Brilliant (But depends on which translation you read), 09 Nov 2008
In my opinion this is the greatest novel ever written, in that it is the most complete study of mental anguish and human suffering and redemption.

One caveat is that the only translation worth reading is that by Constance Garnett. It gets a lot of bad press by critics who claim it makes the novel sound very Victorian. I adisagree. I don't know which is the most faithful translation to Dostoevsky original text (I cannot read Russian) but this is so much more superior than the 'modern' translations. My favourite chapter (Part 4 Chapter 1) is totally ruined in the newer versions. And in many cases the new translation make the text unwieldy and inelegant.

Read this book, but do yourself a favour and read the Garnett translation.



Deep and relevant, 29 Apr 2008
Crime and Punishment beautifully captures moods and moments to guide the reader through the book as though we were truly looking through Roskolnikov's eyes. Dostoyevsky understands the danger that lurks in all of us, and the mind's ability to twist and justify actions and thoughts with the greatest of ease if we are thrown off the righteous path. This is reflected beautifully in the most extreme of scenarios that Roskolnikov finds himself in. It would be a challenge to pick this book up and not finish reading it.

Somewhat lacking..., 16 Mar 2008
Basically a story about guilt and redemption written with absolutely compelling characters and depth. The start is tremendously gripping though it starts to lose pace around the last quarter and meanders somewhat. The reason why I score this lowly is because the ideas placed out are a bit thin on the ground when you look at it objectively (I've read shorter books which have a much wider theme), you can't help but think that it could've been written in half the pages and for all the great character's in place, they fail to live up to there potential, that the story doesn't make enough use of them. It would be great if more actually happened as I felt a lot of what did happen was largely (and ironically) inconsequential. It's a little bit tragic that the main protagonist is a bit, to use the modern term, emo.

An unenjoyable read, 07 Mar 2008
I found this book to be unenjoyable. I could appreciate that it is very well written and would have been very ahead of it's time but also found it to be unnecessarily drawn out and convoluted.

It's claimed that, "The genius of the book is the commentary on many aspects of life" but I think it would be far better if the author could have intertwinned this with an interesting plot.



Full of suspense and intrigue, a wonderful classic, 20 Dec 2007
Raskolnikov, Rodion Romanovich sets out one day in the middle of a fever to kill pawn broker and money lender Alena Ivanovna. He fashions a loop of cloth inside his jacket to hide an axe after hearing her sister Lizaveta will be away one evening and she will be at home alone. Once he gets to her flat, his plans soon seem to come undone. After killing Alena, Lizaveta arrives home earlier than expected and Raskolnikov has forgotten to lock the front door. In the spur of the moment he kills her as well and then flees the scene, taking Alena's purse and some possessions.

Interweaving the story of Raskolnikov is the story of his sister Dunya. She was a governess in a household where the gentleman of the house fell in love with her. His wife arranged for her to be married to clerk Luzhim, Peter Petrovich much to her brothers disgust. Both force her to choose between them and in the meantime her former boss Svidrigaylov, Arkady Ivanovich turns up to cause further trouble for Dunya.

What is really interesting is Raskolinkov's reasons, or lack of, for the murder. He doesn't really appear to have any and he certainly expresses little or no remorse during the course of the book. He refers to Alena as an "old witch" and barely mentions Lizaveta who was such a gentle soul. He gets involved with a prostitute (Sofya Semenovna) and her family who end up being his salvation ultimately.

There are some great cat and mouse games and converations between Raskolinkov and Porfiry Petrovich (the examining magistrate) as the net around Raskolinkov tightens. Do the police know the truth or are they just playing games with him? The book isn't so much about the crime (although it is frequently mentioned) or the punishment of it by law, it's more about suffering. Raskolinkov seems to make things worse for himself by randomly confessing to people and then pretending he was joking to further increase his suffering (perhaps because of his lack of guilt and motive?). It also discusses the nature of crime and his particular belief that some people who are geniuses are above the law (like Napoleon). It also parallels Dostoevsky's own experiences with crime and just escaping being put to death at the last moment to be exiled to Siberia.

It took me a little to get into this novel as it is pretty complicated, luckily my copy had a really handy guide to the Russian names at the back as they kept using different names for the same person. Once I did get stuck in, I fell in love with it. The climax is gripping the edge of your seat to see how it all plays out and I found it nearly impossible to put down. I highly recommend it if you haven't yet found the time for it.

The publication of Death and the Penguin, Andrey Kurkov's debut novel, heralds a unique new voice in post-soviet satire. Set in the Ukraine in the years immediately after the collapse of the Soviet Union, this dark, deadpan tale chronicles the journalistic career of Victor, who shares a flat with Misha, his depressed Penguin, rescued from the under-funded zoo in Kiev. Victor is asked to write obelisks, obituaries, for a prominent city paper about notable figures in the community, and quickly transforms himself from struggling writer to wealthy journalist. It soon becomes apparent that there is a more sinister motive at play, and Victor finds himself descending in a Kafkaesque realm of suspicion and unease.

This strange, thoughtful and gentle novel will leave the reader satisfied and perplexed at its conclusion. Kurkov seems to question whether Victor or the Penguin is lonelier and more out of place in his environment. The Death in the title is ever present, though not in an oppressive way, but this also makes one want to question Victor's belief that a long hard life is better than a quick death. Many comparisons will undoubtedly be made between Kurkov's novel and the writing of other authors from the former Soviet republics to make it to print in the United Kingdom. Certainly it's fair to say that this belongs to the tradition of Russian satire made well known in this country by writers such as Mikhail Bulgakov and Venedikt Yarofeev. It is also interesting to read this alongside the works of contemporaries such as Evgenev Popov and Viktor Pelevin. However, where Pelevin drifts off into the fantastical and esoteric, Kurkov keeps it deadpan and very real. It is important to remember that many of the strange events that occur in this book are grounded in fact: amals really were given away by Kiev zoo--truth is often stranger than fiction. --Iain Robinson

Brilliant (But depends on which translation you read), 09 Nov 2008
In my opinion this is the greatest novel ever written, in that it is the most complete study of mental anguish and human suffering and redemption.

One caveat is that the only translation worth reading is that by Constance Garnett. It gets a lot of bad press by critics who claim it makes the novel sound very Victorian. I adisagree. I don't know which is the most faithful translation to Dostoevsky original text (I cannot read Russian) but this is so much more superior than the 'modern' translations. My favourite chapter (Part 4 Chapter 1) is totally ruined in the newer versions. And in many cases the new translation make the text unwieldy and inelegant.

Read this book, but do yourself a favour and read the Garnett translation.



Deep and relevant, 29 Apr 2008
Crime and Punishment beautifully captures moods and moments to guide the reader through the book as though we were truly looking through Roskolnikov's eyes. Dostoyevsky understands the danger that lurks in all of us, and the mind's ability to twist and justify actions and thoughts with the greatest of ease if we are thrown off the righteous path. This is reflected beautifully in the most extreme of scenarios that Roskolnikov finds himself in. It would be a challenge to pick this book up and not finish reading it.

Somewhat lacking..., 16 Mar 2008
Basically a story about guilt and redemption written with absolutely compelling characters and depth. The start is tremendously gripping though it starts to lose pace around the last quarter and meanders somewhat. The reason why I score this lowly is because the ideas placed out are a bit thin on the ground when you look at it objectively (I've read shorter books which have a much wider theme), you can't help but think that it could've been written in half the pages and for all the great character's in place, they fail to live up to there potential, that the story doesn't make enough use of them. It would be great if more actually happened as I felt a lot of what did happen was largely (and ironically) inconsequential. It's a little bit tragic that the main protagonist is a bit, to use the modern term, emo.

An unenjoyable read, 07 Mar 2008
I found this book to be unenjoyable. I could appreciate that it is very well written and would have been very ahead of it's time but also found it to be unnecessarily drawn out and convoluted.

It's claimed that, "The genius of the book is the commentary on many aspects of life" but I think it would be far better if the author could have intertwinned this with an interesting plot.



Full of suspense and intrigue, a wonderful classic, 20 Dec 2007
Raskolnikov, Rodion Romanovich sets out one day in the middle of a fever to kill pawn broker and money lender Alena Ivanovna. He fashions a loop of cloth inside his jacket to hide an axe after hearing her sister Lizaveta will be away one evening and she will be at home alone. Once he gets to her flat, his plans soon seem to come undone. After killing Alena, Lizaveta arrives home earlier than expected and Raskolnikov has forgotten to lock the front door. In the spur of the moment he kills her as well and then flees the scene, taking Alena's purse and some possessions.

Interweaving the story of Raskolnikov is the story of his sister Dunya. She was a governess in a household where the gentleman of the house fell in love with her. His wife arranged for her to be married to clerk Luzhim, Peter Petrovich much to her brothers disgust. Both force her to choose between them and in the meantime her former boss Svidrigaylov, Arkady Ivanovich turns up to cause further trouble for Dunya.

What is really interesting is Raskolinkov's reasons, or lack of, for the murder. He doesn't really appear to have any and he certainly expresses little or no remorse during the course of the book. He refers to Alena as an "old witch" and barely mentions Lizaveta who was such a gentle soul. He gets involved with a prostitute (Sofya Semenovna) and her family who end up being his salvation ultimately.

There are some great cat and mouse games and converations between Raskolinkov and Porfiry Petrovich (the examining magistrate) as the net around Raskolinkov tightens. Do the police know the truth or are they just playing games with him? The book isn't so much about the crime (although it is frequently mentioned) or the punishment of it by law, it's more about suffering. Raskolinkov seems to make things worse for himself by randomly confessing to people and then pretending he was joking to further increase his suffering (perhaps because of his lack of guilt and motive?). It also discusses the nature of crime and his particular belief that some people who are geniuses are above the law (like Napoleon). It also parallels Dostoevsky's own experiences with crime and just escaping being put to death at the last moment to be exiled to Siberia.

