Subjects:  1. (Pavel)   2. 1985-1991   3. Biography   4. Europe - Russia & the Former Soviet Union   5. Foreign Relations   6. Historical - General   7. History   8. History: World   9. International Relations - General   10. Palazhchenko, P   11. Politics - Current Events   12. Soviet Union   13. Translators   14. Friends and associates   15. Gorbachev, Mikhail Sergeevich   16. Shevardnadze, Eduard Amvrosievich   

Customer Reviews (2)

It's No Accident
It's no accident that this novel ranks 1.5 millionth on Amazon in sales. It offers the reader nothing but relentless cruelty, hatred, depression, loveless relationships, one-dimensional characters, and repetitious writing. And in the middle of this book is an anti-French rant that asserts the French are inherently hypocritical because that is part of their culture and makes them civil, whereas Russian culture is more honest because it is directly crude, boorish, and spontaneous in its hypocrisy and stupidities. The matriach of this family is a greedy obsessed woman who gives nothing to her husband or children except reprimands for what she suspects them of doing, which is undermining her and stealing from her. She also expresses little regret at their deaths which she in no small measure has caused. Her husband is a bitter sickly man who never gets out of bed, and we learn precious little more about him. Her children are mere products of this loveless relationship except one, who is a greedy, conniving, religious hypocrite who manipulates his beliefs and words to take possession of everyone else's properties, including his mother's. He earns the name "bloodsucker," which is uttered into his purposely deaf ears again and again. In short, there is nothing redeeming in this novel, nothing that recommends it. The whole mixture can also be boiled under a flame and be reduced from over 300 pages to a third of that without missing a thing. If Chekov had written about this family, he would have produced a short story that might have had a point, but as this stands, I would stay very very far away from this work, unless you are a masochist who enjoys getting depressed.

Classic Russian literature
"The Golovlyov Family" by Shchedrin is an excellent book. I've read both American and English literature, but this is a whole new literature form that seems to have the best of both worlds; it has the vivid descriptions of English literature, yet the simplicity of American works, that is, there's no nonesense dialog of meaninglessness that's often found in English novels. My first thought at reading the book was how could a translation be SO good, and how good would the Russian version be?

There is much emotion in the book, and the feelings permeate or pulse out of the book, absorbing and drawing in the reader like a good book should. Although set in the 1800's at the time the first Russian revolution ( I'm by no means a historian by the way), the book is not heavily focused on politics as works of Orwell are. The political affairs are a very distant and small prop on this rich stage of a book.

When reading the book, however, I strongly recommend the note taking of names, because some characters are referred to by more than one name. It's not hard to follow if you jot a few reminders down when introduced to each character, this will save much confusion later.

On a final note, if you're reading this book, read it purely for it's own sake. This isn't an adventure book with a climax and an unbelievable series of events at the end, so if that's what you're expecting, you'll regret reading the book. However, if you're after some brilliantly rich literature, with excellent characters, settings, and unfoldings of events, then this is a book I highly recommend. It truly is a masterpiece. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Classics   2. Fiction   3. Fiction - General   4. Literary   5. Russian & Former Soviet Union   6. Russian Novel And Short Story   

Subjects:  1. Chess - General   2. Games   3. Games / Gamebooks / Crosswords   4. Games/Puzzles   5. Games / Chess   

Customer Reviews (1)

Lives cut tragically short, and painful losses all around
Tom Stoppard is arguably the single finest playwright of his generation, and the Coast of Utopia trilogy is a massive undertaking that in the hands of a less skilled author could have gone awry and badly. Stoppard though manages to make what could be a painfully pedantic history lesson into a moving portrayal of love, ideology, loss, and change.

Shipwreck is decidedly the most tragic of the three, the loss of innocence and the tragically young deaths of several characters are heart breaking, as is the way Stoppard deals the blow to the reader or audience. Vissarion Belinsky in particular lends a spark to the entire piece, and his desperation at finding the answer he has spent his life searching for is one of the most heart wrenching things I have ever read.

