Introduce Yourself : New Chapter

[Faye]

Welcome, Korneel!

[[deleted user]]

Ruby wrote: "Faye wrote: "I have had Anna Karenina on my bookshelf for a few years. I tried to read it about two years ago, but I could never find the right amount of 'quiet time' to really get into it...."

Ruby if you are planning to read it soon, I hope you'll join the discussions, if you already finished it then still join the discussion. It's so well-known I hope there will be more readers. And Welcome!

[dely]

Welcome Toni ;)
I have read both, Lolita and House of the Dead and they are really beautiful (I have liked more Lolita). Though by Dostoyevsky I have preferred other masterpieces like The Idiot, Demons, Crime and Punishment, Brothers Karamazov and the short stories.
When someone begins to be interested in Russian literature I usually advise to start from the short stories. Otherwise you can read The Master and Margarita, another masterpiece of Russian literature.

[Lex]

As I love Russian Literature I was looking for like minded people. That is how I found this group. My favorite Russian author is Paustovsky. At present I am not reading any Russian authors but in the last couple of months I finished the complete works of Isaac Babel and a short story book of Toergenev. Looking forward to discover more authors through this group.

[Cleo]

Hi, I'm Cleo. I'm hoping this group will inspire me to read more Russian literature. I've read some Dostoyevsky and I just finished Anna Karenina, so I'm looking forward to discussing it during your upcoming read!

[Ben]

I've always heard Russians make the best literature so I've come to find out why.

[dely]

Ben wrote: "I've always heard Russians make the best literature so I've come to find out why."

You are in the right place :)
Welcome!

[[deleted user]]

Welcome Lex, Cleo and Ben!

Cleo wrote: "I've read some Dostoyevsky and I just finished Anna Karenina, so I'm looking forward to discussing it during y..."

Yes do join us! I saw the threads are up. Hope to see you there.

[Arun]

Hello everyone!

I am Arun and I am from India. I was introduced to Russian literature when I inadvertently picked up a book of short stories and novellas of Leo Tolstoy from a friend's bookshelf. The first two stories I read were 'The Raid' and 'The Wood Felling'. While they are Tolstoy's earlier works only, I was nonetheless mesmerized by the depth and clarity of his thoughts and the ease with which he conveyed exactly what he thought.

After reading more of his stories and novellas I picked up Resurrection. Though it has been more than 2 years since I read that, I still remember that in the first chapter, he writes - "All that is evil in man should disappear on contact with nature, the most direct expression of beauty and goodness." And I realized that I am going to get answers to so many doubts I have by reading the works of Tolstoy.

It has been recently only that I shifted to other Russian writers as well. I have read stories of Chekhov and Gogol. I recently read Crime and Punishment and it has been one of the most wonderful books I have came across.

I am so glad to be a member of this group and am keenly looking forward to read and re-read Russian Literature with the group.

[dely]

Arun wrote: "Hello everyone!

I am Arun and I am from India. I was introduced to Russian literature when I inadvertently picked up a book of short stories and novellas of Leo Tolstoy from a friend's bookshelf...."

Welcome Arun!

[Josh]

Hello there!

I'm Josh, a student from the US. I have just started looking into Russian literature after I started reading The Brothers Karamazov. I am currently half way through it and loving it.

I can't wait to tackle some of Tolstoy's novels as well as a few other things like The Master and Margarita, Nabokov's as well as Chekhov's works.

I've actually been to Russia back in 2007 and completely loved the experience. I visited Moscow as well as a few other cities. It's strange that it has taken five years to get into Russian lit but oh well.

I hope that I can participate in one of the group reads soon as well as the discussions. I'm pretty excited to be apart of the group.

[[deleted user]]

Josh wrote: "I hope that I can participate in one of the group reads soon as well as the discussions. I'm pretty excited to be apart of the group. ..."

Hello Josh and welcome! Hope to catch you in one of the reading threads. Since you are a Tolstoy fan, you might want to check out the Tolstoy reading plans.