It took me a little to get into this novel as it is pretty complicated, luckily my copy had a really handy guide to the Russian names at the back as they kept using different names for the same person. Once I did get stuck in, I fell in love with it. The climax is gripping the edge of your seat to see how it all plays out and I found it nearly impossible to put down. I highly recommend it if you haven't yet found the time for it.


Poor, 18 Nov 2008
Tries too hard to be funny and doesn't succeed. Good plot and characters but badly written.

You'll want your own pet penguin ..., 18 Jun 2008
This is a genuinely original book. The plot is extremely well crafted, and Kirov masterfully controls the way in which the reader is drawn into the increasingly dire position of its central character. The star of the show, though, is Misha the penguin, whose sombre, silent moods not only bring a comic relief; but allow an insight into the soul of the book's beleaguered protagonist, who risks all for the sake of his beloved pet.

I'd highly recommend this as a gripping black comedy, that reaches out to you when you least expect it to.

Beautifully written, 02 Jan 2008
This book must be a masterpiece in its own time. The feelings of Misha and the family can only hold you and put you in tears. Pure tenderness Jeremy Clarke

Quirky, fantastic and a darn good read!, 09 Jun 2007
Funny, tragic and brilliant are the only words I can think of to describe this story. The story itself is unique and captivating, and Misha is an adorable penguin in all his depressive glory. I'm certainly looking forward to reading more from Kurkov and I would heartily recommend this to anyone after a different sort of story.

Quirky, deadpan and very good, 03 Dec 2006
Kurkov's understated humour and perfect, deadpan style makes this quirky little story, full of quirky characters, a gem. Death and the Penguin is the nectar of booklovers and Misha, a penguin rescued from a struggling zoo, is one of the most animated, engaging and touching characters in contemporary fiction. But there's more to Kurkov's writing than a sideways laugh at human foibles. Death of Penguin shows many pictures of loneliness and human isolation. Viktor is an aspiring writer but lacks the energy to follow his dreams and, by settling for bread today and giving up on the idea of jam tomorrow, finds himself drawn into a mafiaesque world of crime and assassination in the chill starkness of post-Soviet Kiev. Misha comes to live with him when the local zoo can no longer afford to feed him. Both are lonely, Viktor isolated from human society and Misha alone amid it. Yet it is Misha who seems able to make strong relationships - first with Sonia, a little girl who comes to live with Viktor when her father is swept away into oblivion by his life of crime, and then with the reader: who cannot fail to adore the quiet, reliable, predictable animal, or to delight in his pleasure in fish and cold bathes, or sorrow over his inability to adjust to life in a climate so much warmer than his native land?



Here too is a stark, if one-sided, portrayal of life in the former Soviet state of Ukraine. And it's not a nice life. It's cold, it's hard and seemingly pointless. Deprived of the structure of the state, each seems to struggle to embrace with vigour the concept of democratic freedom. What Death of a Penguin amounts to is a strong indictment of a political reform which has left a population, bereft of communist community, without any societal fabric at all: without hope, without security and unable to realise the promise of liberty. This book is very funny. It's very sad. And it's very, very good.

Brilliant (But depends on which translation you read), 09 Nov 2008
In my opinion this is the greatest novel ever written, in that it is the most complete study of mental anguish and human suffering and redemption.

One caveat is that the only translation worth reading is that by Constance Garnett. It gets a lot of bad press by critics who claim it makes the novel sound very Victorian. I adisagree. I don't know which is the most faithful translation to Dostoevsky original text (I cannot read Russian) but this is so much more superior than the 'modern' translations. My favourite chapter (Part 4 Chapter 1) is totally ruined in the newer versions. And in many cases the new translation make the text unwieldy and inelegant.

Read this book, but do yourself a favour and read the Garnett translation.



Deep and relevant, 29 Apr 2008
Crime and Punishment beautifully captures moods and moments to guide the reader through the book as though we were truly looking through Roskolnikov's eyes. Dostoyevsky understands the danger that lurks in all of us, and the mind's ability to twist and justify actions and thoughts with the greatest of ease if we are thrown off the righteous path. This is reflected beautifully in the most extreme of scenarios that Roskolnikov finds himself in. It would be a challenge to pick this book up and not finish reading it.

Somewhat lacking..., 16 Mar 2008
Basically a story about guilt and redemption written with absolutely compelling characters and depth. The start is tremendously gripping though it starts to lose pace around the last quarter and meanders somewhat. The reason why I score this lowly is because the ideas placed out are a bit thin on the ground when you look at it objectively (I've read shorter books which have a much wider theme), you can't help but think that it could've been written in half the pages and for all the great character's in place, they fail to live up to there potential, that the story doesn't make enough use of them. It would be great if more actually happened as I felt a lot of what did happen was largely (and ironically) inconsequential. It's a little bit tragic that the main protagonist is a bit, to use the modern term, emo.

An unenjoyable read, 07 Mar 2008
I found this book to be unenjoyable. I could appreciate that it is very well written and would have been very ahead of it's time but also found it to be unnecessarily drawn out and convoluted.

It's claimed that, "The genius of the book is the commentary on many aspects of life" but I think it would be far better if the author could have intertwinned this with an interesting plot.



Full of suspense and intrigue, a wonderful classic, 20 Dec 2007
Raskolnikov, Rodion Romanovich sets out one day in the middle of a fever to kill pawn broker and money lender Alena Ivanovna. He fashions a loop of cloth inside his jacket to hide an axe after hearing her sister Lizaveta will be away one evening and she will be at home alone. Once he gets to her flat, his plans soon seem to come undone. After killing Alena, Lizaveta arrives home earlier than expected and Raskolnikov has forgotten to lock the front door. In the spur of the moment he kills her as well and then flees the scene, taking Alena's purse and some possessions.

Interweaving the story of Raskolnikov is the story of his sister Dunya. She was a governess in a household where the gentleman of the house fell in love with her. His wife arranged for her to be married to clerk Luzhim, Peter Petrovich much to her brothers disgust. Both force her to choose between them and in the meantime her former boss Svidrigaylov, Arkady Ivanovich turns up to cause further trouble for Dunya.

What is really interesting is Raskolinkov's reasons, or lack of, for the murder. He doesn't really appear to have any and he certainly expresses little or no remorse during the course of the book. He refers to Alena as an "old witch" and barely mentions Lizaveta who was such a gentle soul. He gets involved with a prostitute (Sofya Semenovna) and her family who end up being his salvation ultimately.

There are some great cat and mouse games and converations between Raskolinkov and Porfiry Petrovich (the examining magistrate) as the net around Raskolinkov tightens. Do the police know the truth or are they just playing games with him? The book isn't so much about the crime (although it is frequently mentioned) or the punishment of it by law, it's more about suffering. Raskolinkov seems to make things worse for himself by randomly confessing to people and then pretending he was joking to further increase his suffering (perhaps because of his lack of guilt and motive?). It also discusses the nature of crime and his particular belief that some people who are geniuses are above the law (like Napoleon). It also parallels Dostoevsky's own experiences with crime and just escaping being put to death at the last moment to be exiled to Siberia.

It took me a little to get into this novel as it is pretty complicated, luckily my copy had a really handy guide to the Russian names at the back as they kept using different names for the same person. Once I did get stuck in, I fell in love with it. The climax is gripping the edge of your seat to see how it all plays out and I found it nearly impossible to put down. I highly recommend it if you haven't yet found the time for it.


Poor, 18 Nov 2008
Tries too hard to be funny and doesn't succeed. Good plot and characters but badly written.

You'll want your own pet penguin ..., 18 Jun 2008
This is a genuinely original book. The plot is extremely well crafted, and Kirov masterfully controls the way in which the reader is drawn into the increasingly dire position of its central character. The star of the show, though, is Misha the penguin, whose sombre, silent moods not only bring a comic relief; but allow an insight into the soul of the book's beleaguered protagonist, who risks all for the sake of his beloved pet.

I'd highly recommend this as a gripping black comedy, that reaches out to you when you least expect it to.

Beautifully written, 02 Jan 2008
This book must be a masterpiece in its own time. The feelings of Misha and the family can only hold you and put you in tears. Pure tenderness Jeremy Clarke

Quirky, fantastic and a darn good read!, 09 Jun 2007
Funny, tragic and brilliant are the only words I can think of to describe this story. The story itself is unique and captivating, and Misha is an adorable penguin in all his depressive glory. I'm certainly looking forward to reading more from Kurkov and I would heartily recommend this to anyone after a different sort of story.

Quirky, deadpan and very good, 03 Dec 2006
Kurkov's understated humour and perfect, deadpan style makes this quirky little story, full of quirky characters, a gem. Death and the Penguin is the nectar of booklovers and Misha, a penguin rescued from a struggling zoo, is one of the most animated, engaging and touching characters in contemporary fiction. But there's more to Kurkov's writing than a sideways laugh at human foibles. Death of Penguin shows many pictures of loneliness and human isolation. Viktor is an aspiring writer but lacks the energy to follow his dreams and, by settling for bread today and giving up on the idea of jam tomorrow, finds himself drawn into a mafiaesque world of crime and assassination in the chill starkness of post-Soviet Kiev. Misha comes to live with him when the local zoo can no longer afford to feed him. Both are lonely, Viktor isolated from human society and Misha alone amid it. Yet it is Misha who seems able to make strong relationships - first with Sonia, a little girl who comes to live with Viktor when her father is swept away into oblivion by his life of crime, and then with the reader: who cannot fail to adore the quiet, reliable, predictable animal, or to delight in his pleasure in fish and cold bathes, or sorrow over his inability to adjust to life in a climate so much warmer than his native land?