The history is neither dominate or secondary to the characterization here, rather Stoppard manages to make the historical events we know (or may not know) part and parcel of the volatile and fascinating lives of some of Russias greatest citizens. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1812-1870   2. 1814-1876   3. Anarchists   4. Bakunin, Mikhail Aleksandrovic   5. Drama   6. English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh   7. France   8. Herzen, Aleksandr,   9. Plays   10. Plays / Drama   11. Revolutionaries   12. Russians   

Subjects:  1. Attitudes   2. Authors, Russian   3. Essays   4. Foreign public opinion, Russia   5. Literary Collections   6. Literature - Classics / Criticism   7. Literature: Classics   8. National characteristics, Amer   9. National characteristics, American   10. Public opinion   11. Russia (Federation)   12. Russian & Former Soviet Union   13. United States   

Customer Reviews (1)

Highly recommended
This is a timely and much needed work to better understand the role and status of women in contemporary arab society. It gives great insight into contemporary culture and the writings of leading arab authors. A must!! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 20th century   2. Arabic literature   3. General   4. History and criticism   5. Literature - Classics / Criticism   6. Middle East - General   7. Middle Eastern   8. Social Science   9. Sociology   10. Sociology Of Women   11. Women Authors   12. Women In Literature   13. Women's Studies - General   14. Women's Studies - History   15. Women, Arab   

Subjects:  1. (Mikhail Mikhailovich),   2. 1895-1975   3. 20th century   4. Bakhtin, M. M   5. History   6. Language Arts / Linguistics / Literacy   7. Linguistics   8. Philology   9. Philosophy   10. Language Arts & Disciplines / Linguistics   

Customer Reviews (1)

Emotional and moving
These are the true stories of Mikhail Bulgakov, author of the Master and Margarita from the two years he spent as a medical intern in rural Russia. He vividly describes the loneliness and hardships of life in rural Russia, as well as resistence of the peasants to modern medical knowledge. He shows his inexperience, rudeness, and medical mistakes even more graphically, making one cringe for those under his knife or care. The best story, Morphine, recounts a descent into morphine addiction by the addict himself. This is emotional and moving, attributes that are missing from the tales Bulgakov tells himself. He seems to be fixated on his own suffering and his own value as a doctor and a human and doesn't show much sympathy for his patients or his fellow rural residents. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bulgakov, Mikhail Afanas§evich   2. Translations into English   

Customer Reviews (1)

Invaluable Study of Bakhtin's Work
The works of Mikhail Bakhtin which are presently available in English are quite uneven because of subject matter, different translators and translations, and because only some were meant to be published by Bakhtin himself. Also Bakhtin's focus and interpretation changed from his early writing to late in his career, thus creating conflicts. The whole of Bakhtin's work is well analyzed by Morson and Emerson in this coherent and comprehensive study. This is not an easy task. The Key Concepts are interpreted as being: Prosaics, Unfinalizabilty and Dialogue and are discussed in Part One. Part Two deals with the Problems of Authorship. Part Three, is in my opinion the most important, and is the Discussion of Theories of the Novel. Of particular interest here is the discussion of the Chronotope and its relation to the Bildungsroman and sense of becoming. As Bakhtin himself never defined the term "Chronotope", the authors here explore its relationship to Bakhtin's Bildngsroman fragment, and the concept of Time in the development of the Bildungsroman. They are correct in this assessment, but do not carry the idea far enough. In order to really understand Bakhtin one must read the books he cites from this genre. No study of Bakhtin seems to have done so thus far.

