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emmkayt's review against another edition
4.0
What a beautifully written novella. Some authors write fat books that manage to say little and outstay their welcome - somehow this little jewel manages to tell a sweeping story perfectly in just over a hundred pages, without feeling rushed or simply sketched in.
The narration opens in a rural train station in the Soviet Union in winter, as the train to Moscow is announced to be six hours late. The narrator looks at the mass of humanity round him and muses somewhat superiorly about ‘homo sovieticus,’ always content with whatever the grim situation brings. Then his encounters a rough-handed old man who plays piano beautifully though in tears. On their journey, we learn more about Alexei Berg’s early life as a young musician in the Stalinist 30s and 40s. 4.5.
“At the conservatory it seems as if the people he passes have all become short-sighted; they squint, to avoid catching his eye. Their faces remind him of those masks he once saw in a history book, terrifying masks with long noses, with which the inhabitants of cities invaded by the plague used to rig themselves out. His friends acknowledge his greetings, but only obliquely, furtively, turning their heads away, and this evasive action - half in profile, half face-to-face - stretches their noses into the long incurved stings of insects. They stammer out excuses for making off and gasp, as if they were inhaling the aromatic herbs that used to be stuffed into those antiplague masks....”
The narration opens in a rural train station in the Soviet Union in winter, as the train to Moscow is announced to be six hours late. The narrator looks at the mass of humanity round him and muses somewhat superiorly about ‘homo sovieticus,’ always content with whatever the grim situation brings. Then his encounters a rough-handed old man who plays piano beautifully though in tears. On their journey, we learn more about Alexei Berg’s early life as a young musician in the Stalinist 30s and 40s. 4.5.
“At the conservatory it seems as if the people he passes have all become short-sighted; they squint, to avoid catching his eye. Their faces remind him of those masks he once saw in a history book, terrifying masks with long noses, with which the inhabitants of cities invaded by the plague used to rig themselves out. His friends acknowledge his greetings, but only obliquely, furtively, turning their heads away, and this evasive action - half in profile, half face-to-face - stretches their noses into the long incurved stings of insects. They stammer out excuses for making off and gasp, as if they were inhaling the aromatic herbs that used to be stuffed into those antiplague masks....”
howlinglibraries's review against another edition
4.0
4/5 stars. I found it a bit hard to get into at first, but once I really became invested in the story, I enjoyed it. I felt like a lot of ends were left loose, though, but I still gave it the rating that I did because the writing was beautiful, fluid poetry, and I was impressed that Makine managed to get so much of a story into only 109 pages.
ajdajustin's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
rebecaravara's review against another edition
5.0
i LOVED this one!! i love a book where every page you can sense is well thought out and planned and there are so many cool stylistic techniques used...i am just so happy we had to read it for enhglish class!
with a POG ambiguous ending, this book was wonderfully written and really makes you think
just, wonderful.
with a POG ambiguous ending, this book was wonderfully written and really makes you think
just, wonderful.
messbauer's review against another edition
3.0
Beautiful prose in an excellent translation by Geoffrey Strachan. The plot was certainly interesting, but at times seemed to rest on too many implausibilities.
bobo14's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
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
4.0
sophlandor's review against another edition
5.0
Quelle belle découverte! Cette transposition d'une personne en une autre au fil des événements, en rattachant tout cela à la musicalité, est plein de sens et de subtilité
innergrace's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
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? No
4.0
enchantedsunflowerkat's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This book is very complex and challenging to unpack, while still being quite short. It definitely transported me into the story. Makine created an immersive experience for the reader.
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