Reviews

The Big Green Tent by Ludmila Ulitskaya

merixien's review against another edition

tense medium-paced

4.0

clarkness's review against another edition

emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

This was a wonderful and surprising collection of stories about life during the second half of the USSR's existence (from Stalin's death onward). Rather than being told as a linear story, this collection revolves around a large group of characters and each story covers some section of one of the characters' lives so that you slowly see how they all intersect and function in the backdrop of all the societal challenges of the USSR. The novel has so much warmth and the characters are well drawn and fascinating to live with. I really loved it.

subdue_provide75's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I loved this book. Only reason it's not 5 stars is that it sagged a bit ~2/3rds in, but also I haven't read a 560-page book in a while.

andgineer's review against another edition

4.0

Для меня эта книга четко разделилась на четыре части.
Первая - неплохая проза про юность героев, очень хорошо написанная.

Далее идет совершенно сумбурная часть, в которой "все подряд" умирают от рака. Повествование становится совсем уж "про чувства", и в чем-то похожим на "женские книги".
Я в какой-то момент почти уже решил бросить, и не читать дальше.

Третья часть совершенно гениальна на мой взгляд.
В отличие от второй, там есть довольно внятный сюжет. Глубоко раскрываются переживания героев, используется отличный русский язык. Замысловато переплетены судьбы героев, но не до ухода в "качество" индийского сериала, как во второй части книги.
Именно за эту часть я и ставлю высокую оценку книге.

Последняя часть книги заставила только в недоумении пожать плечами.
Сколько злобы у автора на советскую власть.
Мои родители ровесники Людмилы, СССР начал разваливаться, когда я был студентом, так что самостоятельно я не жил при советском строе, и поэтому не буду голословно рассуждать, что хорошо, а что плохо.
Но что явно выглядит неприглядно в этой книге - описание жизни людей, у которых нет вообще ничего, кроме ненависти к государству и острого желания его уничтожить.
В этом отношении смешно читать рассуждения героев, что они любители, а в "органах" - профессионалы. Герои в этой части книги описаны как 100% профессиональные диссиденты, подрывающие государство, в котором живут, и никак себя с ним не ассоциирующие. У них нет цели сделать государство лучше, им это вообще в голову не приходит, они относятся к нему как к чему-то внешнему, и не имеющему к ним отношения.
Конечно, можно долго дискутировать, какие имел шансы гражданин той страны что-то изменить. Но это для меня не делает этих людей симпатичными.

caroline_slaughter's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

filaret526's review against another edition

5.0

I loved this story. I typically only like stories that are world war 2 and before as the post WW2 Soviet Union can be depressing. The characters were so interesting and it really kept you guessing as to where they would all end up.

red_irma's review against another edition

5.0

It is one of my favorite books that i have even read
here are very good and easy enough language itself, very deep characters of people ... this book also is written like a boography that is sometimes typpical for Ulitskaya
despite this book is about people living in Soviet Union and there arent positive and negative people - this book is very kind but very difficult and comlex

steller0707's review against another edition

4.0

Ulitskaya' sweeping novel follows the tradition of her Russian literature forbears. It begins with Stalin's death in 1953 and ends in 1990. In some ways, the novel feels like a series of stories bringing to life what it was like to be a dissident in post-Stalin Russia; how they lived and managed to live in a society controlled by the KGB. The cast of characters is huge -some being introduced well over half way through. I kept a list and it continued to grow. But it helped to make things clear. Woven throughout is the story of three boys, who become best friends in school, and follows them through their coming of age and adulthood

At school the boys fall under the spell of their literature teacher, Victor Yulievich, who instills in them their love of Russian culture, particularly literature and poetry. He tells his students, "Literature is the only thing that allows us to survive, the only thing that helps us to reconcile ourselves to the time we live in."

This love of culture characterizes the lives of the boys and determines how they conduct their lives. It also envelopes the reader in the breadth of Russian literature, poetry, music, drama and art. My list of cultural references was longer than my list of characters! How much Russia has contributed to the world!

Because some of the "vignettes" were a little slow-going for me (especaially not knowing at the time the overall arc of the novel) I gave it 4 stars instead of 5. Overall, this is a wonderful book that I recommend for an understanding of the post-Stalin era.

miekookeim's review

challenging dark funny reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I enjoyed the first and last 100 or so pages, but the middle 400 dragged on endlessly. 

danidesantis's review against another edition

2.0

2.5