pick so far are good choices. :thumbs_up

[Boris239]

Haha, thanks for all the names! :)
I have plans to read The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov and Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. I've heard a lot of good things about them, but have never gotten around to actually read these books.

Are there any famous or good Russian female authors that anyone knows of? I can only think of male authors.

Well there are Marina Tsvetaeva and Anna Akhmatova. They are poets though.

[hellsapoppin]

re www.sovlit.com

``That is a great site! I've really gotten into Soviet Lit and am always looking for new authors and new books so I've bookmarked that page and then I can refer to it when I do my book buying.``


I am thrilled to read your reply. Indeed, this is one of the greatest sites in the Internet.

While many people falsely attribute the decline of the Soviets to the West, it should always be noted that it erupted from within. There were many daring people who contributed to this and Tvardovsky is the one who should be greatly credited for starting it. While his name is largely unknown in the West, those of us who have always oppose Sovietism credit him more than anyone else for exposing the truth that led to its ultimate defeat.

[superunknown]

Russian literature is amazing. It was by a million miles the country with the best literary output during the 19th century, but of course there are many Russian lit classics from the 20th century. As someone much earlier said, I'm also studying Russian at university mainly because of its literature. I'm not at the level to start reading it in Russian yet, but hopefully within 2 years or so I will be. I've read:

Pushkin - Eugene Onegin
Dostoevsky - Crime and Punishment, The Brothers Karamazov
Tolstoy - The Death of Ivan Ilyich, War and Peace
Gogol - Collected Short Stories (Pevear & Volokhonsky)
Mikhail Bulgakov - The Heart of a Dog, The Master and Margarita

Loved every one of them.

I've yet to read any Pasternak, Sholokhov, Chekhov, Turgenev, Lermontov, Zamyatin, Gorky, Solzhenitsin, or Akhmatova.

[Etienne]

...and Bely.

[cyura]

(I kept posting this in the wrong place, but I've found you now...)
Here are some Russian historical novels which are hard to put down…

Jack Vosmerkin – The American (Джек Восьмеркин - Американец) and The Land of the Sun (Государство Солнца), by the late author Nikolai Grigorevich Smirnov (1890-1933). These books are ideal due to their simple to follow styles, yet appealing, well-developed plots. Smirnov allows the reader to re-live Russia’s Soviet era in Jack Vosmerkin, as well as the time of the tsars in Land of the Sun.

Some very brief summaries, but be sure to look at the free samples for more details:

JACK VOSMERKIN - THE AMERICAN is an epic tale about a Russian boy who travels around the globe by accident during the early Soviet years, returning to Russia to combine Russian and Western culture in a remarkable, never predictable journey.

THE LAND OF THE SUN lets the reader relive life in exile, starting in Kamchatka, during the age of Imperialism, and then takes its narrator, a Russian youth, far beyond Russia's borders, where he and his fellow countrymen must adapt to a life they'd never imagined, but never losing their Russian spirit.

See more information and free samples at:


I look forward to your comments about these books!

All the best,
Clay Juracsik

[blazeofglory]

Reading Russian books is really a matter of joy and they are illuminating immensely. As a matter of fact I like most of Russian writers and all are Russian short stories which are immensely rich in everything.

Tolstoy is really marvellous and I have always enjoyed reading his books from War and Peace to all his short stories.

Russian literature has been my all time favorite and I never got tired of reading.

[mangueken]

Count me in the group of those who love Russian Lit.
You can't go wrong with the classic masters, Pushkin, Chekov, Tolstoy and Dostoevsky. Almost every year I pick one of the novels of Tolstoy or Dostoevsky and put it on top of my "to read" stack. I always find something new with each reading. I haven't read that much by the contemporary Russian writers but some of the posts have piqued my curiosity about them. I'll be heading to the book store soon to see what I can find.

[Idril]

While many people falsely attribute the decline of the Soviets to the West, it should always be noted that it erupted from within. There were many daring people who contributed to this and Tvardovsky is the one who should be greatly credited for starting it. While his name is largely unknown in the West, those of us who have always oppose Sovietism credit him more than anyone else for exposing the truth that led to its ultimate defeat.

I read a book called The Anti-Soviet Soviet Union by Vladimir Voinovich and he mentioned Tvardovsky a few times. I haven't read any of his works yet but I am interested. I had a look on amazon and they don't have a lot of books by him but I was able to add one to my wish list along with a book or two by Ivan Bunin, he's another Soviet author I've heard a lot about but never read.