[Marcia]

Hello. I am wondering if anyone has read Vasily Grossman. I him last year, and read Life and Fate. It thought it was wonderful. I read everything I could find, for free, on the internet about his life. I have also Everything Flows, but I have not read it yet. If anyone else would like to discuss this author or his work, I would love to see your thoughts.

[Lauren]

Hello all! I'm Lauren and I live in the UK (Norwich). I've been discovering Russian literature classic and contemporary for just over a year now and was really excited to find this group. I've read a lot of Tolstoy (Anna Karenina was my favourite) and I loved Tatyana Tolstaya's 'The Slynx' and Solzhenitsyn's 'In The First Circle'. I'm current reading Victor Serge's 'The Case of Comrade Tulayev. I hope I'll find some new discoveries from here!

[Evil]

Hello I am new :D I have never read Russian Literature but would like to :D. I already have my "War and Peace" book ready to read :D

[Skye]

Hi! I'm Skye.

I am a fan of Russian lit, but I am random with it. I'd love to find some great reads. :)

[Bryn]

Hi, I'm Bryn, keen on 19thC Russian novels... French come second for me, and English a slightly dull third. I am crazy for Dostoyevsky, who is far and away my fave writer. Turgenev's short novels are next for me, a unique kind of novel, I admire them hugely. Tolstoy: though I greatly like Anna Karenina, War and Peace is my pet hate. I hope I can have a pet hate - I promise not to be rude.

As a side-effect, I think, I'm into 19thC Russian music. Tchaikovsky (though save from me the ballets); operas - Prince Igor for a dance and singalong; just about any orchestral music with that smack of Russianness. The history is fascinating too.

[Adam]

Good Day!

My name is Adam. I am a librarian in Iowa at a small college. I love history and that love has led me to Russian and Slavic studies. I enjoy reading Russian history and literature along with many of the other Eastern European cultures and histories. I don't know what it is but Eastern Europe and especially Russia has always fascinated me. I am excited to spend some time reading some different books and discussing it with everyone. Cheers.

[dely]

Welcome Adam!
I hope you will enjoy this group and that you will be active and perhaps also take part in the group reads.

[Faye]

Hello, newcomers! Welcome. :)

[MMR.]

Yes, welcome!

[Leanne]

Hi! I just joined the group, my name is Leanne and I'm from Australia.

I love anything to do with Russia. My favourite Russian books are Crime & Punishment, War & Peace, The Brothers Karamazov, and The Master & Margarita. Resurrection has been on my to-read list for a while, so I'm going to join in on the group read.

[MMR.]

Good to have you, Leanne.

[Faye]

Welcome, Leanne!

[João]

привет! My name is Joao and i'm portuguese. I just came across this group and decided to join you guys for i'm very much fond of russian literature as well. So much so that i am now learning russian to, one day, read "War and Peace" in its mother tongue :P

This is great to get in touch with authors i didn't know about and discuss russian lit with those who have so big a passion as myself.
Nice to meet you all :)

[MMR.]

Joao, welcome to the group! Hope you enjoy it.

[Faye]

Welcome, Joao! I'm learning Russian, too, so I can read Russian literature in its original language. It's a tough language, but fun to learn. :)

[Katherine]

I'm Katie I live in USA and basically read anything I can get my hands on.

[Kevin]

Hi, I'm Kevin. I'm a librarian in L.A. (Yes, we have libraries in L.A. Where else can people go when they need to use a computer?) I read a lot of novels, but my passions are for comic books and poetry. In fact, it was comic books that first got me into Russian lit as a kid.

I'm a big fan of Dostoyevsky (although I still haven't finished Bros. K), Nabokov, Chekov, Gogol and some of the poets like Brodsky, Akhmatova, Pasternak and Pushkin, of course. But I haven't read much Tolstoy or Turgenev. There's a ton of classic Russian novels I have yet to read and I'm looking forward to discovering them and discussing them with people who are passionate about them.

