Scan barcode
carmenx9's review against another edition
5.0
The last English translation I'll likely read (she says, overly confident). Anyway this was a really brilliant translation from the little Russian I can read - it flows, hit the feminine rhymes, and doesn't feel forced at any point so the story comes through. And the essay at the beginning on the translating process is very good (Yevgeny scans so differently from Eugene and it's good to keep it!). Very much a translation I'd recommend to anyone looking for a first Onegin or anyone looking to upgrade from an older (or the Nabokov) translation.
On the book itself - possibly my fourth time reading it? There's nothing more tragic than a Russian comedy.
On the book itself - possibly my fourth time reading it? There's nothing more tragic than a Russian comedy.
whatrachyreads's review against another edition
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
mdrosend's review against another edition
challenging
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
amurray914's review against another edition
4.0
The Falen translation of Pushkin’s “novel in verse” masterpiece really drew me in and was a very enjoyable read. Falen remains true to the original Russian rhyme and metre scheme and adds an excellent introduction and annotations. There is much to be appreciated here; the excitement and splendor of 18th century aristocratic Russia, contrasted with Onegin’s boredom and ennui, his “spleen”; a timeless story of love, rejection, loss, guilt; and Pushkin’s allusions to his development as an artist, a transition from poet to prose writer.
And scorning then Apollo’s ire
To humble prose I’ll bend my lyre:
A novel in the older vein
Will claim what happy days remain.
And scorning then Apollo’s ire
To humble prose I’ll bend my lyre:
A novel in the older vein
Will claim what happy days remain.
sozh's review against another edition
5.0
A masterpiece! Surprisingly accessible and fun — especially considering it was published almost 200 years ago, in Russian.
To truly experience this novel, you've got to check out Stephen Fry reading it — available for free here: http://fryreadsonegin.com/
If you get the audiobook and the paper "Oxford World's Classic" edition — translated by James E Falen — you can follow along as Stephen Fry reads to you the most deliciously clever and lovely verse. Cool!
To truly experience this novel, you've got to check out Stephen Fry reading it — available for free here: http://fryreadsonegin.com/
If you get the audiobook and the paper "Oxford World's Classic" edition — translated by James E Falen — you can follow along as Stephen Fry reads to you the most deliciously clever and lovely verse. Cool!
leolai's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.0
juliaxx's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
atelierofbooks's review against another edition
5.0
A lot of reviews of Eugene Onegin are actually about the translations and Pushkin's meter, etc. So I'm not going to write about any of that.
Because what a beautiful story. Heartbreaking and soaked in emotion. Not at all heavy and mired in philosophical musings like many Russian classics, but somehow more powerful for it.
I can't decide if I want to shake Eugene or give him a hug. He's charming in a way, because there's an honesty in his bad manners. He's also self aware to an extent. But how miserable is it to be chronically dissaffected and bored? I kept thinking, "Why are you so consigned to unhappiness? Why are you so determined to be jaded?" It struck me as deeply foolish and deeply sad.
You get the sense that he's robbing himself of a full life. And then as the story unfolds you see that this self-centeredness not only robs him, but other (good, decent, innocent) people as well. Why does it take tragedy and loss to shock you back to life?
I wasn't sure how I felt about Tatiana until the end. She was different. Bookish and honest. But I never felt like she was more than a will-o-wisp girl who had cast herself as the lead in a Romantic era novel. I was afraid she would wither away from heartbreak Ophelia style. But wow. That last speech rejecting Eugene...it was like bellows breathing fire into this girl and suddenly she wasn't even Pushkin's creation, she was a whole person.
Tolstoy wrote Anna Karenina inspired by what would have happened had Tatiana made a different choice. So all things considered, I think she did the right thing. I did want her and Eugene to be happy, I'm just not convinced it could ever happen by being together. Especially given all of Pushkin's asides about love and marriage eventually turning into passionless routine.
I admire Tatiana's integrity so much and appreciate that she flouts the conventions given by male authors to women in classic literature (I'm thinking about Madame Bovarys and Bathsheba Everdeens, et al). We're human beings after all, not animals who chase after one whim or desire damn the consequences. What a thing it is to care for someone, to choose to be loyal, to be resilient, to be at peace. Where's your constancy, Eugene?
Because what a beautiful story. Heartbreaking and soaked in emotion. Not at all heavy and mired in philosophical musings like many Russian classics, but somehow more powerful for it.
I can't decide if I want to shake Eugene or give him a hug. He's charming in a way, because there's an honesty in his bad manners. He's also self aware to an extent. But how miserable is it to be chronically dissaffected and bored? I kept thinking, "Why are you so consigned to unhappiness? Why are you so determined to be jaded?" It struck me as deeply foolish and deeply sad.
You get the sense that he's robbing himself of a full life. And then as the story unfolds you see that this self-centeredness not only robs him, but other (good, decent, innocent) people as well. Why does it take tragedy and loss to shock you back to life?
I wasn't sure how I felt about Tatiana until the end. She was different. Bookish and honest. But I never felt like she was more than a will-o-wisp girl who had cast herself as the lead in a Romantic era novel. I was afraid she would wither away from heartbreak Ophelia style. But wow. That last speech rejecting Eugene...it was like bellows breathing fire into this girl and suddenly she wasn't even Pushkin's creation, she was a whole person.
Tolstoy wrote Anna Karenina inspired by what would have happened had Tatiana made a different choice. So all things considered, I think she did the right thing. I did want her and Eugene to be happy, I'm just not convinced it could ever happen by being together. Especially given all of Pushkin's asides about love and marriage eventually turning into passionless routine.
I admire Tatiana's integrity so much and appreciate that she flouts the conventions given by male authors to women in classic literature (I'm thinking about Madame Bovarys and Bathsheba Everdeens, et al). We're human beings after all, not animals who chase after one whim or desire damn the consequences. What a thing it is to care for someone, to choose to be loyal, to be resilient, to be at peace. Where's your constancy, Eugene?
aavalerianova's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0