Here too is a stark, if one-sided, portrayal of life in the former Soviet state of Ukraine. And it's not a nice life. It's cold, it's hard and seemingly pointless. Deprived of the structure of the state, each seems to struggle to embrace with vigour the concept of democratic freedom. What Death of a Penguin amounts to is a strong indictment of a political reform which has left a population, bereft of communist community, without any societal fabric at all: without hope, without security and unable to realise the promise of liberty. This book is very funny. It's very sad. And it's very, very good.


A very influential book, 25 Jul 2008
This book was very famous during the Cold War, for its depiction of Stalin's Terror in the USSR in the 1930's. An old Bolshevik, in one of Stalin's jails, accused of an impossible crime, reflects on his career in the revolution, going over how he gradually sacrificed all his comrades and all his principles for the "Revolution", which ultimately amounted only to the unrestricted power of a single man. As it stands it is a powerful and subtle indictment of the principle that means justifies the ends, and could apply to any ideology which is making the similar claims on someone's allegiance.

Koestler obviously had some excellent contacts who told him of the conditions in Soviet jails, but still the reality of Stalin's jails was more horrific and more surreal than even Koestler's imagination could describe. If you are looking for an accurate description of what Stalin's Gulag was really like for someone surviving in it, try Evgenia Ginzburg. Koestler's book is more of a literary meditation on the consequences of making loyalty to a faith or an organisation the basis of your moral choices, but the book is none the worse for that.

More illuminating than it sounds, 12 Aug 2007
Written in 1940, this novel reflects the kind of pessimism which followed the post-revolutionary Soviet period and with which we're now familiar. Koestler, himself only recently released from one of Franco's jails where he was imprisoned under sentence of death, builds his story around Rubashov whom we join at the point of his arrest on the sinister-sounding charge of "political divergences".

As one of the few remaining fathers of the revolution Rubashov knows better than most what lies in store for him at the hands of the new generation of brutal leaders. His downfall was as inevitable as the falling away of faith in the system which preceded it. There was a time when his belief in the power of the revolutionaries to alter irrevocably the course of history was unshakeable so much so that he himself has been the perpetrator of serious crimes, the memory of which now haunts him in his cell.

Because of that he makes an unlikely hero, but nonetheless the reader cannot fail to respect and appreciate his stoicism and to share his ironic realisation that his inquisitors are persecuting him using the very same theories and dogma with which he once suppressed opposition.

It's not difficult to see the influence which this short novel had on Orwell, most obviously in "Animal Farm" and "1984", both published later in the same decade.

The horror of Rubashov's confinement is neither sentimentalised nor over-dramatised leaving "Darkness at Noon" as accessible and relevant as it is important in the development of twentieth century fiction.

Ruthless purge, 21 Oct 2005
This is, quite rightly, the classic novel about a power struggle within a monolithic political party.
To consolidate his power and to exert his own policies, a dictator uses the young guard to liquidate mercilessly his old fellow revolutionaries, who once were or still are critical of him.
Koestler relates hauntingly how his idealistic dreams are shattered and how the main aim of his whole life is destroyed:"But when he asked himself, for what actually are you dying? He found no answer." (p.206)

This is still a very modern work. It reminds us that a multi-party system and free elections are a must to eliminate all risks that a ruthless clique seizes power in a country.

This book is a masterpiece.

It contains a terrible quotation: "When the existence of the Church is threatened, she is released from the commandments of morality. With unity as the end, the use of every means is sanctified, even cunning, treachery, violence, simony, prison, death." (Dietrich von Nieheim, Bishop of Verden)

A book about death, 16 Nov 2004
"Darkness at Noon" describes the last days of Rubashov, a former communist party official in an unnamed regime. While waiting for execution, he kills time tapping out coded messages through the walls to fellow inmates, gets interrogated periodically by a former colleague and reminisces about some past experiences.

Accompanying this character on his final steps towards death, the novel is a powerful and terrifying meditation on how this experience feels and what it means - to Rubashov himself, to Koestler's audience and to the world at large. Is he a traitor to the regime or a convenient scapegoat? Will the regime benefit from his death? If it does, does that make death worthwhile? Does his death mean anything at all?

Koestler's answer to this final question is a resounding and crushing 'no' but there is something awe-inspiring and ultimately uplifting about the nihilistic finale, and the journey there is thoroughly absorbing.

"The end justifies the means" ??? :(, 15 Sep 2004
"The characters in this book are fictitious. The historical circumstances which determined their actions are real. The life of the man N. S. Rubashov is a synthesis of the lives of a number of men who were victims of the so-called Moscu Trials".That is part of the dedicatory that Koestler wrote for his book, "Darkness at noon".

Arthur Koestler (1905-1983) was a person that believed in the progress that Communism was supposed to bring, but that became disillusioned in the way in which that dream was being carried out in the URSS. He wrote many books that give expression to his feelings of disenchantment, but "Darkness at noon" is probably the most popular one.

Not overly long, and very easy to read, this book is the story of Rubashov, an old communist who took part in the revolution and who is very loyal to the "Cause". Strangely enough, he is accused of treason, and taken to jail, where he must face harsh interrogatories. While he is in jail, Rubashov experiences flashbacks that allow us to know more about him, and the things he did due to his devotion to the Party. He betrayed people he loved, and those he appreciated, for no other reason than obedience to the Party and fear of going to jail.

We can have an idea of Rubashov's feelings and ideas all throughout his ordeal thanks to the fact that "Darkness at noon" is written in the first person. After a while, we are Rubashov, and like him we are surprised, outraged, desperate and ultimately resigned to our luck.

In the beginning, Rubashov says that he isn't a traitor and that he hasn't done the things he is accused of. But slowly our main character starts to come to terms with the idea that the truth of the accusation isn't really important, what matters is to serve the country. And if the leader (Number one) says he is to be blamed, he must have done something....

The prisioner writes a diary, where he dwells upon the nature of men, and politics. He thinks that after the revolution he defended so passionately, an individual is defined merely as "a multitude of one million divided by one million". The individual doesn't matter because only the "Cause" matters. Regarding politics, he concludes that at the end only one thing is clear: "the end justifies the means". Is it any surprise, then, that the tone that pervades this book is so gloomy?.

On the whole, I highly recommend "Darkness at noon" to all of you, for two reasons. To start with, it is a literary masterpiece, beautifully written and accessible to the average reader. Secondly, and more important, it also shows us once again that every attempt to forget that the end doesn't justifies the means ends in a nightmare.

Belen Alcat

Brilliant (But depends on which translation you read), 09 Nov 2008
In my opinion this is the greatest novel ever written, in that it is the most complete study of mental anguish and human suffering and redemption.

One caveat is that the only translation worth reading is that by Constance Garnett. It gets a lot of bad press by critics who claim it makes the novel sound very Victorian. I adisagree. I don't know which is the most faithful translation to Dostoevsky original text (I cannot read Russian) but this is so much more superior than the 'modern' translations. My favourite chapter (Part 4 Chapter 1) is totally ruined in the newer versions. And in many cases the new translation make the text unwieldy and inelegant.

Read this book, but do yourself a favour and read the Garnett translation.



Deep and relevant, 29 Apr 2008
Crime and Punishment beautifully captures moods and moments to guide the reader through the book as though we were truly looking through Roskolnikov's eyes. Dostoyevsky understands the danger that lurks in all of us, and the mind's ability to twist and justify actions and thoughts with the greatest of ease if we are thrown off the righteous path. This is reflected beautifully in the most extreme of scenarios that Roskolnikov finds himself in. It would be a challenge to pick this book up and not finish reading it.

Somewhat lacking..., 16 Mar 2008
Basically a story about guilt and redemption written with absolutely compelling characters and depth. The start is tremendously gripping though it starts to lose pace around the last quarter and meanders somewhat. The reason why I score this lowly is because the ideas placed out are a bit thin on the ground when you look at it objectively (I've read shorter books which have a much wider theme), you can't help but think that it could've been written in half the pages and for all the great character's in place, they fail to live up to there potential, that the story doesn't make enough use of them. It would be great if more actually happened as I felt a lot of what did happen was largely (and ironically) inconsequential. It's a little bit tragic that the main protagonist is a bit, to use the modern term, emo.

An unenjoyable read, 07 Mar 2008
I found this book to be unenjoyable. I could appreciate that it is very well written and would have been very ahead of it's time but also found it to be unnecessarily drawn out and convoluted.

It's claimed that, "The genius of the book is the commentary on many aspects of life" but I think it would be far better if the author could have intertwinned this with an interesting plot.



Full of suspense and intrigue, a wonderful classic, 20 Dec 2007
Raskolnikov, Rodion Romanovich sets out one day in the middle of a fever to kill pawn broker and money lender Alena Ivanovna. He fashions a loop of cloth inside his jacket to hide an axe after hearing her sister Lizaveta will be away one evening and she will be at home alone. Once he gets to her flat, his plans soon seem to come undone. After killing Alena, Lizaveta arrives home earlier than expected and Raskolnikov has forgotten to lock the front door. In the spur of the moment he kills her as well and then flees the scene, taking Alena's purse and some possessions.

Interweaving the story of Raskolnikov is the story of his sister Dunya. She was a governess in a household where the gentleman of the house fell in love with her. His wife arranged for her to be married to clerk Luzhim, Peter Petrovich much to her brothers disgust. Both force her to choose between them and in the meantime her former boss Svidrigaylov, Arkady Ivanovich turns up to cause further trouble for Dunya.