[blazeofglory]

Russian literature in point of fact great sources and Russian literature others in many respects. For instance I always admire Tolstoy for his famous book war and peace, for this is really a beautiful novel, and I like this book in all respect. Tolstoy has reached a height in literature few others have reached. He was really a serious man, and he has lived his life by setting an example. We know he was from a very prosperous family background, but he has attuned himself to servitude, and he had to suffer a lot owing to his dispute or clash with his family members, for he was living by the ideal they did not want at all.

[Melmoth]

I just read Crime and Punishment and I was just 'grabbed' by it!!
I strongly recommend it...

Those of you who know Dostoyevski... which of his books should I read next???

[Kafka's Crow]

I just read Crime and Punishment and I was just 'grabbed' by it!!
I strongly recommend it...

Those of you who know Dostoyevski... which of his books should I read next???

Just to whet your appetite a bit read Notes from the Underground. It is an excellent little book. Read it in one sitting and then go for the big ones. The Idiot is far better than Crime and Punishment but it moves slowly. A very slow but extremely rewarding book. Then you can move on to the Dady of them all, The Brothers Karamazov. Only War and Peace comes anywhere near it. Karamazov is a huge book but if you think Crime and Punishment is good, Karamazov would simply sweep you off your feet. Go for it, read Dostoevsky. You will never regret investing time in this one writer.

[jhonerliz]

Hi! I'm a newly English teacher here in Philippines and to be honest I discussed LAMENT by Anton Chekhov. I appreciated his short story and it also reflects to the Filipino values here so I can say that Russian literature is great.... I will also read other Russian lits..... :)

[Idril]

I just read Crime and Punishment and I was just 'grabbed' by it!!
I strongly recommend it...

Those of you who know Dostoyevski... which of his books should I read next???

And don't forget The Possessed...or Devils...or Demons, apparently the name had several translations. ;) It ranks right up there as one of my favorite Dostoevsky books along with Crime and Punishment.

[qspeechc]

What about lesser known works of Dostoevsky like "The Gambler"? Anyone read his lesser works? By 'lesser' I mean less well known of course.

[Idril]

I've read several of his short stories and novellas, The Gambler being one of them and it's brilliant.

[Red-Headed]

I think it is best to read Dostoyevsky in more modern translations. The best version of 'Crime & Punishment' in my opinion is David McDuff's.

[*Classic*Charm*]

I find it really difficult to get through the Russians, There have been a few that I've started and not finished. It's not that I'm not interested, as I'm reading for my own pleasure, and it's not that I don't appreciate the work because I will never ever consider myself well-read until I have thoroughly covered the Russians. Any idea why this could be?

[Kafka's Crow]

I find it really difficult to get through the Russians, There have been a few that I've started and not finished. It's not that I'm not interested, as I'm reading for my own pleasure, and it's not that I don't appreciate the work because I will never ever consider myself well-read until I have thoroughly covered the Russians. Any idea why this could be?

My case is totally different. I have never failed to finish a Russian novel. I can not get through an English novel to save my life. I read some during the course of my student years but could never finish anything for pleasure. I can read American novels, even contemporary English writing but can't read those 'classics' (Dickens, Hardy, the Brontes etc). Start with Lermontov's A Hero of Our Time and work your way up towards Dostoevsky and Tolstoy via Turgenev and Gogol reading short stories by Pushkin and Chekov's plays on your way when you feel tired of reading longer works.

I am planning to re-read Dostoevsky in near future.

[Remarkable]

Oh,I'm reading the second volume of "War and Peace" right now and I am absolutely loving it...I didn't expect this to happen,since the first half of the first book is not quite attractive,but now I am amazed...Absolutely!

[Bitterfly]

I find it really difficult to get through the Russians, There have been a few that I've started and not finished. It's not that I'm not interested, as I'm reading for my own pleasure, and it's not that I don't appreciate the work because I will never ever consider myself well-read until I have thoroughly covered the Russians. Any idea why this could be?

They're often difficult, as you said, and I think that's why!!:)
There are quite a few I didn't finish as well (The Idiot, for instance, or The Brothers Karamazov - but I read Crime and Punishment through to the end, as well as shorter ones by Dostoievsky; and I finished all of Solyenitzin's). I always tell myself I'll have time to take them up again one day, and that maybe I wasn't ready for them at the time...

