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danpeachey's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
quisby's review
5.0
Extremely disturbing blend of horror and hilarity. Uneven prose but when it peaks it’s incredible. The parody of totalitarian kitsch and the human tragedy feel incompatible, but I’m not sure to what extent that was intentional.
technomage's review
4.0
I started reading this out of curiosity and gradually realised as I reached the end that I had read it years ago when I was a student. I picked it up then expecting a 1984 type story but was slightly disappointed but this time reading the tale of Krug the professor former schoolmate of Toad leader of the average man party that now rules his country I was struck by how it describes more of a internal/intellectual revolution within Krug himself both against the strictures of the state and the strictures of his own intellect as he struggles to come to terms with the death of his wife.
Be warned this is not an easy read but perseverance pays off and it is a rewarding experience,
Be warned this is not an easy read but perseverance pays off and it is a rewarding experience,
sadie4d's review
challenging
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
labelledamesansmerci's review
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
More oblique to me now that I've read it than before. Nabokov really makes you work hard with this one. Glad to have finished it, but the frustration with the book sometimes made the reading experience less than pleasant. Nabokov's writing is nonetheless enchanting to read.
jopopipo's review
5.0
a very depressing and horrifying tale of a man whose unwillingness to bend to the whims of an absurd dictatorship destroys all he has - with the required nabokovian ploys, wit, metaphors and chicanery.
eren_reads's review
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I will always love the way in which Vladimir Nabokov writes.
lifesaverscandyofficial's review
hadn't read any Nabokov since freshman year of college spring break when I opted to read Lolita out of, idk, spite? which I remember adoring but little else. this one took me much longer to get into - probably only around the 85 page mark did I actually shrug off my Bend Sinister amnesia, and from there, off to the races. this is bleak, nasty, beautiful, hilarious, and tragic! won't be rereading
lukedavies16's review
challenging
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
urikastov's review against another edition
4.0
Upon completing this, i feel like a blind man having just groped a beautiful statue. I can feel the form in the writing, I am aware of the symmetrical devices, allusions, and some of the word play... But I feel there's a whole other dimension I'm missing out on due to my own ignorance. I look forward to reading this again when I can appreciate it more. And when my grasp of French and Russian has improved.