What is really interesting is Raskolinkov's reasons, or lack of, for the murder. He doesn't really appear to have any and he certainly expresses little or no remorse during the course of the book. He refers to Alena as an "old witch" and barely mentions Lizaveta who was such a gentle soul. He gets involved with a prostitute (Sofya Semenovna) and her family who end up being his salvation ultimately.

There are some great cat and mouse games and converations between Raskolinkov and Porfiry Petrovich (the examining magistrate) as the net around Raskolinkov tightens. Do the police know the truth or are they just playing games with him? The book isn't so much about the crime (although it is frequently mentioned) or the punishment of it by law, it's more about suffering. Raskolinkov seems to make things worse for himself by randomly confessing to people and then pretending he was joking to further increase his suffering (perhaps because of his lack of guilt and motive?). It also discusses the nature of crime and his particular belief that some people who are geniuses are above the law (like Napoleon). It also parallels Dostoevsky's own experiences with crime and just escaping being put to death at the last moment to be exiled to Siberia.

It took me a little to get into this novel as it is pretty complicated, luckily my copy had a really handy guide to the Russian names at the back as they kept using different names for the same person. Once I did get stuck in, I fell in love with it. The climax is gripping the edge of your seat to see how it all plays out and I found it nearly impossible to put down. I highly recommend it if you haven't yet found the time for it.


Poor, 18 Nov 2008
Tries too hard to be funny and doesn't succeed. Good plot and characters but badly written.

You'll want your own pet penguin ..., 18 Jun 2008
This is a genuinely original book. The plot is extremely well crafted, and Kirov masterfully controls the way in which the reader is drawn into the increasingly dire position of its central character. The star of the show, though, is Misha the penguin, whose sombre, silent moods not only bring a comic relief; but allow an insight into the soul of the book's beleaguered protagonist, who risks all for the sake of his beloved pet.

I'd highly recommend this as a gripping black comedy, that reaches out to you when you least expect it to.

Beautifully written, 02 Jan 2008
This book must be a masterpiece in its own time. The feelings of Misha and the family can only hold you and put you in tears. Pure tenderness Jeremy Clarke

Quirky, fantastic and a darn good read!, 09 Jun 2007
Funny, tragic and brilliant are the only words I can think of to describe this story. The story itself is unique and captivating, and Misha is an adorable penguin in all his depressive glory. I'm certainly looking forward to reading more from Kurkov and I would heartily recommend this to anyone after a different sort of story.

Quirky, deadpan and very good, 03 Dec 2006
Kurkov's understated humour and perfect, deadpan style makes this quirky little story, full of quirky characters, a gem. Death and the Penguin is the nectar of booklovers and Misha, a penguin rescued from a struggling zoo, is one of the most animated, engaging and touching characters in contemporary fiction. But there's more to Kurkov's writing than a sideways laugh at human foibles. Death of Penguin shows many pictures of loneliness and human isolation. Viktor is an aspiring writer but lacks the energy to follow his dreams and, by settling for bread today and giving up on the idea of jam tomorrow, finds himself drawn into a mafiaesque world of crime and assassination in the chill starkness of post-Soviet Kiev. Misha comes to live with him when the local zoo can no longer afford to feed him. Both are lonely, Viktor isolated from human society and Misha alone amid it. Yet it is Misha who seems able to make strong relationships - first with Sonia, a little girl who comes to live with Viktor when her father is swept away into oblivion by his life of crime, and then with the reader: who cannot fail to adore the quiet, reliable, predictable animal, or to delight in his pleasure in fish and cold bathes, or sorrow over his inability to adjust to life in a climate so much warmer than his native land?



Here too is a stark, if one-sided, portrayal of life in the former Soviet state of Ukraine. And it's not a nice life. It's cold, it's hard and seemingly pointless. Deprived of the structure of the state, each seems to struggle to embrace with vigour the concept of democratic freedom. What Death of a Penguin amounts to is a strong indictment of a political reform which has left a population, bereft of communist community, without any societal fabric at all: without hope, without security and unable to realise the promise of liberty. This book is very funny. It's very sad. And it's very, very good.


A very influential book, 25 Jul 2008
This book was very famous during the Cold War, for its depiction of Stalin's Terror in the USSR in the 1930's. An old Bolshevik, in one of Stalin's jails, accused of an impossible crime, reflects on his career in the revolution, going over how he gradually sacrificed all his comrades and all his principles for the "Revolution", which ultimately amounted only to the unrestricted power of a single man. As it stands it is a powerful and subtle indictment of the principle that means justifies the ends, and could apply to any ideology which is making the similar claims on someone's allegiance.

Koestler obviously had some excellent contacts who told him of the conditions in Soviet jails, but still the reality of Stalin's jails was more horrific and more surreal than even Koestler's imagination could describe. If you are looking for an accurate description of what Stalin's Gulag was really like for someone surviving in it, try Evgenia Ginzburg. Koestler's book is more of a literary meditation on the consequences of making loyalty to a faith or an organisation the basis of your moral choices, but the book is none the worse for that.

More illuminating than it sounds, 12 Aug 2007
Written in 1940, this novel reflects the kind of pessimism which followed the post-revolutionary Soviet period and with which we're now familiar. Koestler, himself only recently released from one of Franco's jails where he was imprisoned under sentence of death, builds his story around Rubashov whom we join at the point of his arrest on the sinister-sounding charge of "political divergences".

As one of the few remaining fathers of the revolution Rubashov knows better than most what lies in store for him at the hands of the new generation of brutal leaders. His downfall was as inevitable as the falling away of faith in the system which preceded it. There was a time when his belief in the power of the revolutionaries to alter irrevocably the course of history was unshakeable so much so that he himself has been the perpetrator of serious crimes, the memory of which now haunts him in his cell.

Because of that he makes an unlikely hero, but nonetheless the reader cannot fail to respect and appreciate his stoicism and to share his ironic realisation that his inquisitors are persecuting him using the very same theories and dogma with which he once suppressed opposition.

It's not difficult to see the influence which this short novel had on Orwell, most obviously in "Animal Farm" and "1984", both published later in the same decade.

The horror of Rubashov's confinement is neither sentimentalised nor over-dramatised leaving "Darkness at Noon" as accessible and relevant as it is important in the development of twentieth century fiction.

Ruthless purge, 21 Oct 2005
This is, quite rightly, the classic novel about a power struggle within a monolithic political party.
To consolidate his power and to exert his own policies, a dictator uses the young guard to liquidate mercilessly his old fellow revolutionaries, who once were or still are critical of him.
Koestler relates hauntingly how his idealistic dreams are shattered and how the main aim of his whole life is destroyed:"But when he asked himself, for what actually are you dying? He found no answer." (p.206)

This is still a very modern work. It reminds us that a multi-party system and free elections are a must to eliminate all risks that a ruthless clique seizes power in a country.

This book is a masterpiece.

It contains a terrible quotation: "When the existence of the Church is threatened, she is released from the commandments of morality. With unity as the end, the use of every means is sanctified, even cunning, treachery, violence, simony, prison, death." (Dietrich von Nieheim, Bishop of Verden)

A book about death, 16 Nov 2004
"Darkness at Noon" describes the last days of Rubashov, a former communist party official in an unnamed regime. While waiting for execution, he kills time tapping out coded messages through the walls to fellow inmates, gets interrogated periodically by a former colleague and reminisces about some past experiences.

Accompanying this character on his final steps towards death, the novel is a powerful and terrifying meditation on how this experience feels and what it means - to Rubashov himself, to Koestler's audience and to the world at large. Is he a traitor to the regime or a convenient scapegoat? Will the regime benefit from his death? If it does, does that make death worthwhile? Does his death mean anything at all?

Koestler's answer to this final question is a resounding and crushing 'no' but there is something awe-inspiring and ultimately uplifting about the nihilistic finale, and the journey there is thoroughly absorbing.

"The end justifies the means" ??? :(, 15 Sep 2004
"The characters in this book are fictitious. The historical circumstances which determined their actions are real. The life of the man N. S. Rubashov is a synthesis of the lives of a number of men who were victims of the so-called Moscu Trials".That is part of the dedicatory that Koestler wrote for his book, "Darkness at noon".

Arthur Koestler (1905-1983) was a person that believed in the progress that Communism was supposed to bring, but that became disillusioned in the way in which that dream was being carried out in the URSS. He wrote many books that give expression to his feelings of disenchantment, but "Darkness at noon" is probably the most popular one.

Not overly long, and very easy to read, this book is the story of Rubashov, an old communist who took part in the revolution and who is very loyal to the "Cause". Strangely enough, he is accused of treason, and taken to jail, where he must face harsh interrogatories. While he is in jail, Rubashov experiences flashbacks that allow us to know more about him, and the things he did due to his devotion to the Party. He betrayed people he loved, and those he appreciated, for no other reason than obedience to the Party and fear of going to jail.

We can have an idea of Rubashov's feelings and ideas all throughout his ordeal thanks to the fact that "Darkness at noon" is written in the first person. After a while, we are Rubashov, and like him we are surprised, outraged, desperate and ultimately resigned to our luck.

In the beginning, Rubashov says that he isn't a traitor and that he hasn't done the things he is accused of. But slowly our main character starts to come to terms with the idea that the truth of the accusation isn't really important, what matters is to serve the country. And if the leader (Number one) says he is to be blamed, he must have done something....

The prisioner writes a diary, where he dwells upon the nature of men, and politics. He thinks that after the revolution he defended so passionately, an individual is defined merely as "a multitude of one million divided by one million". The individual doesn't matter because only the "Cause" matters. Regarding politics, he concludes that at the end only one thing is clear: "the end justifies the means". Is it any surprise, then, that the tone that pervades this book is so gloomy?.

On the whole, I highly recommend "Darkness at noon" to all of you, for two reasons. To start with, it is a literary masterpiece, beautifully written and accessible to the average reader. Secondly, and more important, it also shows us once again that every attempt to forget that the end doesn't justifies the means ends in a nightmare.