Have you ever tried the shorter Russian novels? Lermontov, Pushkin, a few of Tolstoi (The Cossacks, The Kreutzer Sonata) and of Dostoievsky (Notes from the Underground...), Gogol (the St Petursberg's stories)... There are lots of those, and I sometimes have the impression they tend to be forgotten, shadowed as they are by the more famous longer works.

[wilbur lim]

Russian literature is the most prominent subject,there are a eclectic of these books being translated.I have hitherto read Russian literature books and they make the biggest portion of my stupendous library.

[andave_ya]

Russian literature is the most prominent subject,there are a eclectic of these books being translated.I have hitherto read Russian literature books and they make the biggest portion of my stupendous library.

hey wilbur, i just wanted to say that eventually I hope Russian Lit makes a large part of my library too. May I ask who is your favorite Russian author? Having begun reading Russian Literature less than a year ago, I am not very well-versed in it, but Dostoevsky is to me far more interesting than Tolstoy.

[*Classic*Charm*]

They're often difficult, as you said, and I think that's why!!:)
There are quite a few I didn't finish as well (The Idiot, for instance, or The Brothers Karamazov - but I read Crime and Punishment through to the end, as well as shorter ones by Dostoievsky; and I finished all of Solyenitzin's). I always tell myself I'll have time to take them up again one day, and that maybe I wasn't ready for them at the time...

Have you ever tried the shorter Russian novels? Lermontov, Pushkin, a few of Tolstoi (The Cossacks, The Kreutzer Sonata) and of Dostoievsky (Notes from the Underground...), Gogol (the St Petursberg's stories)... There are lots of those, and I sometimes have the impression they tend to be forgotten, shadowed as they are by the more famous longer works.

I actually ahven't read any of the shorter novels and short stories. I kind of just dove right in, starting with The Master and Margarita, as well as The Brothers Karamazov. Neither worked out particularly well. I'm going to try them again later..It was really disappointing though.

[Bitterfly]

I actually ahven't read any of the shorter novels and short stories. I kind of just dove right in, starting with The Master and Margarita, as well as The Brothers Karamazov. Neither worked out particularly well. I'm going to try them again later..It was really disappointing though.

It's quite normal: they're practically the hardest you could have chosen!!

Bulgakov wrote easier novels than The Master and Margarita, which is interesting but quite heavy-going; ditto for Dostoievsky's The Brothers Karamazov. I don't know whether it's a matter of personal taste, but I found Crime and Punishment far more accessible.
And do try Notes from the Underground - I really loved that book. Or A day in the Life of Ivan Denissovitch, a good place to start for Solyenitzyn. Or The Kreutzer Sonata, a beautiful (long) novella by Tolstoi, ifyou don't feel like starting straight off with Anna Karenina or War and Peace.
There are so many other Russian authors and works... it's really a pity to be disappointed by Russian literature only because you've chosen the "wrong" introductions to it... I know I went through a period when I was fascinated by them.

[Basil Valentine]

I've read pretty much everything Dostoevsky wrote over the last couple of years, and would definitely say that 'Crime & Punishment' is the best book to start off with. It's somehow easier reading than his other 'big' novels, and also more satisfying than his shorter work. If you don't enjoy it then I think it's unlikely that you'll like the heavier, more difficult to read stuff.

I'm now looking to expand my Russian reading as apart from lots of Dostoevsky and some Gogol (and Nabokov, don't know if he counts though...), I haven't read much else in the field. I keep thinking about giving 'War & Peace' a go, but am currently reluctant to commit myself to one big novel for ages... Any thoughts on other 'must read' Russian masters?

[Idril]

I'm now looking to expand my Russian reading as apart from lots of Dostoevsky and some Gogol (and Nabokov, don't know if he counts though...), I haven't read much else in the field. I keep thinking about giving 'War & Peace' a go, but am currently reluctant to commit myself to one big novel for ages... Any thoughts on other 'must read' Russian masters?

War and Peace is a truly amazing book. I would put it on your list for a rainy day...or 50 ;) but do read, you won't be disappointed.

Are you looking for 19th century Russian or any era? A wonderful 19th Century author is Ivan Turgenev. He writes these short little books but are able to capture that era and society so succinctly and yet they are incredibly astute commentaries on the times. Fathers and Sons is a must read book and another favorite Turgenev book for me was On The Eve although you really can't go wrong with any of his works.

