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A review by futurememory
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
3.0
Probably 3.5-4 stars, but I have to think on it a bit more.
The subtitle to this book could really be Raskolnikov Has 50-75 Page Conversations with People.
My first novel of the great Russians (taking out Lolita and Metamorphosis), Crime and Punishment is really, first and foremost, a psychological study. A really... thinky book. Not that I don't love that, but... I was expecting it to be a bit less... didactic in parts, The Epilogue leaves a lot to be desired, at least in my opinion, but the way it's written and the central character of Raskolnikov is fascinating.
It's extremely easy to get sucked into Dostoyevsky's rendition of St. Petersburg, its horrific grit and grime, its terrors and heartbreaks. Honestly, the book had me in a bit of a funk and feeling pretty nihilistic at points.
Oliver Ready's translation was smooth and effortless, and really captured the staccato ways that thoughts flit through a person's brain, especially when they're feverish/ill/mad.
Anyway, I'm happy I finally read this, and I can see the rating potentially going up the more I think on it. There's a lot to chew on here, and I can already feel it sticking to my insides.
The subtitle to this book could really be Raskolnikov Has 50-75 Page Conversations with People.
My first novel of the great Russians (taking out Lolita and Metamorphosis), Crime and Punishment is really, first and foremost, a psychological study. A really... thinky book. Not that I don't love that, but... I was expecting it to be a bit less... didactic in parts, The Epilogue leaves a lot to be desired, at least in my opinion, but the way it's written and the central character of Raskolnikov is fascinating.
It's extremely easy to get sucked into Dostoyevsky's rendition of St. Petersburg, its horrific grit and grime, its terrors and heartbreaks. Honestly, the book had me in a bit of a funk and feeling pretty nihilistic at points.
Oliver Ready's translation was smooth and effortless, and really captured the staccato ways that thoughts flit through a person's brain, especially when they're feverish/ill/mad.
Anyway, I'm happy I finally read this, and I can see the rating potentially going up the more I think on it. There's a lot to chew on here, and I can already feel it sticking to my insides.