Comments on eclectic / eccentric: Book Review: House of the Dead

Rebecca - I have Crime and Punishment sitting on m...

2010-07-15T10:35:52.299-05:00

Rebecca - I have Crime and Punishment sitting on my shelves; it's been there for years, but I've been scared to pick it up. I definitely will be now.

I absolutely love Crime and Punishment for many of...

2010-07-15T07:24:18.578-05:00

I absolutely love Crime and Punishment for many of the same reasons you share: the beautiful language, the complex portraits of people. I think that has a nice plot too, but I'm a fan of subtle plots. I'm kind of afraid of other Dostoevsky novels because I am afraid that they won't live up -- this sounds like it sure does! Thanks.

Stephanie - Yay! I can't wait to pick up anoth...

2010-07-12T18:38:59.026-05:00

Stephanie - Yay! I can't wait to pick up another Dostoevsky; unfortunately I have so many books on my TBR piles, it may be years until I get back around to him.

I am reading my first Dostoevsky right now and alr...

2010-07-12T18:33:02.781-05:00

I am reading my first Dostoevsky right now and already loving it. I can't wait to read more of his books.

Stephanie - Thanks! I haven't read anything el...

2010-07-11T10:23:40.924-05:00

Stephanie - Thanks! I haven't read anything else by Dostoevsky, but I certainly plan to.

Jenners - I should get in on this BK read-a-long, but I have so much else I'm supposed to be reading!

See..now everything you said about why you love cl...

2010-07-10T20:46:58.686-05:00

See..now everything you said about why you love classics is EXACTLY WHY I don't like them. I fear that I'm a lazy modern reader. Yet I keep trying. I'm just now starting The Brothers Karamazov so we'll see how it goes. I started last night and got a headache from the names.

Great review -- I especially liked the way you sum...

2010-07-10T16:17:09.660-05:00

Great review -- I especially liked the way you summarized the philosophical ideas this book offers. This sounds like something I'd probably love. I also want to re-read Crime and Punishment and The Brothers K.

Amy - Ha! That just went on my list after reading ...

2010-07-10T08:45:08.745-05:00

Amy - Ha! That just went on my list after reading the review on your site. Definitely fate!

Rebecca - Exactly! And it's not that I don't love the easy reads, but there is something majestic about the more complex use of language.

Ana - It really was a great read. As for language, I completely agree with what you've said. I actually just finished a book that makes me eat my words (and I think I say so in the review). I think that before reading this I had just been stuck in a rut of mediocre writing combined with simplistic language.

I'm so glad you enjoyed this so much! You have...

2010-07-10T06:11:14.350-05:00

I'm so glad you enjoyed this so much! You have really encouraged me to pick up Dostoevsky. This is why I love the Classics Circuit - it constantly encourages me to read things I thought would go over my head.

As for the language thing, I think it has to do with how we use language in general in the late 20th and early 21st century. It has become so much more informal - it's natural that fiction would reflect this. Also, there's so much more being published today that it's only natural that books with simpler prose exists alongside more lyrical books. But the amount of beautifully written novels hasn't decreased, I don't think. I do see what you're saying, but I think it's dangerous to forget that in the 19th century novels WERE a popular form of mass entertainment. So I don't think the mass appeal of fiction and the simplification of its language go hand in hand necessarily.

I am impressed that you have read Dostoevsky. I h...

2010-07-10T01:03:43.125-05:00

I am impressed that you have read Dostoevsky. I have picked up Crime & Punishment, and Brothers Karamazov several times but have not finished them because there are so many names to remember. I need to make a cheat sheet!

I do understand what you mean about the more complex and almost lyrical prose of the classics. There are reasons that so much today is labeled "chick lit" or "cozy mystery". A good, solid literary novel has such beauty and intelligence in the language that it makes it an intellectual delight to read.

This sounds really interesting. I'm still a ta...

2010-07-09T19:05:48.856-05:00

This sounds really interesting. I'm still a tad too intimidated to try it, but maybe some day :)

Also, I might just have a suggestion... there is this book, you may have heard of it, called Stone in a Landslide... ;)

Andi - It really was an excellent read in my opini...

2010-07-09T14:15:07.308-05:00

Andi - It really was an excellent read in my opinion. So beautifully written and thought-provoking.

I haven't read any of his stuff because I gene...

2010-07-09T14:10:26.219-05:00

I haven't read any of his stuff because I generally have a rocky relationship with the Russians, but this one sounds perfectly worth the effort. Great review, Trisha!

Sandy - Trust me, this isn't a scary difficult...

2010-07-09T12:40:21.238-05:00

Sandy - Trust me, this isn't a scary difficult read; it's really accessible!

Amanda - I was too, but seriously his writing is very accessible.

Bibliolatrist - I really enjoyed it, obviously, so I would definitely recommend picking it up...especially if you already like Dostoevsky.

Kathy - This books was very accessible (man I've said that a lot in these comments). And I've no doubt you are plenty smart!

Christina - Totally lame excuse! Now go out and get some Dostoevsky!

Pam - This was my first Dostoevsky, but you can bet I'll be picking up others. Do you ever blog about the history/classics/etc.?

Jill - I really should join that read-a-long! I was scared of Dostoevsky but now I'm sort of crushing on him.

This reminds me that I need to get cracking on The...

2010-07-09T12:06:14.509-05:00

This reminds me that I need to get cracking on The Brothers Karamazov! One Dostoevsky at a time, although this does sound interesting.

I really love this book and this guy. Not to many ...

2010-07-09T11:21:30.778-05:00

I really love this book and this guy. Not to many people know this about me but I have a Ph.D in History and am forever pouring over non-fiction historical tomes or ancient lit, and classics. I really love the dramatization to his actual sentence.

Trish what an impressive review. I've shied a...

2010-07-09T10:56:48.753-05:00

Trish what an impressive review. I've shied away from Russian authors because I am so ignorant of their pronunciations and because of that I cannot seem to connect with the characters. (I find myself always changing how I pronounce them in my head). A pretty lame excuse, though, isn't it?

The book and its subject matter sound fascinating,...

2010-07-09T09:19:34.687-05:00

The book and its subject matter sound fascinating, but I'm always afraid I'm not smart enough to read books like that.

This sounds awesome! I've read C&P and THE...

2010-07-09T08:51:30.337-05:00

This sounds awesome! I've read C&P and THE IDIOT, but haven't tried this one. Sounds like I better add it to the list!

I am very scared of Dostoevsky.

2010-07-09T08:00:29.414-05:00

I am very scared of Dostoevsky.

I'm probably not the best person to answer tha...

2010-07-09T06:24:03.269-05:00

I'm probably not the best person to answer that question because I have read so very few classics. I think I allow myself to be intimidated by books like this, which is dumb. I keep telling myself I need to take one year just to read them. But I did read Father and Sons by Ivan Turgenev and found it to be of little plot and alot of character study. And I loved it, what do you know?