A couple of other worthwhile 19th century novels are Oblomov by Ivan Goncharov, it's a little slow to begin with but stick with it and you will be richly rewarded...and The Golovlyov Family by M.E. Saltykov.

[Basil Valentine]

War and Peace is a truly amazing book. I would put it on your list for a rainy day...or 50 ;) but do read, you won't be disappointed.

Are you looking for 19th century Russian or any era? A wonderful 19th Century author is Ivan Turgenev. He writes these short little books but are able to capture that era and society so succinctly and yet they are incredibly astute commentaries on the times. Fathers and Sons is a must read book and another favorite Turgenev book for me was On The Eve although you really can't go wrong with any of his works.

A couple of other worthwhile 19th century novels are Oblomov by Ivan Goncharov, it's a little slow to begin with but stick with it and you will be richly rewarded...and The Golovlyov Family by M.E. Saltykov.

Great! Thanks a lot for the recommendations (and yes, I was mainly thinking of 19th century authors). I'll admit I was a little put off Turgenev because of Dostoevsky's attitude towards him, and satire of him, in 'Demons', but I still felt 'Fathers and Sons' was something I should really read at some point. I've never even heard of Goncharov or Saltykov, and both the books you mention look very interesting.

[Etienne]

"A couple of other worthwhile 19th century novels are Oblomov by Ivan Goncharov, it's a little slow to begin with but stick with it and you will be richly rewarded..."

I didn't think it was "slow" to begin, I think the beginning was in fact rather funny.

[Idril]

Great! Thanks a lot for the recommendations (and yes, I was mainly thinking of 19th century authors). I'll admit I was a little put off Turgenev because of Dostoevsky's attitude towards him, and satire of him, in 'Demons', but I still felt 'Fathers and Sons' was something I should really read at some point. I've never even heard of Goncharov or Saltykov, and both the books you mention look very interesting.

I had the good fortune to read Turgenev before I knew anything of the man or others' opinion of him so I had a very open mind. There is no denying that he was a "Dandy". We was a very "European" Russian and lived his life somewhat extravagantly and I have little problem understanding why Dostoevsky disliked him so, he was, in many ways, the epitome of what Dostoevsky railed against...however, that doesn't take away from his talent. He's a very different writer from Dostoevsky or Tolstoy, he doesn't have the same concerns, he isn't coming from the same place, neither is he looking towards the same place but he still has a lot to say and he says it very well and I think he opens the window to a different aspect of Russian society at that time.




I didn't think it was "slow" to begin, I think the beginning was in fact rather funny.

I just had a very hard time connecting with the character of Oblamov, he was such an incredibly superfluous human being and granted, that's kind of the point but it just got old for me quickly. There were certainly some amusing anecdotes but there came to be a time when I was wondering whether this was just going to be one long, clever story about how ridiculous this class of people were or if it was going to go somewhere a little deeper and of course, it went somewhere deeper and then it all fell into place but there were a few chapters where I struggled to keep my interest up.

[Etienne]

Well I had already discussed this in some thread about the book. Oblomov is a caricature, but he is a very good caricature actually. I think from what I got too many people judge him for how he acted rather than for what insight there is in such a caricature and for it's merit as a character.

I thought this book was genius.

[Idril]

I think you miss understand what I'm saying though, I'm not saying I don't like the book, I wouldn't recommend it if I didn't like it. I loved the book and I grew to love the character of Oblomov very much despite being luke warm about him in the beginning. There is much more depth to the character than is originally evident. There is a bigger picture that I didn't see in the beginning and that's a comment I've heard often when discussing this book so I was just pointing out that while it may seem light and fluffy to someone who is used to reading the heavy works of Dostoevsky, if you stick with it, you will be richly rewarded.

[bazarov]

Bulgakov wrote easier novels than The Master and Margarita, which is interesting but quite heavy-going; ditto for Dostoievsky's The Brothers Karamazov. I don't know whether it's a matter of personal taste, but I found Crime and Punishment far more accessible.
And do try Notes from the Underground - I really loved that book. Or A day in the Life of Ivan Denissovitch, a good place to start for Solyenitzyn. Or The Kreutzer Sonata, a beautiful (long) novella by Tolstoi, ifyou don't feel like starting straight off with Anna Karenina or War and Peace.


Notes are probably the hardest to start with, in my opinion; that's not even typical Dostoevsky. You should start with something from realism, and that would exclude Bulgakov and Solzhenitsyn. If you insist on Dostoevsky, start with C&P, and Anna Karenina is not hard; if you want Tolstoy.



