You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An epic, gut and heart-wrenching tale about a love triangle before, during, and after the Russian revolution. Starts a bit slow, and the wealth of characters is confusing, but turns into a pageturner, and a really heartbreaking love story with the backdrop of Russian history. It's an excellent mix of history and (tragic) love story. The book shows what war and communist ideology did to people, destroying lives, loves, and country. It makes clear that the lives of people are sacrificed at the altar of great, abstract ideas, and that there is nothing glorious in it, it is just an immense personal tragedy. It must also be one of the first descriptions of a polyamorous couple in modern literature. Obviously, Pasternak wouldn't use this term, but I couldn't help but read it that way.
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This translation is rather stilted, but nevertheless there are phrases, sometimes whole paragraphs, where the poetry of Pasternak's prose shines through.
The characters' emotions and responses are overblown and unrealistic. Much of the plot turns on these melodramatic reactions and decisions made based on them. Their motivations were generally unclear.
There are memorable, haunting descriptions of and explanations of the events in Russia before, during and after the revolution. The story leaps from event to event, though, skipping out huge swathes of time, and thus making emotional engagement difficult.
Characters weave in and out of Zhivago's life. A passage near the end compares a slow tram stopping and starting on the same road as a hurrying pedestrian to the way peoples' lives run parallel. It's rather confusing to read and easy to forget who is who, though, especially as they all have a half dozen different names (thank goodness for the dramatis personae lost at the front of this edition).
The novel is at it's best when it settles to fully describe a period of Zhivago's life for a sustained number of pages. I could detect no overall cohesion, though, and there's far too much pontification.
The characters' emotions and responses are overblown and unrealistic. Much of the plot turns on these melodramatic reactions and decisions made based on them. Their motivations were generally unclear.
There are memorable, haunting descriptions of and explanations of the events in Russia before, during and after the revolution. The story leaps from event to event, though, skipping out huge swathes of time, and thus making emotional engagement difficult.
Characters weave in and out of Zhivago's life. A passage near the end compares a slow tram stopping and starting on the same road as a hurrying pedestrian to the way peoples' lives run parallel. It's rather confusing to read and easy to forget who is who, though, especially as they all have a half dozen different names (thank goodness for the dramatis personae lost at the front of this edition).
The novel is at it's best when it settles to fully describe a period of Zhivago's life for a sustained number of pages. I could detect no overall cohesion, though, and there's far too much pontification.
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
9/8/23 - I just finished watching the movie. They don’t make movies like that anymore - wow, it was EPIC.
Omar Sharif, who was casted to play Yuri was perfect. Alec Guinness, played Zhivago’s brother, Yevgraf. I also enjoyed the performance by Geraldine Chaplin (daughter of Charlie Chaplin) who played Zhivago’s wife, Tonia.
The scenery and plot of the movie are both excellent. What a moving story!
———————————————————————————
Review of the book below:
A sign of a truly great book for me is when I get to the end but I just want to keep on reading.
Doctor Zhivago is moving and epic. The love triangle between Zhivago, Tonia, and Lara in the setting of WWI and then the Russian Revolution of 1917 was perhaps the best combination of plot and setting I’ve ever read.
I am also currently reading Nicholas and Alexandra: The Classic Account of the Fall of the Romanov Dynasty by Robert K. Massie. These two books have been a perfect pairing of a nonfiction/fiction read.
I wish I had come to this book sooner but I’m so glad I got to at least experience it now.
Doctor Zhivago is now in my top 5 favorite books of all time. I can’t express adequately in words how wonderful reading this book has been. I’ll definitely be reading it again which is another sign of a 5 star book for me.
Omar Sharif, who was casted to play Yuri was perfect. Alec Guinness, played Zhivago’s brother, Yevgraf. I also enjoyed the performance by Geraldine Chaplin (daughter of Charlie Chaplin) who played Zhivago’s wife, Tonia.
The scenery and plot of the movie are both excellent. What a moving story!
———————————————————————————
Review of the book below:
A sign of a truly great book for me is when I get to the end but I just want to keep on reading.
Doctor Zhivago is moving and epic. The love triangle between Zhivago, Tonia, and Lara in the setting of WWI and then the Russian Revolution of 1917 was perhaps the best combination of plot and setting I’ve ever read.
I am also currently reading Nicholas and Alexandra: The Classic Account of the Fall of the Romanov Dynasty by Robert K. Massie. These two books have been a perfect pairing of a nonfiction/fiction read.
I wish I had come to this book sooner but I’m so glad I got to at least experience it now.
Doctor Zhivago is now in my top 5 favorite books of all time. I can’t express adequately in words how wonderful reading this book has been. I’ll definitely be reading it again which is another sign of a 5 star book for me.
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
emotional
slow-paced