Readalongs with Ange discussion

Here we can discuss Parts 1 and 2 of Doctor Zhivago

Hello! Have anyone started reading it already? Or is it any date when to begin?

Yasha wrote: "Hello! Have anyone started reading it already? Or is it any date when to begin?"

Hi, I've started yesteray :)

I haven't started yet but you can start at anytime and take it at your own pace :)

Oh this book!!! * drags in a huge crate of tea for everyone * I read it last year, but I'm more than happy to jump into the conversation. If anyone has trouble with the plethora of history, watch both movie adaptations. One focuses more on the love story *blush, blush* the other more on the historical context.

This is my first Russian literature classic and I have to admit that I had to read the spark notes halfway through part I. The names are confusing me, but I hope to remember them more easily as the story progresses. I like the story line and the characters so far. I read the spark notes for part II and will start reading part II today.

I'm a little frustrated because the audiobook was meant to be the same translation, but it isn't! But that's a minor thing. I'm enjoying it so far. :) I'm about 100 pages in.

I'm going to be honest though and say I'm not enjoying it as much as I did the last Russian classic I read which was Crime and Punishment. I know it isn't fair to compare but I can't help myself! I still have 400 or so pages to go, so that might change!

I will say though I'm really enjoying the writing (both in the audio and written versions as I'm interchanging between them!) It's pretty easy to read which is always a bonus!

I can tell this book wasn't published in Russia like Dostoevsky's works were. Dr. Zhivago openly criticises the Bolsheviks and various ideologies prevalent in Russia at the turn of the century. I don't think it was censored.

It's so different from C & P. Perhaps it's like comparing a more psychological Lord of the Flies to a very politically charged Gone with the Wind.

There's almost nothing in common between C & P and DZ.

Don't get discouraged though, DZ is packed with historical context and political backstory. It's ok to only follow these characters:

(The "/" means it's the same character, they just go by a few different nicknames.)

Lara/Larissa/Antipova
Pasha/Pavel/Antipov
Yura/Zhivago
Tonya/Antonina
and the creeper from the beginning who comes back, his name means mosquito, no nicknames for him 'cause he isn't liked, just his full name: Viktor Ippolitovich Komarovsky

The nihilists in Dostoevsky's works are the Reds in Dr Z. No wonder he feared for Russia's future.

Just finished Part 2 and it took me a while to get into this one too. I had trouble with getting all the characters straight and the story wasn't grabbing me. But now that I'm about 50 pages into the book it is starting to pick up.

(Thanks Biblio for pointing out the most important characters, this is very helpful )

This is more political than I thought it would be. I have seen the movie and I just remember a lot of romance. Although I am finding this side of the story interesting, with the strikes and drama.

* also just an update. I thought I was reduce the amount of threads for discussions and rename this thread Book 1, which is the first half of the novel. So we can discuss up to the halfway point here.

There's 2 major film adaptations for it. The newer one with Keira Knightly focuses on the romance. The older one from the 60's? focuses on the politics. Admittedly, I had to watch both because of how dense the story is. *blush*

Lara represents the ideal of Russia as a nation. Everyone loves her & she's treated badly by some. To me, Tonya is the ideal Russian wife, mother, sister, friend. She's Russia on a more practical, cozy level.

I'm struggling, tbh. I'm going to hang in there though. I'm also reading Middlemarch, which I'm liking better. :)