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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
The first full-length Dostoevsky novel I've read. I kept returning to this book in sessions over a two month period, enjoying the flashes of Dostoevsky's (lightly fictionalized) depictions of his life at hard labor. His worldly and sharply insightful details with which he notices and comments on in the prisoners around him prove to be the most compelling aspect of his writing. The bathhouse and theater performance scenes especially stuck with me; the man had an almost superhuman skill for fleshing out faint reminisces from memory and enchanting them with vivid detail, bringing the good and bad of his many prison experiences starkly to life.
The message of book, which is evidently something Dostoevsky took with him into all his future writings, seems to be the enduring humanity within even the most outwardly base individual, of which the opposite can also be true in those that appear morally sound upon first glance. At times lovingly sentimental, stylized yet realistic, harsh and uncompromising, 'Notes from a Dead House' accomplishes the writer's goal of presenting a piercing and detailed yet still comprehensive review of the Russian prison experience, and the mental and physical trials and triumphs of those within it.
The message of book, which is evidently something Dostoevsky took with him into all his future writings, seems to be the enduring humanity within even the most outwardly base individual, of which the opposite can also be true in those that appear morally sound upon first glance. At times lovingly sentimental, stylized yet realistic, harsh and uncompromising, 'Notes from a Dead House' accomplishes the writer's goal of presenting a piercing and detailed yet still comprehensive review of the Russian prison experience, and the mental and physical trials and triumphs of those within it.
challenging
dark
slow-paced
challenging
reflective
sad
medium-paced
I don't know that this book was explicitly bad so much as it was a slog. It took way too much energy to read each chapter and by the end I was bribing myself with little rewards along the way.
In sum, this wasn't my favorite book but depending on your love of rambling prison tales or Dostoevsky, YMMV.
Read Harder 2019 - A book written in prison
In sum, this wasn't my favorite book but depending on your love of rambling prison tales or Dostoevsky, YMMV.
Read Harder 2019 - A book written in prison
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
informative
slow-paced
I know that this was an important one - both for the foundation of Dostoevsky's later great works and for exposure of the penal system to Russian society at large - but it dragged so much for me. There was no real plot to speak of, just loosely linked character sketches and reminiscences. Very glad to be done with it.
emotional
reflective
sad
A semi-fictional account of Dostoevsky's time spent serving hard labor at a Russian prison camp in Siberia. His crime: meeting with a radical socialist group.
It's a recollection that is shocking and dire, but also funny and light-hearted. Honestly, parts of it reminded me of the prison scenes in Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel, and I mean that in a good way.
Notes from a Dead House is, at times, a genuinely moving examination of humanity. I can't wait to read the rest of Dostoevsky's literature.
(also justice for Sushilov 🥺)
It's a recollection that is shocking and dire, but also funny and light-hearted. Honestly, parts of it reminded me of the prison scenes in Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel, and I mean that in a good way.
Notes from a Dead House is, at times, a genuinely moving examination of humanity. I can't wait to read the rest of Dostoevsky's literature.
(also justice for Sushilov 🥺)
"...yes, man survives it all! Man is a creature who gets used to everything, and that, I think, is the best definition of him." (p 10)
"The prisoner himself knows that he is a prisoner, an outcast, and he knows his place before his superior; but no brands, no fetters will make him forget that he is a human being. (p 111)
"And how much youth was buried uselessly within these walls, how much great strength perished here for nothing! I must say it all: these people are extraordinary people. They are perhaps the most gifted, the strongest of all our people. But their mighty strength perishes for nothing, perishes abnormally, unlawfully, irretrievably. And who is to blame?
That's just it: who is to blame?"
.
First of all, if you haven't read any work from Dostoevsky, what are you doing with your life? What are you waiting for?
Second of all, I might be a bit biased, since he's one of my absolute favourite writers. But that doesn't mean I'm wrong
That's just it: who is to blame?"
.
First of all, if you haven't read any work from Dostoevsky, what are you doing with your life? What are you waiting for?
Second of all, I might be a bit biased, since he's one of my absolute favourite writers. But that doesn't mean I'm wrong