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janetpants's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
borteujin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Masterful! Haha.
readwithsummer's review against another edition
4.0
My first surrealist satire, and I think those words describe the book perfectly. I never knew I wanted a sly human-style cat as a main character until this. I feel like there are deeper undertones for the humour and it was definetly an eye-opening (my first) expression of Soviet life. This book was a wild and fun ride with beautiful imagery and prose throughout.
lizzbert's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
sannata's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
nikolov_11's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Personally, this would be the hardest book I've read till now. There were times that I wanted to leave the book and forget about it due it's challenging nature. Fortunately with time I started to fall in love with this exceptional novel. I recommend it to every person who wants to broaden their horizon and feel the masterwork of classical literature.
edgarallanfoe's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
4.25
darkyline's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
internetnomads's review against another edition
5.0
This is such a modern book - it could have been written yesterday. What was going on in magical realism before Bulgakov came along? Having just finished [b:The Angel's Game|4912857|The Angel's Game|Carlos Ruiz Zafón|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255680550s/4912857.jpg|3252824], I can draw a straight line from this book to that one through a hundred other books.
Initially was hard to get into the book, since the locations, cast and plot are jumbled up and the pace is quite frenetic. I really started to enjoy it the first time the novel cut to the portion in Jerusalem. There is a great sense of chaos but it's well managed by the author - although remembering three-part Russian names and keeping track of everyone takes a bit of getting used to.
You don't have to know the intricacies of Stalinist Russia to get the points Bulgakov is trying to make. Relax and enjoy this book.
Initially was hard to get into the book, since the locations, cast and plot are jumbled up and the pace is quite frenetic. I really started to enjoy it the first time the novel cut to the portion in Jerusalem. There is a great sense of chaos but it's well managed by the author - although remembering three-part Russian names and keeping track of everyone takes a bit of getting used to.
You don't have to know the intricacies of Stalinist Russia to get the points Bulgakov is trying to make. Relax and enjoy this book.
mudder17's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
This was a tough read for me as I was totally confused by the book and had to look up study notes to help me through it. Then when I got about a third of the way through, I found too many other books to distract me from it. When I finally got back to it, I had to go back and reread sections, and actually, that ended up helping me. This book is bizarre and I would have gotten a lot more out of it if I had better knowledge of Russian history and politics. I think I would definitely have benefited from reading this with someone and being able to discuss the passages. The study notes definitely did help explain a lot of the politics at the time, and in fact, the author was not able to publish this until at least two decades after it was written and the first publication was censored. Considering the obvious criticisms found in this book, I am not at all surprised. I am left wondering how this version/translation compares to what the author originally intended. Anyway, I'm glad I did read this book. Considering it is not a very long book, it took me a long time to get through it. Overall, I would say the second half of the book was more interesting and easier to read than the first half.
This was a tough read for me as I was totally confused by the book and had to look up study notes to help me through it. Then when I got about a third of the way through, I found too many other books to distract me from it. When I finally got back to it, I had to go back and reread sections, and actually, that ended up helping me. This book is bizarre and I would have gotten a lot more out of it if I had better knowledge of Russian history and politics. I think I would definitely have benefited from reading this with someone and being able to discuss the passages. The study notes definitely did help explain a lot of the politics at the time, and in fact, the author was not able to publish this until at least two decades after it was written and the first publication was censored. Considering the obvious criticisms found in this book, I am not at all surprised. I am left wondering how this version/translation compares to what the author originally intended. Anyway, I'm glad I did read this book. Considering it is not a very long book, it took me a long time to get through it. Overall, I would say the second half of the book was more interesting and easier to read than the first half.