This book is useful to both readers fammilar with Bakhtin's work, or to those who want to use it as an introduction. Highly recommended. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. (Mikhail Mikhailovich),   2. 1895-1975   3. 20th century   4. Bakhtin, M. M   5. Criticism   6. History   7. History and criticism   8. Literary Criticism   9. Literature - Classics / Criticism   10. Prose literature   11. Semiotics & Theory   12. Theory, etc   

Customer Reviews (1)

Great drama works
Bulgakov is beloved for his novel "Master and Margarita", a surreal working of the Faust legend set in Stalinist Russia. These two plays "Flight" and "Bliss" show Bulgakov's real forte--drama. He authored plays (not published in his lifetime) and worked as a stage director (an assistant director, all he was allowed by the Soviet government, who knew him for an independent thinker.)

Both plays are very readable, despite the workaday translations. Bulgakov's flights of fancy and sarcasm (a future world without crime, for example) are comic yet scary. If you want to really get to know Bulgakov's work, these plays, plus "Heart of a Dog". "White Guard" and "Master and Margarita" make a good starting collection of his best works. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1891-1940   2. Bulgakov, Mikhail Afanasevich   3. Drama   4. Fiction   5. General   6. Poetry   7. Soviet Union   8. Translations into English   9. Modern fiction   

Customer Reviews (3)

A Strange Ambition
I'm kind of in mourning for Stoppard. He's still far and away the best, most natural writer of dialogue in the English language, and he still clearly possesses a very sharp-witted and perceptive understanding of human nature, and an ability to depict characters in such a way that you can se how even some fairly sophisticated and difficult ideas might have arisen from the distinctive quirks of their individual personalities, and vice versa.

But somewhere between _Indian Ink_ and _The Invention of Love_ he for some unfathomable reason decided that he was going to stop writing plays and start writing three-dimensional, illustrated history textbooks. Why?? It seems like such a misdirection of his abilities. I'm glad that as he ages gracefully, he's able to happily sail off to Byzantium, but I never asked to be taken onto the boat.

Stoppard's words joined to volatile and fascinating history
Tom Stoppard is arguably the single finest playwright of his generation, and the Coast of Utopia trilogy is a massive undertaking that in the hands of a less skilled author could have gone awry and badly. Stoppard though manages to make what could be a painfully pedantic history lesson into a moving portrayal of love, ideology, loss, and change.

Voyage is my personal favorite of the three, if only because Liubov Bakunin (sister of the anarchist Michael Bakunin) and Nicholas Stankevich (proponent of German philosophy in Russia) are so stunningly written and so absolutely endearing. The Bakunin sisters as a whole are a lovely treat, funny and charming and feminine but still remarkably intelligent and capable, something often missing from period fiction. Michael Bakunin, Nicholas Stankevich, Vissarion Belinksy, Ivan Turgenev and Alexander Herzen, all major historical figures in their own rights, are amazingly human, but manage to retain the spark of greatness that brought them to their success, even cut short as it was in the cases of Stankevich and Belinsky.

The history is neither dominate or secondary to the characterization here, rather Stoppard manages to make the historical events we know (or may not know) part and parcel of the volatile and fascinating lives of some of Russias greatest citizens.

The World According to Bakunin
Stoppard's latest work, the Coast of Utopia trilogy, purports to examine the great minds of Russian philosophy who have been forgotten by the west, the men who built up the age of revolutions.

Voyage focuses on the whirlwind that is Michael Bakunin, who will one day become a leading anarchist but who is now just an artillery student who would rather study the new German romantic philosophy with his friends Nicholas Stankevich and Vissarion Belinsky. Stankevich was the founder of the leading philosophical circle in 1830s Moscow, a circle that produced Soviet-beloved literary critic Belinsky and novelist Ivan Turgenev. Revolutionary writer Alexander Herzen makes a breif appearance, but his story is told in the second and third plays.

Voyage is the anomaly of the trilogy. It focuses on the Bakunin family, while the other two plays focus on Herzen. It tends to examine broader trends, while the second two are more personal. The rapidly changing world of philosophy, class conflict, the role of women in society are all examined through more than one character. In structure, the second two plays are far more typical. Voyage, in contrast, has a unique organization. The first act flows chronologically, beginning to end, in one locale -- the family estate of Premukhino. But the family does not spend all of their time at Premukhino. The children often travel to Moscow, and the second act takes place there and in St Petersburg, from beginning to end. Thus the second act fills in narrative gaps from the first, and references in the first are fully explained in the second, resulting in some complex but lovely jokes. At the end, a short epilogue returns the scene to Premukhino, a coda as is used in the other two plays at the ends of acts.