Belen Alcat

A Multi-Layered and Uniquely Russian Account, 17 Jun 2008
This work of Russian literature -which is quite epic in scope-deals with many themes.
It is set in a clinic in Soviet ruled Uzbekistan for cancer patients ,in the mid 1950's ,shortly after the death of Joseph Stalin.
It deals with the personal stories and lives of many different characters
There are parallels between the cancer that ravages the bodies of the dying patients and the cancer of Communism that ravaged the once proud Russia.
The hero of the novel is Oleg Kostolgotov who has gone from being a soldier on the frontline of Russia's fight against the invading Nazi armies during world War II to a political prisoner doomed to destruction for falling foul of Stalin's psychopathic system to a cancer patient lingering in a rundown hospital
He lives life to the full however , even in this seemingly gloomy clinic.
His foil is the Communist Party hack Pavel Rusanov , a man who has no heart and soul at all other than the Communist Party itself , in whose name he has cold-bloodedly ruined countless lives.
Now he lies in the cancer ward layed low by a disease that even the mighty Party cannot save him from .

Kostoglotov lives life to the full in the ward and has an interesting relationship with two remarkable women -the dedicated and beautiful Dr Vera Gangart and the vibrant and attractive young nurse Zoya.

Through the stories of the many people in this book we learn of the type of society they lived in ,and there are profound observations on so many subjects in life that are extremely memorable.
Always in the classic Russian combination between hope and depression where neither completely triumph over the other , but rather vie in a dependant type of antagonism .



Amazing, 04 Apr 2008
One of the best books I've read. Excellently defined and different characters, and in the last chapter the writing is almost trance-like.

cure for cancer, 09 Jan 2007
With an outlook as bleak as a Russian winter, but a message like the faint hope of spring, a Communist Party member whose incarceration on the ward due to a huge growth on his neck is the catalyst for a story full of optimism and plans for the future, despite the evident strains placed on the other inmates and nurses by the political forces at work in the post-war Soviet Union. A graphic allegory of the corruption inherent in the state, this is also a superb celebration of the irrepressibility of the human spirit: Truly, a depiction of "Homo Sovieticus" at its most resilient.

brilliant - life affirming., 21 May 2005
Contrary to what might be assumed from the title this book is life affirming, particularly in the form of the main protagonist, Oleg Kostoglotov. If you want to be informed about the state of Russia in the immediate post-Stalin era or want to read a superbly written indictment of collectivism, or simply want a good old fashioned love story - this is for you! Has to be one of the top one hundred novels ever written.

A work of substance, 20 Apr 2005
Whilst I cannot concur with the "greatest novel of the 20th century" and other such epithets, this is certainly a fine novel. (It may well be the greatest russion Novel as in my humble opinion most are way over-rated anyway :) )
Like many other good novels it has one great character, and a decent supporting cast. The central theme of cancer and death is not as foreboding as may be expected and the underlying allegorical theme of the political and social situation in post-Stalinist Soviet Union is well worked into the story.
However there is a lack of focus when the story goes outside the cancer ward and lacks the punch provided by the dialogue between the "inmates/patients".
That this book could be written when and where it was is a great testament to the courage of it's author, but that is not enough in itself to go overboard in acknowledging it's qualities.

Brilliant (But depends on which translation you read), 09 Nov 2008
In my opinion this is the greatest novel ever written, in that it is the most complete study of mental anguish and human suffering and redemption.

One caveat is that the only translation worth reading is that by Constance Garnett. It gets a lot of bad press by critics who claim it makes the novel sound very Victorian. I adisagree. I don't know which is the most faithful translation to Dostoevsky original text (I cannot read Russian) but this is so much more superior than the 'modern' translations. My favourite chapter (Part 4 Chapter 1) is totally ruined in the newer versions. And in many cases the new translation make the text unwieldy and inelegant.

Read this book, but do yourself a favour and read the Garnett translation.



Deep and relevant, 29 Apr 2008
Crime and Punishment beautifully captures moods and moments to guide the reader through the book as though we were truly looking through Roskolnikov's eyes. Dostoyevsky understands the danger that lurks in all of us, and the mind's ability to twist and justify actions and thoughts with the greatest of ease if we are thrown off the righteous path. This is reflected beautifully in the most extreme of scenarios that Roskolnikov finds himself in. It would be a challenge to pick this book up and not finish reading it.

Somewhat lacking..., 16 Mar 2008
Basically a story about guilt and redemption written with absolutely compelling characters and depth. The start is tremendously gripping though it starts to lose pace around the last quarter and meanders somewhat. The reason why I score this lowly is because the ideas placed out are a bit thin on the ground when you look at it objectively (I've read shorter books which have a much wider theme), you can't help but think that it could've been written in half the pages and for all the great character's in place, they fail to live up to there potential, that the story doesn't make enough use of them. It would be great if more actually happened as I felt a lot of what did happen was largely (and ironically) inconsequential. It's a little bit tragic that the main protagonist is a bit, to use the modern term, emo.

An unenjoyable read, 07 Mar 2008
I found this book to be unenjoyable. I could appreciate that it is very well written and would have been very ahead of it's time but also found it to be unnecessarily drawn out and convoluted.

It's claimed that, "The genius of the book is the commentary on many aspects of life" but I think it would be far better if the author could have intertwinned this with an interesting plot.



Full of suspense and intrigue, a wonderful classic, 20 Dec 2007
Raskolnikov, Rodion Romanovich sets out one day in the middle of a fever to kill pawn broker and money lender Alena Ivanovna. He fashions a loop of cloth inside his jacket to hide an axe after hearing her sister Lizaveta will be away one evening and she will be at home alone. Once he gets to her flat, his plans soon seem to come undone. After killing Alena, Lizaveta arrives home earlier than expected and Raskolnikov has forgotten to lock the front door. In the spur of the moment he kills her as well and then flees the scene, taking Alena's purse and some possessions.

Interweaving the story of Raskolnikov is the story of his sister Dunya. She was a governess in a household where the gentleman of the house fell in love with her. His wife arranged for her to be married to clerk Luzhim, Peter Petrovich much to her brothers disgust. Both force her to choose between them and in the meantime her former boss Svidrigaylov, Arkady Ivanovich turns up to cause further trouble for Dunya.

What is really interesting is Raskolinkov's reasons, or lack of, for the murder. He doesn't really appear to have any and he certainly expresses little or no remorse during the course of the book. He refers to Alena as an "old witch" and barely mentions Lizaveta who was such a gentle soul. He gets involved with a prostitute (Sofya Semenovna) and her family who end up being his salvation ultimately.

There are some great cat and mouse games and converations between Raskolinkov and Porfiry Petrovich (the examining magistrate) as the net around Raskolinkov tightens. Do the police know the truth or are they just playing games with him? The book isn't so much about the crime (although it is frequently mentioned) or the punishment of it by law, it's more about suffering. Raskolinkov seems to make things worse for himself by randomly confessing to people and then pretending he was joking to further increase his suffering (perhaps because of his lack of guilt and motive?). It also discusses the nature of crime and his particular belief that some people who are geniuses are above the law (like Napoleon). It also parallels Dostoevsky's own experiences with crime and just escaping being put to death at the last moment to be exiled to Siberia.

It took me a little to get into this novel as it is pretty complicated, luckily my copy had a really handy guide to the Russian names at the back as they kept using different names for the same person. Once I did get stuck in, I fell in love with it. The climax is gripping the edge of your seat to see how it all plays out and I found it nearly impossible to put down. I highly recommend it if you haven't yet found the time for it.


Poor, 18 Nov 2008
Tries too hard to be funny and doesn't succeed. Good plot and characters but badly written.

You'll want your own pet penguin ..., 18 Jun 2008
This is a genuinely original book. The plot is extremely well crafted, and Kirov masterfully controls the way in which the reader is drawn into the increasingly dire position of its central character. The star of the show, though, is Misha the penguin, whose sombre, silent moods not only bring a comic relief; but allow an insight into the soul of the book's beleaguered protagonist, who risks all for the sake of his beloved pet.

I'd highly recommend this as a gripping black comedy, that reaches out to you when you least expect it to.

Beautifully written, 02 Jan 2008
This book must be a masterpiece in its own time. The feelings of Misha and the family can only hold you and put you in tears. Pure tenderness Jeremy Clarke

Quirky, fantastic and a darn good read!, 09 Jun 2007
Funny, tragic and brilliant are the only words I can think of to describe this story. The story itself is unique and captivating, and Misha is an adorable penguin in all his depressive glory. I'm certainly looking forward to reading more from Kurkov and I would heartily recommend this to anyone after a different sort of story.

Quirky, deadpan and very good, 03 Dec 2006
Kurkov's understated humour and perfect, deadpan style makes this quirky little story, full of quirky characters, a gem. Death and the Penguin is the nectar of booklovers and Misha, a penguin rescued from a struggling zoo, is one of the most animated, engaging and touching characters in contemporary fiction. But there's more to Kurkov's writing than a sideways laugh at human foibles. Death of Penguin shows many pictures of loneliness and human isolation. Viktor is an aspiring writer but lacks the energy to follow his dreams and, by settling for bread today and giving up on the idea of jam tomorrow, finds himself drawn into a mafiaesque world of crime and assassination in the chill starkness of post-Soviet Kiev. Misha comes to live with him when the local zoo can no longer afford to feed him. Both are lonely, Viktor isolated from human society and Misha alone amid it. Yet it is Misha who seems able to make strong relationships - first with Sonia, a little girl who comes to live with Viktor when her father is swept away into oblivion by his life of crime, and then with the reader: who cannot fail to adore the quiet, reliable, predictable animal, or to delight in his pleasure in fish and cold bathes, or sorrow over his inability to adjust to life in a climate so much warmer than his native land?