I'm now looking to expand my Russian reading as apart from lots of Dostoevsky and some Gogol (and Nabokov, don't know if he counts though...), I haven't read much else in the field. I keep thinking about giving 'War & Peace' a go, but am currently reluctant to commit myself to one big novel for ages... Any thoughts on other 'must read' Russian masters?

Turgenev - Fathers and Sons
Pushkin - Eugene Onegin; novel in verse
Tolstoy - Anna Karenina, War and Peace
Goncharov - Oblomov
Lermontov - Here of our times
Pasternak - Dr Zhivago
Bulgakov - Master and Margarita

[*Classic*Charm*]

Thanks for all the recommendations- I'll try some of the novels you all recommended as being slightly easier and we'll go from there!!

[Azazel']

Sometimes the reason for not being able to fully understand or accept a piece of Russian literature, unfortunately, is that the reader is not a native Russian. The Russian Literature is very specific, and very often translators just can't transfer some particular notions, an atmosphere of the book to an interpreted text.

[Dr. Hill]

Russian literature is the reason I live.

[bazarov]

Russian literature is the reason I live.
I think we have the same problem: what to read after reading all Russians? I have no clue.:(

[Jeremiah Jazzz]

I'm dying to read Andrei Bely's Petersburg, but can't find it anywhere!! To the internet!

[Dr. Hill]

I think we have the same problem: what to read after reading all Russians? I have no clue.:(

Exactly! Someone with my dilemma.

[Bumbeli]

My problem seems to be, that after reading all of Dostoevsky, some Gogol, Resurrection by Tolstoy and some Turgenev, nowadays it takes a long time until I find a book which matches the tremendous quality these books have. Until recently I kept myself from reading Anna Karenina because I wanted to read it whenthere is nothing to do for university, but I just couldn't wait any longer, and now it's like I'm waiting the whole day to continue reading it. Absolutely amazing novel.

[Dori]

My problem seems to be, that after reading all of Dostoevsky, some Gogol, Resurrection by Tolstoy and some Turgenev, nowadays it takes a long time until I find a book which matches the tremendous quality these books have. Until recently I kept myself from reading Anna Karenina because I wanted to read it whenthere is nothing to do for university, but I just couldn't wait any longer, and now it's like I'm waiting the whole day to continue reading it. Absolutely amazing novel.

I'm reading Resurrection by Tolstoy right now. What a great book!

Read some Pushkin! Or perhaps some Chekhov. Pasternak?
Just throwing names out there. :D

[semi-fly]

Any recommendations on literature relating to or pertaining to the the February and October revolutions of 1917? If not those specific Revolution(s) what about the 1905 Revolution?

[Dori]

Any recommendations on literature relating to or pertaining to the the February and October revolutions of 1917? If not those specific Revolution(s) what about the 1905 Revolution?

Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak. :)

[Emil Miller]

Any recommendations on literature relating to or pertaining to the the February and October revolutions of 1917? If not those specific Revolution(s) what about the 1905 Revolution?

The White Guard by Mikhail Boulgakov is outstanding.

[semi-fly]

For the two books mentioned above (The White Guard by Mikhail Boulgakov & Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak) are there specific translations I should be on the lookout for that are true to the original language?

[Dori]

For the two books mentioned above (The White Guard by Mikhail Boulgakov & Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak) are there specific translations I should be on the lookout for that are true to the original language?

I'm not sure. I own the Max Hayward / Manya Harari translation. "The Poems of Yurii Zhivago" are translated by Bernard Guilbert Guerney.

[Saladin]

I "found" russian literature for 2 years ago (of course my first insight with russian literature were Mr.Dostoevsky). To be honest i dont even rememeber what i read before that time that were actually extra-ordinary good. There is some few exceptions of good novels and plays i read before entering the "world of russian literature", like for example Hamsun and plays - Ibsen, Shakespeare.

So far after three years i have only read Dostoevsky, some Gogol short stories, and some Pushkins poems. I havent read one single line of Tolstoys works or Turgenev or Bulgakov or Pasternak or Lermontov for that sake, so i am looking forward to do it.

So i dont think i have the same "problem" as some other avid russian literature reader does. I have a long reading list for probably the next decade which is just russian literature.