Stoppard's characters are vibrant, but on the page they lose some of the strength they had on stage. It is perhaps less thrilling to read than to have seen, and many of the jokes are visual. Much of Belinsky's odd charm is from his physical tics, and the scenes between Liubov and Stankevich are only effective when read at the right pace, without making light of the necessary pauses. But in any play, something is lost when not properly performed, and Voyage holds up quite well considering those limitations. I cannot rate it five stars because I was lucky enough to see the first preview of the world premiere, and the written text cannot compare to having seen Douglas Henshall, Raymond Coulthard, Will Keen, and Eve Best create such wonderful roles.

Nonetheless, Voyage is eminently readable and highly amusing, and the trilogy is addictive to anyone with an interest in the age of revolutions. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1812-1870   2. 1814-1876   3. Anarchists   4. Bakunin, Mikhail Aleksandrovic   5. Drama   6. English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh   7. Germany   8. Herzen, Aleksandr,   9. Plays   10. Plays / Drama   11. Revolutionaries   12. Russians   

Customer Reviews (1)

A clear, concise and even witty study
There are lots of lengthy academic tomes about Gorbachev and his time as Soviet leader, just as there are a fair number of readable but lightweight biographies. It is very refreshing to find a book which manages to be comprehensive and intelligent, but also accessible and even a pleasure to read. Short and sweet! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1931-   2. 1985-1991   3. Europe - Russia & the Former Soviet Union   4. Gorbachev, Mikhail Sergeevich,   5. History - General History   6. History: World   7. Politics and government   8. Soviet Union   

Subjects:  1. (Mikhail Mikhailovich),   2. Bakhtin, M. M   3. Composition & Creative Writing - Academic   4. Composition & Creative Writing - General   5. Education   6. English language   7. Language Arts & Disciplines   8. Language Arts / Linguistics / Literacy   9. Report writing   10. Rhetoric   11. Study and teaching   12. Study and teaching (Higher)   13. Writing Skills   

Customer Reviews (1)

Great book, for 2300+
I think this book is a fruit of combination between human intelligence and computer database. The auther gives profound analysis on every possible line of sozin and velimirovich attack, and you'll find many interesting ideas hidden in the GM games. The assessment of positons and lines is very objective, which distinguishes this one from "winning with xx" books, where authers don't mind giving wrong assessment on purpose.
In short, this book is a MUST if you are a FIDE titled player and play sicilian with either color. On the other hand, if you just want to grasp the general idea of Bc4 lines, you may be embarrassed, because the author tends to give only concrete lines. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Chess - General   2. Chess - Specific Strategies   3. Games   4. Games / Gamebooks / Crosswords   5. Games/Puzzles   

Customer Reviews (1)

beautiful
I first found this book on the shelf of my local library. I was the first person to check it out since 1994. This sums up the book, one has to have a deep love for literature to enjoy it. The story follows one character born in the early 1900s through WWI and the Revolution, Purges, and eventually WWII. The tale was nothing more than breath taking for me, it speaks with a voice so distant and numb, no vivid description, no drawn out situations. No, this book tells nearly 50 years of history and emotion without ever mentioning the words. I found this to be the true beauty of the novel. How Soloviev speaks so clearly, giving everything away, but at the same time, holding back what the reader hopes for. There is no way to describe it clearly but to say if you read it, you will be changed. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Literature - Classics / Criticism   2. Literature: Classics   3. Russian & Former Soviet Union   

Customer Reviews (5)

You need to have felt the USSR regime to understand this...
Bulgakov is certainly one of the best Russian writers, and 'The Theatre Novel' is certainly among his best works. Unfortunately, it's been translated in English as 'Black Snow', which changes the idea of the book quite a great deal - 'Black Snow' is the title of the novel written by Maxudov (the main character), but in this case Bulgakov doesn't mean that we are reading THAT novel. It is quite misleading; Maxudov's 'Black Snow' is NOT 'The Theatre (or Theatral) Novel'.