Here too is a stark, if one-sided, portrayal of life in the former Soviet state of Ukraine. And it's not a nice life. It's cold, it's hard and seemingly pointless. Deprived of the structure of the state, each seems to struggle to embrace with vigour the concept of democratic freedom. What Death of a Penguin amounts to is a strong indictment of a political reform which has left a population, bereft of communist community, without any societal fabric at all: without hope, without security and unable to realise the promise of liberty. This book is very funny. It's very sad. And it's very, very good.


A very influential book, 25 Jul 2008
This book was very famous during the Cold War, for its depiction of Stalin's Terror in the USSR in the 1930's. An old Bolshevik, in one of Stalin's jails, accused of an impossible crime, reflects on his career in the revolution, going over how he gradually sacrificed all his comrades and all his principles for the "Revolution", which ultimately amounted only to the unrestricted power of a single man. As it stands it is a powerful and subtle indictment of the principle that means justifies the ends, and could apply to any ideology which is making the similar claims on someone's allegiance.

Koestler obviously had some excellent contacts who told him of the conditions in Soviet jails, but still the reality of Stalin's jails was more horrific and more surreal than even Koestler's imagination could describe. If you are looking for an accurate description of what Stalin's Gulag was really like for someone surviving in it, try Evgenia Ginzburg. Koestler's book is more of a literary meditation on the consequences of making loyalty to a faith or an organisation the basis of your moral choices, but the book is none the worse for that.

More illuminating than it sounds, 12 Aug 2007
Written in 1940, this novel reflects the kind of pessimism which followed the post-revolutionary Soviet period and with which we're now familiar. Koestler, himself only recently released from one of Franco's jails where he was imprisoned under sentence of death, builds his story around Rubashov whom we join at the point of his arrest on the sinister-sounding charge of "political divergences".

As one of the few remaining fathers of the revolution Rubashov knows better than most what lies in store for him at the hands of the new generation of brutal leaders. His downfall was as inevitable as the falling away of faith in the system which preceded it. There was a time when his belief in the power of the revolutionaries to alter irrevocably the course of history was unshakeable so much so that he himself has been the perpetrator of serious crimes, the memory of which now haunts him in his cell.

Because of that he makes an unlikely hero, but nonetheless the reader cannot fail to respect and appreciate his stoicism and to share his ironic realisation that his inquisitors are persecuting him using the very same theories and dogma with which he once suppressed opposition.

It's not difficult to see the influence which this short novel had on Orwell, most obviously in "Animal Farm" and "1984", both published later in the same decade.

The horror of Rubashov's confinement is neither sentimentalised nor over-dramatised leaving "Darkness at Noon" as accessible and relevant as it is important in the development of twentieth century fiction.

Ruthless purge, 21 Oct 2005
This is, quite rightly, the classic novel about a power struggle within a monolithic political party.
To consolidate his power and to exert his own policies, a dictator uses the young guard to liquidate mercilessly his old fellow revolutionaries, who once were or still are critical of him.
Koestler relates hauntingly how his idealistic dreams are shattered and how the main aim of his whole life is destroyed:"But when he asked himself, for what actually are you dying? He found no answer." (p.206)

This is still a very modern work. It reminds us that a multi-party system and free elections are a must to eliminate all risks that a ruthless clique seizes power in a country.

This book is a masterpiece.

It contains a terrible quotation: "When the existence of the Church is threatened, she is released from the commandments of morality. With unity as the end, the use of every means is sanctified, even cunning, treachery, violence, simony, prison, death." (Dietrich von Nieheim, Bishop of Verden)

A book about death, 16 Nov 2004
"Darkness at Noon" describes the last days of Rubashov, a former communist party official in an unnamed regime. While waiting for execution, he kills time tapping out coded messages through the walls to fellow inmates, gets interrogated periodically by a former colleague and reminisces about some past experiences.

Accompanying this character on his final steps towards death, the novel is a powerful and terrifying meditation on how this experience feels and what it means - to Rubashov himself, to Koestler's audience and to the world at large. Is he a traitor to the regime or a convenient scapegoat? Will the regime benefit from his death? If it does, does that make death worthwhile? Does his death mean anything at all?

Koestler's answer to this final question is a resounding and crushing 'no' but there is something awe-inspiring and ultimately uplifting about the nihilistic finale, and the journey there is thoroughly absorbing.

"The end justifies the means" ??? :(, 15 Sep 2004
"The characters in this book are fictitious. The historical circumstances which determined their actions are real. The life of the man N. S. Rubashov is a synthesis of the lives of a number of men who were victims of the so-called Moscu Trials".That is part of the dedicatory that Koestler wrote for his book, "Darkness at noon".

Arthur Koestler (1905-1983) was a person that believed in the progress that Communism was supposed to bring, but that became disillusioned in the way in which that dream was being carried out in the URSS. He wrote many books that give expression to his feelings of disenchantment, but "Darkness at noon" is probably the most popular one.

Not overly long, and very easy to read, this book is the story of Rubashov, an old communist who took part in the revolution and who is very loyal to the "Cause". Strangely enough, he is accused of treason, and taken to jail, where he must face harsh interrogatories. While he is in jail, Rubashov experiences flashbacks that allow us to know more about him, and the things he did due to his devotion to the Party. He betrayed people he loved, and those he appreciated, for no other reason than obedience to the Party and fear of going to jail.

We can have an idea of Rubashov's feelings and ideas all throughout his ordeal thanks to the fact that "Darkness at noon" is written in the first person. After a while, we are Rubashov, and like him we are surprised, outraged, desperate and ultimately resigned to our luck.

In the beginning, Rubashov says that he isn't a traitor and that he hasn't done the things he is accused of. But slowly our main character starts to come to terms with the idea that the truth of the accusation isn't really important, what matters is to serve the country. And if the leader (Number one) says he is to be blamed, he must have done something....

The prisioner writes a diary, where he dwells upon the nature of men, and politics. He thinks that after the revolution he defended so passionately, an individual is defined merely as "a multitude of one million divided by one million". The individual doesn't matter because only the "Cause" matters. Regarding politics, he concludes that at the end only one thing is clear: "the end justifies the means". Is it any surprise, then, that the tone that pervades this book is so gloomy?.

On the whole, I highly recommend "Darkness at noon" to all of you, for two reasons. To start with, it is a literary masterpiece, beautifully written and accessible to the average reader. Secondly, and more important, it also shows us once again that every attempt to forget that the end doesn't justifies the means ends in a nightmare.

Belen Alcat

A Multi-Layered and Uniquely Russian Account, 17 Jun 2008
This work of Russian literature -which is quite epic in scope-deals with many themes.
It is set in a clinic in Soviet ruled Uzbekistan for cancer patients ,in the mid 1950's ,shortly after the death of Joseph Stalin.
It deals with the personal stories and lives of many different characters
There are parallels between the cancer that ravages the bodies of the dying patients and the cancer of Communism that ravaged the once proud Russia.
The hero of the novel is Oleg Kostolgotov who has gone from being a soldier on the frontline of Russia's fight against the invading Nazi armies during world War II to a political prisoner doomed to destruction for falling foul of Stalin's psychopathic system to a cancer patient lingering in a rundown hospital
He lives life to the full however , even in this seemingly gloomy clinic.
His foil is the Communist Party hack Pavel Rusanov , a man who has no heart and soul at all other than the Communist Party itself , in whose name he has cold-bloodedly ruined countless lives.
Now he lies in the cancer ward layed low by a disease that even the mighty Party cannot save him from .

Kostoglotov lives life to the full in the ward and has an interesting relationship with two remarkable women -the dedicated and beautiful Dr Vera Gangart and the vibrant and attractive young nurse Zoya.

Through the stories of the many people in this book we learn of the type of society they lived in ,and there are profound observations on so many subjects in life that are extremely memorable.
Always in the classic Russian combination between hope and depression where neither completely triumph over the other , but rather vie in a dependant type of antagonism .



Amazing, 04 Apr 2008
One of the best books I've read. Excellently defined and different characters, and in the last chapter the writing is almost trance-like.

cure for cancer, 09 Jan 2007
With an outlook as bleak as a Russian winter, but a message like the faint hope of spring, a Communist Party member whose incarceration on the ward due to a huge growth on his neck is the catalyst for a story full of optimism and plans for the future, despite the evident strains placed on the other inmates and nurses by the political forces at work in the post-war Soviet Union. A graphic allegory of the corruption inherent in the state, this is also a superb celebration of the irrepressibility of the human spirit: Truly, a depiction of "Homo Sovieticus" at its most resilient.

brilliant - life affirming., 21 May 2005
Contrary to what might be assumed from the title this book is life affirming, particularly in the form of the main protagonist, Oleg Kostoglotov. If you want to be informed about the state of Russia in the immediate post-Stalin era or want to read a superbly written indictment of collectivism, or simply want a good old fashioned love story - this is for you! Has to be one of the top one hundred novels ever written.

A work of substance, 20 Apr 2005
Whilst I cannot concur with the "greatest novel of the 20th century" and other such epithets, this is certainly a fine novel. (It may well be the greatest russion Novel as in my humble opinion most are way over-rated anyway :) )
Like many other good novels it has one great character, and a decent supporting cast. The central theme of cancer and death is not as foreboding as may be expected and the underlying allegorical theme of the political and social situation in post-Stalinist Soviet Union is well worked into the story.
However there is a lack of focus when the story goes outside the cancer ward and lacks the punch provided by the dialogue between the "inmates/patients".
That this book could be written when and where it was is a great testament to the courage of it's author, but that is not enough in itself to go overboard in acknowledging it's qualities.

