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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
This book was such a disappointment to me. Such a disappointment that a few friends had to endure rants when I was about halfway through. Sorry guys. My chief complaints:
- In the first half of the book, Pasternak seems to have been writing about incidents as they occurred to him rather than in a linear fashion. So it's jumping all over in time, which would have been totally fine, if he had given you a reference point for what year it was or how old the characters were! I still have no idea how old Yury and Lara were in relation to each other. I have no idea when certain events were happening. I had no context for what the hell was going on!
- Idioms! Idioms everywhere! I have never seen so damn many idioms in my entire life, let alone in one book! I can't even begin to describe how many times I wanted to throw the book just for that reason. It was incredibly aggravating. I even tried switching translations thinking it was the translator. But nope, I hit "at daggers drawn" for the fourth or fifth time in that one.
- The book told you what was happening but it never gave me the connective tissue that would have made me actually care about Yury. I was a bored observer to a revolution and civil war. How is that even possible.
The second half of the book did finally settle into just Yury's POV (3rd person) and finally had a linear timeline, so it was an improvement and the book got a bit more interesting. But there were other oddities. Lara was supposed to be a very calm woman but she would go into these long-winded semi-hysterical speeches that made her seem anything but. It did show the extraordinary stress they were under but it didn't make her appear calm.
This book was one I've wanted to read for a very long time and it was the one from my Classics Challenge that I was the most excited about. I understand that many people think it was a wonderful book, but for me it was extremely disappointed. I was at daggers drawn with the book for pretty much the entire time.
One thing that I did find interesting (and totally irrelevant) was that the civil war was between the Reds and the Whites. This reminded me of the Wars of the Roses where the red and white roses symbolized the Houses of Lancaster and York. I wonder why both involved red and white?
- In the first half of the book, Pasternak seems to have been writing about incidents as they occurred to him rather than in a linear fashion. So it's jumping all over in time, which would have been totally fine, if he had given you a reference point for what year it was or how old the characters were! I still have no idea how old Yury and Lara were in relation to each other. I have no idea when certain events were happening. I had no context for what the hell was going on!
- Idioms! Idioms everywhere! I have never seen so damn many idioms in my entire life, let alone in one book! I can't even begin to describe how many times I wanted to throw the book just for that reason. It was incredibly aggravating. I even tried switching translations thinking it was the translator. But nope, I hit "at daggers drawn" for the fourth or fifth time in that one.
- The book told you what was happening but it never gave me the connective tissue that would have made me actually care about Yury. I was a bored observer to a revolution and civil war. How is that even possible.
The second half of the book did finally settle into just Yury's POV (3rd person) and finally had a linear timeline, so it was an improvement and the book got a bit more interesting. But there were other oddities. Lara was supposed to be a very calm woman but she would go into these long-winded semi-hysterical speeches that made her seem anything but. It did show the extraordinary stress they were under but it didn't make her appear calm.
This book was one I've wanted to read for a very long time and it was the one from my Classics Challenge that I was the most excited about. I understand that many people think it was a wonderful book, but for me it was extremely disappointed. I was at daggers drawn with the book for pretty much the entire time.
One thing that I did find interesting (and totally irrelevant) was that the civil war was between the Reds and the Whites. This reminded me of the Wars of the Roses where the red and white roses symbolized the Houses of Lancaster and York. I wonder why both involved red and white?
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
What a tumultuous time to have been alive. I very much enjoyed this book for its historical events seen from an individual point of view, and also because of the language and descriptions. Some of the plot devices and coincidences stretch the imagination a bit but also capture the essence of the phrase "Life is stranger than fiction."
Absolutely worth reading in the 21st century.
Absolutely worth reading in the 21st century.
this book was honestly boring and hard to follow. would also recommend knowing a bit about the russian revolution/civil war beforehand; i think it would have been even harder to follow.
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
slow-paced
Maybe I'm experiencing burn out with depressed Russians and trains, but by the end I was ready for Yuri and Lara's fates.
Bookclub pick, but I don't want to. I couldn't care less about Russian history. And honestly - although it's a meme by now - what's up with the billion irrelevant characters?
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No