The novel itself is quite hard to understand; I believe it could be best understood by those who have a good deal of knowledge about the situation Bulgakov is describing. I cannot say I have that, therefore it is not as easy to read this novel as it is to read other works by Bulgakov. However, the novel is definitely a masterpiece - the descriptions, for example, are overwhelmingly vivid and warm, which stands out even more considering that most modern (and pre-modern) novels do not depict that warmth and depth of feeling. The strikingly accurate descriptions of human emotions seem to be a thing that can most often be found in good Russian literature (Bulgakov, Dostoevsky, Chekhov...), and that's why you need Bulgakov to use almost half-a-page to list different kinds of people, for example...

The plot of the novel is quite hard to follow - which only illustrates how much of a genius Bulgakov is, as he manages to brilliantly reveal the confusion Maxudov experiences and the absurdity of his world. The feeling of uncertainty never leaves Maxudov. Nor does it leave the reader...

I'd have given this book 5 stars if Bulgakov hadn't also written 'The Master And Margarita'. 'The Theatre Novel' is a great book, but it simply cannot be as great as that one...

Some clarification
Translation of the name of the book is chosen badly.
It is 'Teatral'nyi roman' - not 'Black Snow'!
The latter is the name of the novel which gets written by the narrator and plays an auxiliary role in the story (it is of course a paraphrase on the 'White Guard' - the image of a man running on the snow away from the horsemen is from there).
In part, the subject of 'Teatral'nyi roman' is theatre - theatre which enchants the narrator.

It is the most fluent and polished of all Bulgakov novels, though unfinished; judging by the reviews of the english speakers, the translation apparently lost that virtue.

About its being 'critical of Stanislavsky'. This is simply not the point, although I can understand the English reader, who tries to find some known landmarks. Of course Bulgakov ironizing on behalf of the actors, their ethiquette and life in the theatre, but this just serves to depict the theatre charm.
As the description of the golden horse on the empty scene which Maksudov sees when he first enters the building of the Independent Theatre.

Revealing portrait of Soviet literary and theatrical milieu
In this autobiographical novel, Bulgakov describes his experiences working with the Moscow Art Theatre of Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko in the 1930's. The characters and situations are exaggerated to enhance the satire, and it is obviously not impartial, but it is extremely revealing nonetheless. This book, which is critical of Stanislavsky's method and the Soviet theatre scene of the 1930's, gives a moving portrait of a talented, dedicated author working against incredible odds. As usual in Bulgakov, satire is mixed with a serious message. Anyone interested in Bulgakov, the theatre, or Russian cultural history will enjoy this book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Fiction   2. Fiction - General   3. General   

The White Guard is less famous than Mikhail Bulgakov's comic hit, The Master and Margarita, but it is a lovely book, though completely different in tone. It is set in Kiev during the Russian revolution and tells a story about the war's effect on a middle-class family (not workers). The story was not politically correct and thereby contributed to Bulgakov's lifelong troubles with the Soviet authorities. It was, however, well-loved, and the novel was turned into a successful play at the time of its publication in 1967. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

Stunning novel about a world coming apart forever
While we are, as Americans, familiar with the story of the Stalinist purges and know something of post-Revolutionary Russian history, the Russian Civil War between the White and the Red is not as well-known.

But this is the crux of the struggle that subsequently determined Russian history. Many authors tried to give a view of that turbulent period; Pasternak in "Doctor Zhivago", Solzhenitzen marginally in "Ivan Denisovitch" (Denisovitch was in a gulag because he was a returnee from the German front and thus viewed as a political traitor) and Ayn Rand "We the Living." Bulgakov's novel is one of the richest, most touching and well-written I have read on this historical time.

