Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak (1890 - 1960) is an epic Russian novel that takes place during the socialist revolution of 1905 and the years up to World War II. Philosophical and beautifully written, it is sometimes difficult to follow as it has a cast of thousands and everyone is known by about three or … Continue reading Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak (1957-8)
USSR
Cancer Ward by Alexander Solzhenitsyn (1966)
Russian author and Nobel Prize winner, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, completed his book Cancer Ward in 1966. English translations were published in 1968, and although book was banned in the Soviet Union, unauthorized Russian copies were distributed in samizdat.The story takes place in a male cancer ward of a Soviet hospital in the mid-1950's and revolves around … Continue reading Cancer Ward by Alexander Solzhenitsyn (1966)
Stalin: Russia's Man of Steel by Albert Marrin
Stalin must command our unconditional respect. In his own way he is a hell of a fellow. Stalin is half beast, half giant. Adolf Hitler, 1942 "A single death is a tragedy; a million deaths is a statistic." Joseph Stalin Stalin: Russia's Man of Steel by Albert Marrin is a … Continue reading Stalin: Russia's Man of Steel by Albert Marrin
The Year of the Russian Novels
This has been my year of the Russian novel. Mind you, I've only read three but the first two, The Brothers Karamazov and Crime and Punishment both by Fydor Dostoevsky were epics - not just because of the length of the books themselves but also due to the rambling narrative and the confusion of keeping … Continue reading The Year of the Russian Novels
journey & destination 