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A review by emmashutup
The Night Before Christmas by Nikolai Gogol
2.5
This was weird and wacky and honestly, not very Christmasy. Gogol's retelling of this classic Ukrainian story couldn't be further from the Clement C. Moore poem, even though they share the same name. If you're down for a Christmas story that includes a dalliance between a witch and the devil, plus some Shakespearean-level misunderstanding comedy, you might enjoy this.
So why didn't I enjoy it more? Well, I know this is a short story, but there wasn't much to it as far as meaning, characters, or even plausible plot. There's no twist on the expected that would make it interesting. It's just a silly story that's written fairly well (Anna Summers does a great job of capturing the wit of the story in English). If that's enough for you, give this a go! I just don't think I'll be revisiting it any time soon.
So why didn't I enjoy it more? Well, I know this is a short story, but there wasn't much to it as far as meaning, characters, or even plausible plot. There's no twist on the expected that would make it interesting. It's just a silly story that's written fairly well (Anna Summers does a great job of capturing the wit of the story in English). If that's enough for you, give this a go! I just don't think I'll be revisiting it any time soon.