Reviews

the prologue of the novel is one of its strongest parts, and it made me think that women were going to play a much larger role in the philosophy of the novel than they did. the story is about punishment for intellectualism, and the loneliness that comes with being able to see the horizon. not a single one of the persecuted thinkers in Hard to Be a God is a woman, and in fact the only female character of note on the feudal planet is a yielding young peasant girl whose selling points are mental purity and a sort of breathless adoration for the male protagonist. it's such an obvious flaw in a novel about utopia and the life of the mind to exclude 51% of humanity from the discourse.

the world-building was interesting, and the Strugatskys do have panache as fiction authors. there is something valuable here about the strange isolation of intellect in a crowded world, and if you know you know. I just wanted more from this. and it's a lazy comparison, but Left Hand of Darkness is a much better novel because it doesn't sell me any silly ideas about the arc of history bending towards justice or any bullshit like that (at least not that I remember).

daileyxplanet's review against another edition

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5.0

The edition I read was published by Chicago Review Press under their Rediscovered Classics line and that's what the Strugatsky Brother's novel Hard to Be a God is. I had never even heard of this book until I read a friend's review of the Russian film adaptation on Letterboxd.

There's a planet in our galaxy that sustains life, in fact it sustains humans and their civilizations is stuck in the middle ages. Our protagonist is Don Rumata/Anton a 22nd Century operative who lives in the Kingdom of Arkanar. The Kingdom is going to hell in a hand basket. Think A Song of Ice and Fire's Westeros but without the charm. A Don Reba is waging war against the intellectuals of the kingdom. Anyone literate or creative is marked dead in a good alliteration of the Communist regime, free thinking, etc. Kinda feels like 1984 meets the Black Plague. Definitely a hidden gem and worth your time to read. Check it out.

p0rchcollapse's review against another edition

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5.0

i hate saying "this really makes you think", but this book did, in fact, make me think.

andgineer's review against another edition

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5.0

Замечательная книга, в стиле ранних Стругацких.
Интересный приключенческий сюжет, и, базирующиеся на нем, очень глубокие, и не имеющие ни одного правильного ответа вопросы.

Сейчас послушал ее в прочтении Леонида Ярмольника.
Прочитано очень хорошо - понятно что Леонид не может, как профессиональные чтецы, говорить множеством голосов, и везде слышны характерные для его речи особенности.
Но тем не менее, начитано отлично - и не монотонно, и без излишних театральных завываний.

Жаль, что фильм с ним же, по этой же книге, вышел таким мерзким.

boosterbeetles's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

elisereading's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes

3.75

gggggggg_g's review against another edition

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3.0

My first Strugatsky, probably not the best choice for it. The narrative was a tad confusing but they created an interesting political and religious landscape.

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