Review: Doctor Zhivago (no spoilers)

#21for2021

Thank you so much for watching my review!
A few things I should have mentioned - Pasternak was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature, but could not accept it because of the Russian government. After his death, his son accepted it on his behalf.
Lara is a pivotal character - I feel like I underestimated her in my review. I just wanted more of her!
Finally, this book was published in a much different time than today, and I think that may have played a key role in its success and why the Russian government didn't want it published.

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[yulyalim]

Hi there! Thanks for the review, it was interesting to hear somebody else’s opinion on this book. I am Russian and I recently read this book, obviously, in Russian. I think this is the case when a movie didn’t do any good to a book. People often think that this is a love story. I disagree. And if it is a love story then a terrible one. In my opinion the relationships just reflect the complexity of the situation the main character finds himself in. And by that I mean a turmoil of the First World War, Russian Revolution and the Civil War afterwards. Unfortunately for an unprepared reader this book doesn’t give a historical overview, although these events play crucial role in Zhivago’s life.
And this is where the problem begins. Again, it’s just my opinion but knowing how difficult the time was, knowing how many people perished due to famine and terror, I was so surprised to see what Zhivago does. Basically he does nothing. It made me think that it was Pasternak’s idea to show a disagreeable with the current politics human being, who says one thing but acts differently. He is opposed to revolution and big changes but at the same time doesn’t resist those circumstances. Maybe Pasternak wanted to show the state of giving up and letting oneself freely swim in the dark waters of history. Maybe.
I agree the main female characters are basically non-existent. When I closed the book I was furious at the author. Why would he put all the women in such horrifying situation without even showing the strength of their spirit and an independence of their opinions?? Later I started to think that it was simply not Pasternak’s goal.
Despite of it all, I do really like a couple of things in this novel. First of all, different Russian dialects. I can’t imagine how exactly it was conveyed in the translation but I hope they’ve done a good job.
Secondly, I enjoyed the ending of the book. It transmits the inevitable consequences of the revolution: a complete disconnection with the posteriority. His daughter is not anything like him and we are left to think out what happened to his other kids. The problem of waifs and orphans had a huge impact on the whole society of Soviet Union. There is this famous novel The Republic of ShKID, which addresses this issue particularly. So the last pages of Doctor Zhivago just made me think of it.
I am really sorry if this is the beginning of your acquaintance with Russian literature. It is a tough one. But as people noted here already, Russian classics have plenty of other masterpieces :) Thanks again for sharing your thoughts!

[adamnunez]

My goodness, thank you for this review! I’m an avid reader. I read some challenging stuff. But I agree with your critiques! There are some incredibly beautiful passages and that’s what got me through 1/3 of the book. But I simply couldn’t go on. Read books that challenge you but ones you also enjoy. Life is too short to slog through books you can’t stomach.

[faithbooks]

I remember loving descriptions of the scenery and the atmosphere of political unrest. But I didn’t really like Yuri and he totally disgusted me when he leaves his pregnant wife basically because he’s bored and goes off to Lara. I was like: Screw you, Yuri! I think I read it when I was about 8 months pregnant with my second child (28 years ago). I never got over being angry at him.. LOL.

[jackreillygillic]

Thank you for an honest, candid review.

Russian literature has substantial barriers to entry and ‘Zhivago’ is a particularly bad place to start, particularly when you’re not familiar with the relevant historical background.
Moreover, the author writes in the tradition of the ‘Tolstoyian’ epic which can be confounding for the uninitiated.

Naturally, none of this is your fault. This is clearly the wrong book for you at this particular moment of your life. We’ve all been there!

One of the great joys of reading is the rediscovery and reinterpretation of a book. If you feel it’s worthwhile, perhaps give it time and eventually try to connect through a different translation. ( I enjoyed the P&V translation).

In the meantime, I’ve always thought that Chekov is an ideal introduction to Russian literature.

It’s been a long time since I watched the film, although I fondly remember the vistas, the score and a few beautiful moments. You’ve inspired me to rewatch it!

Hope you’re having a great day.
Happy reading!

[mauritanija]

I finished book and count 94 characters and I wasn't including all of them. I have question. Do you remember Vdovichenko and Kamennodvorsky, are they the same person?. Vdovichenko could be Kostoied-Amursky but he had already been Lidochka, . I'm glad that you find this book hard to read. I was thinking I have some problems with concentration but the book is dull and I only read it because I think "oh look it's funny name it has to be interesting".