He takes the story from the personal standpoint of a single family affected by the German betrayal of Russia to the incomprehensible brutality of the Civil War. The use of "white" and "red" as symbols in describing everyday objects and landscape is novelistic, the action is pure stage drama as you'd find in a play or film.

This is a far better novel than "Doctor Zhivago", which dealt with essentially the same subject (families torn apart by the Civil War and their way of life forever altered.) If you are at all interested in Russian history, I can't recommend "The White Guard" enough to you. I just loved it.

I liked this book a lot too
This is a tight and powerful novel. It is more or less unique in Russian literature in that it is the story of a "typical" (i.e. non-socialist) family affected by the Revolution and Civil War. Bulgakov grew up in Kiev and his love for the city comes through very strongly. When I read this book I knew very little about the historical events it describes but this didn't prove much of a problem in the long run.

my great city
I spent the first 17 years of my life living in Kiev right next to Bulgakov's house. I think that this book is the best way to tell the American reader about the people, landscapes and moods of great Kiev.
The kind of life and thought and personalities described in the book are actually very similar to those of today. Kiev - the oldest Russian city, the first Christian city in Eastern Europe, the southern city with warm and gentle climate, which is quite unlike the coldness of other Russian cities. Today it is the capital of the independent republic of Ukraine. If you are interested in Russian culture, if you are interested in European culture - this book is must-read! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Fiction   2. Fiction - General   3. Historical - General   4. History   5. Literary   6. Revolution, 1917-1921   7. Russian & Former Soviet Union   8. Ukraine   9. War & Military   10. War stories   

Customer Reviews (1)

A very pro Moliere book that is a pleasure to read.
Mikhail Bulgakov's book The Life of Monsieur de Moliere is a very biased book that is uncritical of the great French writer Moliere. Despite the author's unabashed love of Moliere, the book is a treat from beginning to end. Bulgakov feels an affinity with Moliere because he wrote under a totalitarian regime headed by Stalin in Russia and Moliere wrote during the reign of Louis XIV. Although Moliere certainly had much more freedom than Bulgakov did, he still felt the sting of censorship from religious zealots and was often persecuted by those whom he made fun of in his plays, ( nobles, doctors, the affected ladies of French society). Bulgakov praises Moliere as the greatest French writer and as one of the greatest comediens ever. Indeed history has proven him correct. Three centuries later Moliere's works are performed in almost every nation in the world. The great joy that Bulgakov feels towards Moliere infuses the entire book (sometimes to the point of unintentional farce.) But he paints a vivid and energenic portrait of the playwright, actor and director that captures the essence of his work. Many of the details of Moliere's life are unknown and Bulgakov does take Moliere's side wherever there is ambiguity. ( For example, many of his enemies have said that Moliere married his own daughter and knew that in fact she was his daughter.) Bulgakov refutes this charge as ridiculous and indeed, without proof, it should be discounted. Bulgakov takes us from Moliere's birth (a very funny telling of how the midwife who delivered him couldn't realize he was more important to history than any royal baby she may have delivered) to his tragically ironic death right after a performance of his play The Imaginary Invalid. Bulgakov wheres his love of Moliere on his sleeve and it works to perfection in this book. Moliere's plays have an energy that imbues every verse. This book is the same way. Most other biographies are staid in comparison. They rarely capture the true genius of the great writer and almost never convey the great fun embodied in his works. Mikhail Bulgakov's biography is the best book, even though it is biased, ever written about the great French playwright. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1622-1673   2. 17th century   3. Biography   4. Biography / Autobiography   5. Biography/Autobiography   6. Continental European   7. Dramatists, French   8. Entertainment & Performing Arts - Theatre   9. Historical   10. Historical - General   11. Moliere,   12. Biography: general   13. French   14. Plays & playwrights: 19th century