Great Read, 09 Nov 2008
I first read this 25+ years ago. It was my introduction to Sven Hassel and I spent years searching out the old Corgi versions of his books in old bookshops and libraries.

This first book was written in the fifties after the war and contains the characters and elements of all of his subsequent books. I tried in vain to map out a chronology of events throughout his books but this book (and his others) are clearly works of fiction since the events and persons they describe often appear in different campaigns of the war at the same time.

That being said, it is hard to believe that Sven Hassel did not see some combat in WW2 since his descriptions of the Eastern Front and the camps are vivid and believable. I have read many books on the war in the East and Hassel's books still provide a vivid, shocking and at times outrageously funny depiction of the war.

There is a lot of material on the web about his writings and accusations about his political orientation, but you should reserve judgement until you have read some of his works. Regardless of the politics, this is a great read.

One of the best, 14 Oct 2008
As already mentioned this is probably the most factual of his books (together with Comrades of War and Wheels of Terror)as we follow Sven from court room to penal camp to the Eastern Front and meet most of the characters who will remain with us in the other books. I find it a bit irritating that the Old Man is called the Old 'Un in this one (like Tiny being Little John in March Batallion and Liquidate Paris) but that's just me.

There is little of the slapstick humour of later books and the tone remains fairly sombre throughout but the sheer wretchedness of the war in the East and the efforts of men to remain human in inhuman surroundings comes across well.

A View from the 'Other' Side..., 26 Aug 2007
Very well written and a good introduction to the work of the author. Sven doesn't get bogged down in too much historical detail, but manages to paint a gritty image of life as a German 'tanker'. Nice to read something told from a different perspective. Made me want to go and buy more Hassel books - which I did!

Boring, 09 Aug 2007
Firstly, I'm an avid reader of WW2 fiction and thought it was about time I started reading Sven Hassel. I thought it might be interesting to get an account, albeit fictional, from the German perspective. The first couple of chapters were good and full of promise, describing the brutal acts carried out in the German penal colonies. However, after that the book began to fall apart. The plot is disjointed, at times feeling like a short story anthology and at other times an autobiography. Each chapter starts with an annoying half-page of prose in italics that bears no relation to the story that follows. The characterisation is poor, so you are left feeling like you don't know the characters and don't care if they live or die. The book is not originally written in English and it shows as the translation is poor.
I finished the book out of sheer determination but found it took enormous willpower to pick the book up each time.

Shocking testimony to the brutality of war, 13 Feb 2007
Sven Hassel tells this story from his own experiences in this account of life as a member of a penal battalion is certainly not for the faint hearted. A brutal account of life on the 'other' side. A must read for all those interested in getting an understanding of what serving in the German Army was like. Moving, shocking and mesmerising.

I first read this book 20 years ago and have just bought a new copy to read it again such is its impact.

Brilliant (But depends on which translation you read), 09 Nov 2008
In my opinion this is the greatest novel ever written, in that it is the most complete study of mental anguish and human suffering and redemption.

One caveat is that the only translation worth reading is that by Constance Garnett. It gets a lot of bad press by critics who claim it makes the novel sound very Victorian. I adisagree. I don't know which is the most faithful translation to Dostoevsky original text (I cannot read Russian) but this is so much more superior than the 'modern' translations. My favourite chapter (Part 4 Chapter 1) is totally ruined in the newer versions. And in many cases the new translation make the text unwieldy and inelegant.

Read this book, but do yourself a favour and read the Garnett translation.



Deep and relevant, 29 Apr 2008
Crime and Punishment beautifully captures moods and moments to guide the reader through the book as though we were truly looking through Roskolnikov's eyes. Dostoyevsky understands the danger that lurks in all of us, and the mind's ability to twist and justify actions and thoughts with the greatest of ease if we are thrown off the righteous path. This is reflected beautifully in the most extreme of scenarios that Roskolnikov finds himself in. It would be a challenge to pick this book up and not finish reading it.

Somewhat lacking..., 16 Mar 2008
Basically a story about guilt and redemption written with absolutely compelling characters and depth. The start is tremendously gripping though it starts to lose pace around the last quarter and meanders somewhat. The reason why I score this lowly is because the ideas placed out are a bit thin on the ground when you look at it objectively (I've read shorter books which have a much wider theme), you can't help but think that it could've been written in half the pages and for all the great character's in place, they fail to live up to there potential, that the story doesn't make enough use of them. It would be great if more actually happened as I felt a lot of what did happen was largely (and ironically) inconsequential. It's a little bit tragic that the main protagonist is a bit, to use the modern term, emo.

An unenjoyable read, 07 Mar 2008
I found this book to be unenjoyable. I could appreciate that it is very well written and would have been very ahead of it's time but also found it to be unnecessarily drawn out and convoluted.

It's claimed that, "The genius of the book is the commentary on many aspects of life" but I think it would be far better if the author could have intertwinned this with an interesting plot.



Full of suspense and intrigue, a wonderful classic, 20 Dec 2007
Raskolnikov, Rodion Romanovich sets out one day in the middle of a fever to kill pawn broker and money lender Alena Ivanovna. He fashions a loop of cloth inside his jacket to hide an axe after hearing her sister Lizaveta will be away one evening and she will be at home alone. Once he gets to her flat, his plans soon seem to come undone. After killing Alena, Lizaveta arrives home earlier than expected and Raskolnikov has forgotten to lock the front door. In the spur of the moment he kills her as well and then flees the scene, taking Alena's purse and some possessions.

Interweaving the story of Raskolnikov is the story of his sister Dunya. She was a governess in a household where the gentleman of the house fell in love with her. His wife arranged for her to be married to clerk Luzhim, Peter Petrovich much to her brothers disgust. Both force her to choose between them and in the meantime her former boss Svidrigaylov, Arkady Ivanovich turns up to cause further trouble for Dunya.

What is really interesting is Raskolinkov's reasons, or lack of, for the murder. He doesn't really appear to have any and he certainly expresses little or no remorse during the course of the book. He refers to Alena as an "old witch" and barely mentions Lizaveta who was such a gentle soul. He gets involved with a prostitute (Sofya Semenovna) and her family who end up being his salvation ultimately.

There are some great cat and mouse games and converations between Raskolinkov and Porfiry Petrovich (the examining magistrate) as the net around Raskolinkov tightens. Do the police know the truth or are they just playing games with him? The book isn't so much about the crime (although it is frequently mentioned) or the punishment of it by law, it's more about suffering. Raskolinkov seems to make things worse for himself by randomly confessing to people and then pretending he was joking to further increase his suffering (perhaps because of his lack of guilt and motive?). It also discusses the nature of crime and his particular belief that some people who are geniuses are above the law (like Napoleon). It also parallels Dostoevsky's own experiences with crime and just escaping being put to death at the last moment to be exiled to Siberia.

It took me a little to get into this novel as it is pretty complicated, luckily my copy had a really handy guide to the Russian names at the back as they kept using different names for the same person. Once I did get stuck in, I fell in love with it. The climax is gripping the edge of your seat to see how it all plays out and I found it nearly impossible to put down. I highly recommend it if you haven't yet found the time for it.


Poor, 18 Nov 2008
Tries too hard to be funny and doesn't succeed. Good plot and characters but badly written.

You'll want your own pet penguin ..., 18 Jun 2008
This is a genuinely original book. The plot is extremely well crafted, and Kirov masterfully controls the way in which the reader is drawn into the increasingly dire position of its central character. The star of the show, though, is Misha the penguin, whose sombre, silent moods not only bring a comic relief; but allow an insight into the soul of the book's beleaguered protagonist, who risks all for the sake of his beloved pet.

I'd highly recommend this as a gripping black comedy, that reaches out to you when you least expect it to.

Beautifully written, 02 Jan 2008
This book must be a masterpiece in its own time. The feelings of Misha and the family can only hold you and put you in tears. Pure tenderness Jeremy Clarke

Quirky, fantastic and a darn good read!, 09 Jun 2007
Funny, tragic and brilliant are the only words I can think of to describe this story. The story itself is unique and captivating, and Misha is an adorable penguin in all his depressive glory. I'm certainly looking forward to reading more from Kurkov and I would heartily recommend this to anyone after a different sort of story.

Quirky, deadpan and very good, 03 Dec 2006
Kurkov's understated humour and perfect, deadpan style makes this quirky little story, full of quirky characters, a gem. Death and the Penguin is the nectar of booklovers and Misha, a penguin rescued from a struggling zoo, is one of the most animated, engaging and touching characters in contemporary fiction. But there's more to Kurkov's writing than a sideways laugh at human foibles. Death of Penguin shows many pictures of loneliness and human isolation. Viktor is an aspiring writer but lacks the energy to follow his dreams and, by settling for bread today and giving up on the idea of jam tomorrow, finds himself drawn into a mafiaesque world of crime and assassination in the chill starkness of post-Soviet Kiev. Misha comes to live with him when the local zoo can no longer afford to feed him. Both are lonely, Viktor isolated from human society and Misha alone amid it. Yet it is Misha who seems able to make strong relationships - first with Sonia, a little girl who comes to live with Viktor when her father is swept away into oblivion by his life of crime, and then with the reader: who cannot fail to adore the quiet, reliable, predictable animal, or to delight in his pleasure in fish and cold bathes, or sorrow over his inability to adjust to life in a climate so much warmer than his native land?



Here too is a stark, if one-sided, portrayal of life in the former Soviet state of Ukraine. And it's not a nice life. It's cold, it's hard and seemingly pointless. Deprived of the structure of the state, each seems to struggle to embrace with vigour the concept of democratic freedom. What Death of a Penguin amounts to is a strong indictment of a political reform which has left a population, bereft of communist community, without any societal fabric at all: without hope, without security and unable to realise the promise of liberty. This book is very funny. It's very sad. And it's very, very good.


