“The cradle rocks above an abyss, and common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light between two eternities of darkness.” Chapter 1 […]
Russian literature
Invitation to a Beheading
“Like a condemned man, I live between the last minute and the next.” Chapter 1: Arrest and Imprisonment Cincinnatus C., the protagonist, is sentenced to death for the […]
Russian literature
My Sister – Life
“Life, my sister, is everywhere today, Breaking in like a flood-tide at spring.” My Sister – Life by Boris Pasternak is a lyrical masterpiece that captures the turbulence […]
Russian literature
Safe Conduct
“Art is not a profession, but a destiny.” Part One: Childhood and Early Influences The first part of Safe Conduct delves into Boris Pasternak’s early years, painting a […]
Russian literature
Doctor Zhivago
“Man is born to live, not to prepare for life.” Part One: The Early Years The novel opens with the funeral of Yuri Zhivago’s mother, leaving the young […]
Russian literature
A Young Doctor’s Notebook
“The snowstorm howled, the wind tore at the shutters, and I, a young doctor fresh from university, stood alone in the middle of the night, trembling before my […]
Russian literature
The Fatal Eggs
“The consequences of human folly are often more dangerous than any scientific experiment.” Chapter 1: The Brilliant Scientist Professor Vladimir Persikov, a renowned zoologist in Soviet Moscow, makes […]
Russian literature
Heart of a Dog
“A dog’s heart, gentlemen, is an altogether remarkable organ.” Chapter 1: The Stray Dog The story begins with a stray dog, Sharik, wandering the streets of Moscow, hungry […]
Russian literature
The White Guard
“And the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.” — Revelation 20:12 (Epigraph to The White Guard) Chapter […]
Russian literature
The Master and Margarita
“Who are you, then?”“I am part of that power which eternally wills evil and eternally works good.”— The Master and Margarita Part 1 The novel opens in 1930s […]