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sacmersault's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
vivamonty's review against another edition
3.0
This is a novel built on a fascinating concept that doesn't quite stand up to the test of time. Our main character is a Russian writer exiled to Munich during the early 80's. He happens upon a deal from Lufthansa for a flight to Moscow in the year 2042. Throughout this bizarre journey, our writer bears witness to the outrageous society that has bloomed over the intermittent 60 years, as the Soviet Union has evolved into a dystopian cult of personality. Voinovich plays around with some fun meta-narrative tricks and some of his plot machinations are amusingly funny, but I felt like I missed out on a lot of what made the novel special when it was released in the mid-80s. Without that contextual experience, I was only able to see the surface of Voinovich's mocking satire on the Soviet system and of communism itself.
msgtdameron's review against another edition
5.0
A funny book that looks at what might be (?) or what could have been. The real key to this book is that as a Russian émigré Vladimir Voinovich understands that the Rus, those who were born and raised between the Dnieper and Urals, North to the white sea and South to the Caucasians, need a monarch, dictator, premier, a strong central leader but they don't need want nor desire actual Democracy as the West sees it. I'm not talking Stalinist Soviet Union but a central dictator. That's what the people want. They neither want the Freedom of Democracy because they see it leading to a lack of basic needs where as a strong central leader will ensure basic needs are met. A lesson that the west needs to learn in our dealings with any Russian Government now or in the future.
maddie_kelly's review against another edition
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
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