As a poetry fan who can't read Russian, I'm particular about translations and I'm hugely grateful for the work of Richard Pevear and larissa Volokhonsky. I find their translations to be more lively and lyrical than the others I've read. I'm curious to know who everyone's favorite translators are.

[Faye]

Welcome, Katherine and Kevin! :)

Kevin wrote: " I'm a librarian in L.A. (Yes, we have libraries in L.A. Where else can people go when they need to use a computer?)"

Hahaha! Yeah, it isn't generally thought of as a town that's full of readers, although I know that Hollywood tends to give LA a bad name.

In fact, it was comic books that first got me into Russian lit as a kid.

Okay, I'm curious - how did that happen?

[Rozzer]

Good afternoon! I'm American and have always been very interested in Soviet literature and history. Of course, I've also read many (not all) of the 19th Century classics. But the Soviet experience has been my real focus, to the extent that ten years ago I sold my Soviet collection of over 300 volumes. And promptly began to build up another. There's something about the Russian predicament (not limited to Soviet times) that has always interested me deeply. I'd like to continue mining that interest and discussing it with you folks here.

[Faye]

Welcome, Rozzer!

Wow, 300 volumes? My collection barely takes up half a shelf so far!

[Kevin]

Well, J.M. DeMatteis is one of my favorite comic book writers and he would allude to Dostoyevsky quite often in the pages of Justice League International, Vol. 1. But the main comic that did it for me was Spider-Man: Kraven's Last Hunt.

Here's what the author had to say about the Russian influence on the story:

"But buried in this Marvel Universe entry was one intriguing fact: Kraven—was Russian. Russian? Russian!

"Why should that excite me so? One word: Dostoyevsky. When I read Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamozov in high school, they seeped in through my brain, wormed their way down into my nervous system...and ripped me to shreds. No other novelist has ever explored the staggering duality of existence, illuminated the mystical heights and the despicable depths of the human heart, with the brilliance of Dostoyevsky. The Russian soul, as exposed in his novels, was really the Universal Soul. It was my soul."

So, of course, I had to read Dostoyevsky after that.

[Faye]

Wow, I had no idea! That does make sense. He has good taste. :)

[Bryn]

On Dostoyevsky in popular culture: it's why I loved X-Files. I knew the creator/writer was a Dostoyevsky fan; it became a game of mine to spot the Dostoy input. Then I found out for certain - before we got the scene with a government guy and an alien that was obviously founded on the Grand Inquisitor.

[Natasha]

Rozzer wrote: "Good afternoon! I'm American and have always been very interested in Soviet literature and history. Of course, I've also read many (not all) of the 19th Century classics. But the Soviet experien..."
Good afternoon, Rozzer! Welcome! You've read so many Russian books. You even know something about the Russian predicament.

[Rozzer]

Well, Natalie, as much as someone who can't speak or read Russian can know. Which probably isn't very much. My grandparents left Russia so terribly long ago, way before WWI, so my only relevant memory is of my great grandmother, who died when I was 5. She was tiny, had snow white hair and wore a black dress down to the floor. I only spoke English, and she didn't speak English. So she was a very strange stranger when I was 4. I did have a great-uncle in Leningrad, a curator at the Hermitage Museum. Grandpa found out that his brother was still alive in the fifties, but because of the politics at the time they couldn't meet.

Natalie wrote: "Rozzer wrote: "Good afternoon! I'm American and have always been very interested in Soviet literature and history. Of course, I've also read many (not all) of the 19th Century classics. But the ..."

[Natasha]

Rozzer wrote: "Well, Natalie, as much as someone who can't speak or read Russian can know. Which probably isn't very much. My grandparents left Russia so terribly long ago, way before WWI, so my only relevant m..."

Rozzer,how interesting it was for me to read about your childhood and grandmother. I can easily imagine your granny thanks to your vivid description. My ancestors also were from Leningrad.

