50 books to read before you die discussion

Open book nomination - Our group read for September 2016

Notes From Underground is different from any novel I can think of. Perhaps it isn't a novel at all. The unnamed narrator is self absorbed, cynical, and contemptuous. The first part of the book is his musings and rants about his own personality failings, of which he nevertheless is smugly proud, and the shortcomings of others. The narrator is an antihero, not particularly likable. His narration then moves into a discourse on the nature of man. And finally into an actual story, though it has a somewhat meager plot.

At first, the book didn't hold my attention well, but then, when it shifted from analytical to story, it picked up. Well before the end, I was fully engaged. There were times when I could imagine it as a TV show featuring Larry David.

Notes From Underground was written in the Victorian era, but, having been written in Russian, it was translated into modern English. Even though it was rather formal in places, it was so much more readable than most Victorian English novels.

Notes From Underground deserves to be read again, to get the full meaning of it; but I doubt that I'll read it again.

I have just finished reading this and I really like it. The first part he is philosophising about the laws of human nature and the advantages of man. He states how intellectuals think man wants tnormal virtuous, rationally advantageous choices. However, he states that what man wants is simply 'Independant choice'. I laughed at this because this is us UK'ers voting to leave the E.U.

The second half of the book is him telling us a story about himself using his 'independent choice' with appalling results. You wouldn't want to know this man.