It is the story of Zhivago, poet and physician, and his struggle to keep his family alive in the midst of the overwhelming chaos of the Russian Revolution. And, it is about Zhivago's love for the beautiful Lara, the woman he pursues beyond all reason, the human symbol of life's sweetness and joy....
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Review
Novel by Boris Pasternak, published in Italy in 1957. This epic tale about the effects of the Russian Revolution and its aftermath on a bourgeois family was not published in the Soviet Union until 1987. One of the results of its publication in the West was Pasternak's complete rejection by Soviet authorities; when he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1958 he was compelled to decline it. The book quickly became an international best-seller. Dr. Yury Zhivago, Pasternak's alter ego, is a poet, philosopher, and physician whose life is disrupted by the war and by his love for Lara, the wife of a revolutionary. His artistic nature makes him vulnerable to the brutality and harshness of the Bolsheviks; wandering throughout Russia, he is unable to take control of his fate, and dies in utter poverty. The poems he leaves behind constitute some of the most beautiful writing in the novel. -- The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature
Language Notes
Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Russian --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Original Language: Russian --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Pasternak v. Reader, Round II,
By DCArchitect (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Dr. Zhivago (Mass Market Paperback)
My first reading of Dr. Zhivago was in high school. At 15, the book was a chore. Impenetrable and numerous Russian names (often for the same character) and endless description of the Russian landscape left me exhausted and unimpressed. After rereading and enjoying a few other high school assignments, I came across Dr. Zhivago on my bookshelf and wondered if I would find more appreciation for Mr. Pasternak's novel ten years later.
Yes, I did. And no, I didn't. I found that this time around I had something more of a connection with the characters. I better understood the way that life can pull a person in strange directions and drop them into unexpected and unwanted situations. I understood that sometimes people are swept into and out of the place they want to be - and why they stay where things are bad and leave where things are good. I certainly had a far greater appreciation for Pasternak's obviously loving descriptions of his homeland. That said, the things that drove my dislike of Dr. Zhivago the first time were still still there. The sprawling story and unending task of keeping all the characters straight were still a detraction. I don't know if the problem with character names springs from the fact that, being Russian names, they are unfamiliar to my mind or if Pasternak simply failed to rein in his cast of thousands. Unresolved plot lines rarely bother me but, when combined with extensive background on what ending up being minor characters, Dr. Zhivago felt a bit as if Pasternak let the narrative get away from him. Maybe that was the point. Sometimes life just gets away from you. After all, he's the one with a Nobel Prize. Who am I to criticize? While I actually <u>liked the novel this time, I feel as if I should have liked Dr. Zhivago more than I did. Maybe it's that I can't escape my first impression.
0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Great book ...small print,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Doctor Zhivago (Everyman's Library Classics) (Hardcover)
This is a great read! Too bad, the print was so small I had to use a magnifier!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
0 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
The Movie really helps,
By A Customer
This review is from: Dr. Zhivago (Mass Market Paperback)
Great book, but if you really want to understand the plot, watch one of the (2 video) movies!!!
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