A review by sgunther
The House of the Dead and Poor Folk by Fyodor Dostoevsky
3.0
The House of the Dead: ★★☆☆☆ (7/14/19)
For something that calls itself a work of fiction, this reads awfully like a memoir. And not even a polished, organized-narrative-arc kind of memoir—more like a series of conversations in which a friend tells you in great detail about his experience. This may sound good, but I'm trying to say that, on the whole, it's a bit boring. There is little character and less plot. (Well, there are a lot of vivid characters, but most pop up only once or twice in an anecdotal kind of way. And even the anecdotes have very little story to them.) I suppose it is an interesting look at Russian prisons, but as far as art or entertainment value, it's lacking.
Poor Folk: ★★★☆☆ (7/22/19)
This one's more engaging than The House of the Dead, but it still doesn't have a traditional beginning-middle-end plot. What's interesting here is the characters and their relationships—to their poverty, to society, and to each other—and how being thus oppressed can skew your view of reality and of the consequences of your actions.
For something that calls itself a work of fiction, this reads awfully like a memoir. And not even a polished, organized-narrative-arc kind of memoir—more like a series of conversations in which a friend tells you in great detail about his experience. This may sound good, but I'm trying to say that, on the whole, it's a bit boring. There is little character and less plot. (Well, there are a lot of vivid characters, but most pop up only once or twice in an anecdotal kind of way. And even the anecdotes have very little story to them.) I suppose it is an interesting look at Russian prisons, but as far as art or entertainment value, it's lacking.
Poor Folk: ★★★☆☆ (7/22/19)
This one's more engaging than The House of the Dead, but it still doesn't have a traditional beginning-middle-end plot. What's interesting here is the characters and their relationships—to their poverty, to society, and to each other—and how being thus oppressed can skew your view of reality and of the consequences of your actions.