Reviews

The Idiot: A Novel In Two Books by Fyodor Dostoevsky

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yishaqfu's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

rosiebarclay's review against another edition

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4.0

I thought this was really good . Social VIBE from mr D lawl xxxx diff and gd also im gonna read white nights next c

asadnq's review against another edition

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3.0

“Isn't instinct of self-preservation alone by itself not enough? surely instinct of self-preservation is a fundamental law of nature”
“But fundamental only in as much as the law of destruction is, or say, self-destruction is fundamental. Do you really imagine that the basic law of nature is founded on self-preservation alone?[...]the instinct of self-preservation and the urge to self-destruction are equally strong in man!”

imscrem's review against another edition

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2.0

DNF

I was really trying to get through this book because it was a gift from an acquaintance, but I found the pacing demotivating and couldn’t bring myself to finish. (I find this a shame, because the first 180 or so pages captivated me and I thought that it would carry on that way!)

The book was brilliant at times, but often had long stretches with barely anything happening. To me this seemed like it might in large part be due to the context of publishing (The Idiot was published serially, with stretches of time between the book's four parts, iirc). Perhaps a reader with more appreciation for 1800s Russian class culture would enjoy this more. As for me, this wasn't the right book for a fun read on my own time.

I did end up reading the Sparknotes summary, and found that quite engaging — I'd recommend that, but as for the book, not so much.

metaphoricallysam's review against another edition

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dark funny reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This book sucked me in! I was always a bit intimidated by Russian classics, especially after my miserable experience with War and Peace, but the flow, the pacing, the characters were all so well thought out and intricate. I loved the drama, I loved the suspense, I loved the complicated women, the one dimensional men. It was all so vivid, it felt like watching an HBO series.

P.S. did anyone else get a little bit of a gay vibe between Rogozhin and Myshkin?