[Emil Miller]

For the two books mentioned above (The White Guard by Mikhail Boulgakov & Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak) are there specific translations I should be on the lookout for that are true to the original language?

I cannot speak for English because I came across the book in a French translation when I was in Paris, but if it reads as well in English as it does in French, then it is worth seeking out an English translation.

[promtbr]

Russian literature is the reason I live.

On a personal aside, after seeing your early posts and more recent ones for a few months now and noticing that you were soaking up literature at such a rate and having such extreme interests (as per your posts referencing Oscar Wilde...) I thought to myself: "when he gets to Big D, Tolstoy and the russians, he's gone...

Welcome to the brotherhood..;)

As per the posted recommendations, they are ALL good. IMHO there is not too much in the way of a bad work by D and T, as well as all of Turgenev and Gogol.

I will throw out a Post-Revolution russian author who's work is WORSHIPPED by about any mid twentieth century author you probably admire:

Isaac Babel. He wrote a few series of short works, the best known are: The Red Calvary Stories and The Odessa Stories. He was executed by Stalin's secret police in 1944 at the age of 44 before he could finish his work.

In several polls of top literary authors listing their favorite and influential authors, Isaac Babel is listed near the top by about 70% of them.

Reading one of his stories will have the cossacks in your living room...

I can't recommend the recent Norton re-issue of Babel's The Collected Stories of enough...

[semi-fly]

How does Arkady and Boris Strugatsky stand up/compare to some of the other authors mentioned in this thread so far? Should they even be compared to the likes of Leo Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, etc.?

[dfloyd]

Since then I have read most of his works. Some I have read multiple times, inluding 'The Brothers Karamazov', 'Crime and Punishmewnt', "The Possessed', The Idiot', and the Gambler'. These I have read at least two times, The last Dostoevsky I read was 'A Raw Youth'. I have all of these in my peresonal library in finely bound, printed, and illustrated copies (Limited Editions Club). I have read many other Russian authors, but never 'War and Peace' Last year I watched three movies of 'War and Peace, including the Russian one with subtitles. Then I started reading the unabridged novel in two volumes published by the Folio Society. It wasn't hard to read, just long. Finished it a monthe ago, and I'm glad I finally got thru it.

I read Dr Zhivago in a paper back right after Pasternack won the Nobel prize. Finally got a nice copy 3 years ago, and reread with much pleasure.

[bazarov]

Any recommendations on literature relating to or pertaining to the the February and October revolutions of 1917? If not those specific Revolution(s) what about the 1905 Revolution?

Dr Zhivago by Pasternak, and maybe And Quiet Flows the Don by Sholokhov.




So far after three years i have only read Dostoevsky, some Gogol short stories, and some Pushkins poems. I havent read one single line of Tolstoys works or Turgenev or Bulgakov or Pasternak or Lermontov for that sake, so i am looking forward to do it.


You could use 3 years much better. :D

[Tyler Self]

I happened to fall in love with russian literature after reading "The Death of Ivan Ilyich." After that I read Doctor Zhivago (which I absolutely loved as well). I ended up highlighting a lot of passages in that book which had a particular impact on me. For example, when Lara was planning to shoot the guy (i can't remember his name) Pasternak remarked that (paraphrase): "She rediscovered her meaning in life. And was here to call everything by its right name." Not to mention the "A happiness not shared is not happiness at all."

After reading "Doctor Zhivago" I began to read "Anna Karenina" and that is where I am now. I want to pick up a copy of "Family Happiness" but I cannot find it anywhere. I realize it is on the internet but I absolutely cannot sit at my computer and read something like that.

[semi-fly]

After reading "Doctor Zhivago" I began to read "Anna Karenina" and that is where I am now. I want to pick up a copy of "Family Happiness" but I cannot find it anywhere. I realize it is on the internet but I absolutely cannot sit at my computer and read something like that.
Have you tried Half ("http://www.half.com), Barnes & Noble ("http://www.barnesandnoble.com) or Amazon ("http://www.amazon.com) or any number of internet retailers?

[Tyler Self]

^^I have a Barnes and Noble out where I live but cannot get there whenever I like (I am 17 and currently do not have a vehicle). I don't have a credit card either so internet retailers don't work as well.

It's only a matter of time anyway. :)

[shud-shee]

Dostoevsky and Tolstoi lose something essential in English. Can judge, for I'm from Russia.
Annensky said - we were tortured by Dostoevsky. And his "anguish" doesn't surge in translation.