[gammaanteria]

Hi Kelly! Thanks for your review! I have not tackled "Doctor Zhivago" (yet!), though I did see the David Lean movie. Pasternak initially studied music, then switched to philosophy, then wrote poetry. I've only read one thing by him, a book of epic poetry called "Lieutenant Schmidt"...but it was not for me and I would think probably not the best place to start for his work.
I was curious, did you like "Anna Karenina" by Tolstoy (I think you said somewhere in these comments that you read it)? That is one of my all-time favorites. I think Tolstoy had a brilliant eye (Chekhov did too) for what human beings experience internally, in all their messiness, contradictions, pettiness... Despite everything that's going on in the news today, I have an interest in and great admiration for the Russian cultural contributions to the arts.
If you ever delve back into reading Russian works again, here are some of my favorites (apart from the usual suspects, "War and Peace, " "Crime and Punishment, " "Master and Margarita" etc.--though those are all worthwhile titles as well!):

- The following books are all translations by Pevear and Volokhonsky (they are a husband-wife team who have popularized a lot of the Russian classics...I am sure they probably have their critics like everything else, but as a non-Russian speaker I have enjoyed their translations):
"The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Stories"- Tolstoy...Essential (in my opinion)...the title story, "The Kreutzer Sonata, " "The Devil, " "Master and Man" are all great stories
"The Collected Tales of Nikolai Gogol"- Gogol is pretty fantastic and enjoyable, there was no one quite like him. "Diary of a Madman, " "The Overcoat, " "The Nose, " etc. are all classic tales.
"The Complete Short Novels of Anton Chekhov"
- "Verses and Versions: Three Centuries of Russian Poetry" and "Lectures on Russian Literature"- both by Vladimir Nabokov--worthwhile commentaries and very educational...from someone passionate about the subject matter. (Interestingly, he generally disdains Dostoevsky).
- "Hope Against Hope" by Nadezhda Mandelstam ('Nadezhda' means 'hope' in Russian)- Non-fiction, probably the most powerful Russian work I've read in the past couple of years. Nadezhda's husband was Osip Mandelstam, one of the great Russian modernist poets. This tells the story of their persecution during Stalin's regime leading up to the Great Purge. Osip famously wrote a poem lambasting Stalin (the 'Stalin Epigram') which he read it at a private party, and his confidence was betrayed. Pasternak tried to intervene for them, and at one point in the story, Stalin actually called Pasternak to ask about Mandelstam.
- "Milestones" (poetry) by Marina Tsvetaeva- she was another one of the great poets from that time period in Russia. It's been a while, but I remember really liking this collection of poems.

[MishelleLexi]

Thank you for your honest review! I've only read one Russian Classic so far which is Anna Karenina. I tried to start reading The Master and the Margarita and I found it pretty confusing. I plan to go back to it one day once I have more of an understanding of Russia.

[CourtneyFerriter]

I'm just going to link to your review when I do my wrap-up of this book. 🙂 I think you have said almost everything I would want to discuss.

[saintdonoghue]

That framed picture behind you is making me want to orchestrate an ENORMOUS Lord of the Rings read-along...

[monicaacheson]

I couldn’t get this novel either I’ve tried to read a few times and never made it to the end. The love story didn’t grab me. I’m not against a love story but I have to empathise with them and I just didn’t

[AmandaJHMorton]

I've read a collection of selected poems by Boris Pasternak. The collection had some of the Zhivago poems. I haven't read Doctor Zhivago but intend to one day. I really loved his poems when I read them and when I reread them last year.

[raccoon]

The book had no editor and it shows, regardless, it depicts a turbulent series of revolution, ww1, revolution again, civil war and subsequent corruption of a society. Yuri was a metaphor for the russian people being cast about during this time, and his hope was the power of Love needed to continue living.
How it won a Nobel prize made sense if you consider operation AEdinosaur which the CIA used this novel as a tool in the cold war, disseminating this piece back to Russia as a critique on its history. Using literature to change the world.

[GoJBC]

3:28 three quarters of them should go!

[MacMcCarthy]

What I liked about the movie, mainly, was Lara—Julie Christie bore a striking resemblance to a girlfriend I had at the time, so that’s all I focused on!

[a.aron]

I found your. struggle with this a bit surprising. Yes, the first one hundred pages is a bit character heavy, but it is not impossible to understand. After that it is an easy read you can whizz through as the main plot is just about Dr Z, Tonya, Lara and his kidnap, separation from Tonya, and reunion with Lara - and that's it ; and poetry is only an issue if you dislike the genre - the. poetry isn't hard to read. I think the challenge of the first one hundred pages put you off, but I would recommend people read a synopsis and then perhaps read from one hundred pages in....also, watch the film first: most people have as it has been around for about sixty years now, and it gives you a sense of characterisation. And, how they look - I mean when I read it: Dr Z is Omar, and Lara is Julie C.People should not worry about the other characters really - although some are great: like the cow whispering woman - she was my fav!

[mame-musing]

This is sad. It seems as if having read the book so recently shaded your experience of seeing the remarkable film. Jason’s observation is so true. David Lean does use trains in many of his films.

[Amysdustybookshelf]

I wouldn't say I love this one, but I do recall being absolutely immersed in the story when I read it about 6 or 7 years ago. Enjoyed hearing your thoughts! If you think there are too many characters in this one, Russian lit may not be for you haha

[storyscholar]

Ok, that was very good and I'm definitely gonna read it soon. I've always enjoyed the atmosphere of the movie but could feel that huge chunks must be missing somewhere. And I like long books and Tolstoy so I'm ready to tackle another Russian novel XD
Question: which translation did you read? I'm planning to go for Hayward/Harari:)

[PageTurnersWithKatja]

The differences between the book and film are so interesting. Really enjoyed your thoughts. I'm going to skip the book 😅, but I did enjoy the film

[josmith]

Enjoyed hearing your thoughts Kelly, I think this is one where I might just watch the film and skip the book, too many other great Russian books to read!