Reviews - Malam Putih | The StoryGraph

13.4k reviews for:

Malam Putih

Fyodor Dostoevsky

3.95 AVERAGE

tommy67tommy's review against another edition

4.0

emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

chillwithcilla's review against another edition

4.0

Reading White Nights gave me such a bittersweet, melancholic experience. From the very beginning, I had this inkling about why the male narrator fell so quickly and deeply for the female lead. After finishing the book, I realized, it all comes back to his loneliness. His life was so quiet and empty that the moment he met someone as intriguing as her, he felt as though, “this is it, the person who can bring color into my world.” That thought alone already carried so much sadness for me.

What struck me most was how strong his yearning was. Every word, every gesture showed how much he wanted to love and be loved. But at the same time, I couldn’t help but feel a kind of hatred toward the female lead. Her push-and-pull dynamic felt unfair. Whenever she needed him, she would come to him, seeking comfort, company, even entertainment. And yet, she never really let go of her former lover.

The hardest part for me was watching how selflessly he gave himself to her. He was willing to do anything, even deliver letters to help her reconnect with the very man who kept him from having her. It was heartbreaking because he clearly had feelings for her, and deep down, I think she knew it too. Still, she kept insisting they were “just friends,” almost as if it was convenient for her to keep things that way.

By the end, when he thought there might be a chance for them, only for her to leave him behind as soon as her lover returned, it felt cruel. The goodbye was abrupt, almost careless, and I couldn’t help but feel angry at her for it.

But that’s the power of Dostoevsky’s storytelling: it left me conflicted, melancholic, and full of thoughts that linger even after I closed the book. I can see why White Nights is considered such a classic. It captures loneliness, yearning, and unrequited love in such a raw and timeless way that I know it will stay in my mind for a long time.

sarahandika's review against another edition

4.0

emotional sad fast-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

"We thank some people for merely living at the same time as we do. I thank you for the fact that I met you, that I will remember you for all my life!"

White nights is a story of unrequited love that tugs at the heartstrings simply because of how beautiful and elevated the writing is. Dostoyevsky here reminds you of the spell that words can cast. I laughed when Nastenka tells our narrator, "Listen: you tell it splendidly, but could you tell it somehow less splendidly? Otherwise, you talk as though you were reading from a book." She's absolutely right, the writing is so perfect it almost seems unreal. And it captures so vividly the feelings of yearning, of heartache, of selflessness, of friendship, of love.

I also think it being a novella was perfect as it kept the story wonderfully short and (bitter)sweet. Too much longer and not even the writing could have made me forget that this is a story of insta-love, with the narrator falling in love with a stranger in 3 nights. I roll my eyes at books with these kind of plots. It is concluded perfectly though in my opinion and will be one of those book endings that stay with me forever.