A very influential book, 25 Jul 2008
This book was very famous during the Cold War, for its depiction of Stalin's Terror in the USSR in the 1930's. An old Bolshevik, in one of Stalin's jails, accused of an impossible crime, reflects on his career in the revolution, going over how he gradually sacrificed all his comrades and all his principles for the "Revolution", which ultimately amounted only to the unrestricted power of a single man. As it stands it is a powerful and subtle indictment of the principle that means justifies the ends, and could apply to any ideology which is making the similar claims on someone's allegiance.

Koestler obviously had some excellent contacts who told him of the conditions in Soviet jails, but still the reality of Stalin's jails was more horrific and more surreal than even Koestler's imagination could describe. If you are looking for an accurate description of what Stalin's Gulag was really like for someone surviving in it, try Evgenia Ginzburg. Koestler's book is more of a literary meditation on the consequences of making loyalty to a faith or an organisation the basis of your moral choices, but the book is none the worse for that.

More illuminating than it sounds, 12 Aug 2007
Written in 1940, this novel reflects the kind of pessimism which followed the post-revolutionary Soviet period and with which we're now familiar. Koestler, himself only recently released from one of Franco's jails where he was imprisoned under sentence of death, builds his story around Rubashov whom we join at the point of his arrest on the sinister-sounding charge of "political divergences".

As one of the few remaining fathers of the revolution Rubashov knows better than most what lies in store for him at the hands of the new generation of brutal leaders. His downfall was as inevitable as the falling away of faith in the system which preceded it. There was a time when his belief in the power of the revolutionaries to alter irrevocably the course of history was unshakeable so much so that he himself has been the perpetrator of serious crimes, the memory of which now haunts him in his cell.

Because of that he makes an unlikely hero, but nonetheless the reader cannot fail to respect and appreciate his stoicism and to share his ironic realisation that his inquisitors are persecuting him using the very same theories and dogma with which he once suppressed opposition.

It's not difficult to see the influence which this short novel had on Orwell, most obviously in "Animal Farm" and "1984", both published later in the same decade.

The horror of Rubashov's confinement is neither sentimentalised nor over-dramatised leaving "Darkness at Noon" as accessible and relevant as it is important in the development of twentieth century fiction.

Ruthless purge, 21 Oct 2005
This is, quite rightly, the classic novel about a power struggle within a monolithic political party.
To consolidate his power and to exert his own policies, a dictator uses the young guard to liquidate mercilessly his old fellow revolutionaries, who once were or still are critical of him.
Koestler relates hauntingly how his idealistic dreams are shattered and how the main aim of his whole life is destroyed:"But when he asked himself, for what actually are you dying? He found no answer." (p.206)

This is still a very modern work. It reminds us that a multi-party system and free elections are a must to eliminate all risks that a ruthless clique seizes power in a country.

This book is a masterpiece.

It contains a terrible quotation: "When the existence of the Church is threatened, she is released from the commandments of morality. With unity as the end, the use of every means is sanctified, even cunning, treachery, violence, simony, prison, death." (Dietrich von Nieheim, Bishop of Verden)

A book about death, 16 Nov 2004
"Darkness at Noon" describes the last days of Rubashov, a former communist party official in an unnamed regime. While waiting for execution, he kills time tapping out coded messages through the walls to fellow inmates, gets interrogated periodically by a former colleague and reminisces about some past experiences.

Accompanying this character on his final steps towards death, the novel is a powerful and terrifying meditation on how this experience feels and what it means - to Rubashov himself, to Koestler's audience and to the world at large. Is he a traitor to the regime or a convenient scapegoat? Will the regime benefit from his death? If it does, does that make death worthwhile? Does his death mean anything at all?

Koestler's answer to this final question is a resounding and crushing 'no' but there is something awe-inspiring and ultimately uplifting about the nihilistic finale, and the journey there is thoroughly absorbing.

"The end justifies the means" ??? :(, 15 Sep 2004
"The characters in this book are fictitious. The historical circumstances which determined their actions are real. The life of the man N. S. Rubashov is a synthesis of the lives of a number of men who were victims of the so-called Moscu Trials".That is part of the dedicatory that Koestler wrote for his book, "Darkness at noon".

Arthur Koestler (1905-1983) was a person that believed in the progress that Communism was supposed to bring, but that became disillusioned in the way in which that dream was being carried out in the URSS. He wrote many books that give expression to his feelings of disenchantment, but "Darkness at noon" is probably the most popular one.

Not overly long, and very easy to read, this book is the story of Rubashov, an old communist who took part in the revolution and who is very loyal to the "Cause". Strangely enough, he is accused of treason, and taken to jail, where he must face harsh interrogatories. While he is in jail, Rubashov experiences flashbacks that allow us to know more about him, and the things he did due to his devotion to the Party. He betrayed people he loved, and those he appreciated, for no other reason than obedience to the Party and fear of going to jail.

We can have an idea of Rubashov's feelings and ideas all throughout his ordeal thanks to the fact that "Darkness at noon" is written in the first person. After a while, we are Rubashov, and like him we are surprised, outraged, desperate and ultimately resigned to our luck.

In the beginning, Rubashov says that he isn't a traitor and that he hasn't done the things he is accused of. But slowly our main character starts to come to terms with the idea that the truth of the accusation isn't really important, what matters is to serve the country. And if the leader (Number one) says he is to be blamed, he must have done something....

The prisioner writes a diary, where he dwells upon the nature of men, and politics. He thinks that after the revolution he defended so passionately, an individual is defined merely as "a multitude of one million divided by one million". The individual doesn't matter because only the "Cause" matters. Regarding politics, he concludes that at the end only one thing is clear: "the end justifies the means". Is it any surprise, then, that the tone that pervades this book is so gloomy?.

On the whole, I highly recommend "Darkness at noon" to all of you, for two reasons. To start with, it is a literary masterpiece, beautifully written and accessible to the average reader. Secondly, and more important, it also shows us once again that every attempt to forget that the end doesn't justifies the means ends in a nightmare.

Belen Alcat

A Multi-Layered and Uniquely Russian Account, 17 Jun 2008
This work of Russian literature -which is quite epic in scope-deals with many themes.
It is set in a clinic in Soviet ruled Uzbekistan for cancer patients ,in the mid 1950's ,shortly after the death of Joseph Stalin.
It deals with the personal stories and lives of many different characters
There are parallels between the cancer that ravages the bodies of the dying patients and the cancer of Communism that ravaged the once proud Russia.
The hero of the novel is Oleg Kostolgotov who has gone from being a soldier on the frontline of Russia's fight against the invading Nazi armies during world War II to a political prisoner doomed to destruction for falling foul of Stalin's psychopathic system to a cancer patient lingering in a rundown hospital
He lives life to the full however , even in this seemingly gloomy clinic.
His foil is the Communist Party hack Pavel Rusanov , a man who has no heart and soul at all other than the Communist Party itself , in whose name he has cold-bloodedly ruined countless lives.
Now he lies in the cancer ward layed low by a disease that even the mighty Party cannot save him from .

Kostoglotov lives life to the full in the ward and has an interesting relationship with two remarkable women -the dedicated and beautiful Dr Vera Gangart and the vibrant and attractive young nurse Zoya.

Through the stories of the many people in this book we learn of the type of society they lived in ,and there are profound observations on so many subjects in life that are extremely memorable.
Always in the classic Russian combination between hope and depression where neither completely triumph over the other , but rather vie in a dependant type of antagonism .



Amazing, 04 Apr 2008
One of the best books I've read. Excellently defined and different characters, and in the last chapter the writing is almost trance-like.

cure for cancer, 09 Jan 2007
With an outlook as bleak as a Russian winter, but a message like the faint hope of spring, a Communist Party member whose incarceration on the ward due to a huge growth on his neck is the catalyst for a story full of optimism and plans for the future, despite the evident strains placed on the other inmates and nurses by the political forces at work in the post-war Soviet Union. A graphic allegory of the corruption inherent in the state, this is also a superb celebration of the irrepressibility of the human spirit: Truly, a depiction of "Homo Sovieticus" at its most resilient.

brilliant - life affirming., 21 May 2005
Contrary to what might be assumed from the title this book is life affirming, particularly in the form of the main protagonist, Oleg Kostoglotov. If you want to be informed about the state of Russia in the immediate post-Stalin era or want to read a superbly written indictment of collectivism, or simply want a good old fashioned love story - this is for you! Has to be one of the top one hundred novels ever written.

A work of substance, 20 Apr 2005
Whilst I cannot concur with the "greatest novel of the 20th century" and other such epithets, this is certainly a fine novel. (It may well be the greatest russion Novel as in my humble opinion most are way over-rated anyway :) )
Like many other good novels it has one great character, and a decent supporting cast. The central theme of cancer and death is not as foreboding as may be expected and the underlying allegorical theme of the political and social situation in post-Stalinist Soviet Union is well worked into the story.
However there is a lack of focus when the story goes outside the cancer ward and lacks the punch provided by the dialogue between the "inmates/patients".
That this book could be written when and where it was is a great testament to the courage of it's author, but that is not enough in itself to go overboard in acknowledging it's qualities.

Great Read, 09 Nov 2008
I first read this 25+ years ago. It was my introduction to Sven Hassel and I spent years searching out the old Corgi versions of his books in old bookshops and libraries.

This first book was written in the fifties after the war and contains the characters and elements of all of his subsequent books. I tried in vain to map out a chronology of events throughout his books but this book (and his others) are clearly works of fiction since the events and persons they describe often appear in different campaigns of the war at the same time.

That being said, it is hard to believe that Sven Hassel did not see s