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seforana's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Death, Confinement, Bullying, Gore, Gaslighting, Blood, Violence, Suicide attempt, Murder, Mental illness, Child death, Grief, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcoholism, and Alcohol
gwenswoons's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Animal cruelty, Alcohol, Terminal illness, Suicide, Grief, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Toxic friendship, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Toxic relationship, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Mental illness, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Death, Classism, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Violence, and Xenophobia
mangopassion555's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Physical abuse, Grief, Suicide, Child abuse, Violence, Abandonment, and Antisemitism
janainthebooks's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Death of parent, and Child death
Moderate: Blood and Alcoholism
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
verpissdich's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
The Grand Inquisitor section (Ivan's Peom) is very thought provoking.
In general, an enjoyable examination of human nature.
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Terminal illness, Chronic illness, and Toxic relationship
toffishay's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Murder, Child death, Classism, Death, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Suicide, Violence, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Abandonment, and Blood
Minor: Alcohol, Confinement, Grief, Religious bigotry, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, and Racism
julianh's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, Child death, Suicide, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Antisemitism, Racial slurs, Racism, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
cowardlyteaman's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
It's very slow paced, and sometimes you might think to yourself «Okay, but how does this affect the plot.» Fair point, definitely, but to me personally, such scenes meant everything in the parallel situations of these characters and for Dostoyevsky to explore some of his philosophy, which I think he has the right to with such reflections. Also, as my dad so rightfully reminded me, this book was written in a period where people had the time to read. Not meaning that they weren't as busy as we are now, but simply that their attention spans had not been abused such as ours have due to various categories of modern entertainment.
There is no shame in this, but it's important to note that if you're wanting to read this. I, too, found it boring at times, because no, I genuinely could not care less about Father Zosima.
And on the note of characters I couldn't care less about, we have Alyosha. Yes, I see Dostoyevsky praising and loving him, but I found him pretty whiny, actually. He was about as relevant as an emotional support animal, to be quite honest. That is until the epilogue, where I appreciated his part of the whole journey.
My favourite character was Mitya, though Ivan stands as a close second, and I'm not ashamed to admit that it is because I found them sexy. Not only because I found them sexy, but it was undeniably a factor in there somewhere, and I am young and gay, so who can blame me. Still, they were both fantastically written characters, both with depth and interesting plot lines.
Yes, my review has been mostly about the characters and what I thought of them, but they are the plot after all. However, I want to add finally that I noticed how the synopsis of the book leads with the murder of Fyodor Pavlovich, when that doesn't «come up» until a good... 500 pages in? A bit odd, but I suppose that was what brought the entire piece to a conclusion.
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Bullying, Suicide, Child death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Child abuse, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Grief, Abandonment, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Racism, Addiction, Antisemitism, Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, and Racial slurs
suneaters's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
In all seriousness, it’s a powerful exploration of family trauma, greed, guilt, and faith with a satirical overtone—don’t let anyone say Dostoevsky was gloomy! He posits important questions to the reader.
Can your daddy issues make your a murderer? Is that really the devil? Can you try to make your family come together before
I liked how it ends without resolving everything.
The religious overtones are also very interesting. Alyosha is considered this pure being, so much so that Rakitin spends basically the entire novel trying to shake his faith whether by poking fun at elder Zosima's decaying corpse or trying to introduce him to Grushenka. Alyosha is clearly the author's thought of what people should be like with his innate goodness and love of mankind. He resolves any doubts he has with his simple faith and his belief in the goodness of mankind. He does good and tries to help bring his family together after. He isn't naive or innocent and while his brother sees suffering as a reason for atheism or a cruel God, Alyosha sees it as a resolve to try to put goodness out into the world.
Ivan is religiously and spiritually conflicted. He oscillates between a belief in a Machiavellian being and atheism. This turmoil from his own cold sophistication and eventual overthinking skepticism eventually leads to
Mitya tries desperately to overcome his own jealous and angry nature to become a better man.
Graphic: Abandonment, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Child abuse and Child death
Minor: Alcoholism, Antisemitism, and Ableism
caitlynhm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Blood and Violence
Moderate: Physical abuse, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Child death, Alcoholism, Murder, and Death
Minor: Sexual violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Injury/Injury detail, Ableism, Infidelity, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Religious bigotry, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Animal death