[Rozzer]

Hmmm. Leningrad/Petrograd/St. Petersburg. Grandpa stowed away on a freighter in Riga in 1905. His sailor friend brought him food. Then he was discovered and had to work his way across. He didn't go through Ellis Island. He jumped off the freighter and swam ashore to Brooklyn in the middle of the night. His first job was as a singing waiter in a Coney Island saloon. He was 16.

Natalie wrote: "Rozzer wrote: "Well, Natalie, as much as someone who can't speak or read Russian can know. Which probably isn't very much. My grandparents left Russia so terribly long ago, way before WWI, so my ..."

[Natasha]

Rozzer wrote: "Hmmm. Leningrad/Petrograd/St. Petersburg. Grandpa stowed away on a freighter in Riga in 1905. His sailor friend brought him food. Then he was discovered and had to work his way across. He didn..."
As if I saw a movie or read a book... Your grandpa should have become a writer.

[Arjun]

Hello!! I´m Arjun (17) from India. My interest in Russia started when I was young, my father would go to Russia a lot (hes in the military) and he had a lot of Russian friends who I would meet occasionally.

A month or two ago, quite randomly I picked up his copy of Crime and Punishment (my dad has quite a large book collection) and just started reading and was instantly hooked. Since then I´ve read C&P, The Idiot, Notes from the Underground, The Double and Pushkin´s The Queen of Spades. I loved them all! There are many more I want to read, especially Dostoyevsky. He has become my favourite author (I probably haven´t read as many authors as most of you though) ..
I plan to participate in the next to next group read (Bulgakov) since I´m not sure if Resurrection is available here! Good day to all!

[dely]

Welcome Arjun!
Dostoyevsky is my favourite author too!
A Indian friend of mine has read Resurrection but I don't know where he has bought the book. I will tell him about your question, I am sure he will answer you as soon as he has time ;)

[Faye]

Welcome, Arjun!

[Arjun]

Dely, I just found out, that it is available. But it comes as a 2-stories-in-1 with Notes from the Underground which I already have. I´m going to the book store today to see if I can find it without Notes..., either way! I´ll probably be buying The White Guard today! I haven´t read anything by Bulgakov earlier.

P.S. - isn´t it just a lot of fun to go to book stores? ~

[dely]

Arjun wrote: "P.S. - isn´t it just a lot of fun to go to book stores? "

Yes. I like above all second hand bookshops :)

[Parikhit]

Arjun wrote: "Hello!! I´m Arjun (17) from India. My interest in Russia started when I was young, my father would go to Russia a lot (hes in the military) and he had a lot of Russian friends who I would meet occa..."

Sorry Arjun, couldn't reply earlier. I had borrowed Resurrection from my neighbour. He had this hard bound old book and that made the reading splendid. Good to hear that you found it.

He had also lent to me this huge 1000 page plus book on Russian short stories some of which were extracts from so many novels. There is one which I have been hunting since, Quiet Flows the Don.

[dely]

Parikhit wrote: "There is one which I have been hunting since, Quiet Flows the Don. "

Is it good? I found it in my favorite second hand bookshop (it was soooo cheap!) and bought it immediatly. Then, googeling, I found out that there are 4 volumes (perhaps the English edition has only 2 volumes) but it seems that only the first one is famous.
Do you have read or have heard something about the other volumes?

[Arjun]

I didn´t buy it in the end, it wasn´t available at the bookstore I went to :( , but I bought Bulgakov´s The Master and the Margarita as an introduction to Bulgakov before I join the rest of you for the next group read!

[Parikhit]

dely wrote: "Parikhit wrote: "There is one which I have been hunting since, Quiet Flows the Don. "

Is it good? I found it in my favorite second hand bookshop (it was soooo cheap!) and bought it immediatly. The..."

The extract that I read blew me away. I haven't heard about the other volumes though

[dely]

Parikhit wrote: "The extract that I read blew me away."

Good, good, good!
Infact, if I don't remember wrong, I had added it to my wishlist because you said once and somewhere that it was very interesting.