| | I just finished reading a book called "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich" by Alexander Solzhenitsyn. It was my first tiny toe dip into Russian literature -- a category that I've been intimidated by for years. Russian lit has always seemed so dark and gloomy.
Well, "One day" is set in a Russian gulag in the 50's --- pretty dark and gloomy. But even so, it's not oppressive. We follow Ivan Denisovich Shukhov through his day, from waking to sleeping. The writing is spare. It has short sentences, short words, but is powerful -- like an eloquent man speaking when he is cold, and hungry, and tired.
The book is good, it is a book that doesn't just entertain, but actually makes you reflect on things like loyalty, trust, nobility of spirit, and the effect of religion on people's ability to endure and thrive in hardship. Highly recommended.
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| | Posted 8/25/2007 1:28 PM - 77 Views - 4 eProps - 1 Comment
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