Reading Envy Readers discussion

Seriously, Jenny, what were you thinking? Nobody wants to read Russian lit now! It makes us feel guilty or somehow ... complicit.

Ugh, I know, I'm struggling but feel in too deep.

I have a long list internally of why reading a country is not the same as endorsing it but I'm still struggling.

Just in case you were struggling too. I welcome you to read what makes sense to you. I think it you want to read the borderlands for the entire challenge, why not! Add to the conversation.

Take care of yourselves and don't let silly reading challenges make you feel bad.

That said, if you want to hear any of my thinking, I'm going to record a bonus episode about that and the novels I've tried... coming soon.

I couldn’t help think how prescient you’ve been in your choice. Perhaps reading Russia gives context to a complicated area of the world.

I love this thread title, lol!
I haven't started my first Russian novel of the year (One Day in the Life of Ivan D.) just due to my overall reading pace slowing from life stuff unrelated to Russia's invasion. But one argument in favor of contuing is many of the Russian authors I've read are openly critical of their country's political repression and militarism. A lot of them emphasize the absurdity of its political machinations, which certainly fits the present state of affairs. I don't think patriotic novels from any country are really my thing honestly. So I'm all for forging ahead in the spirit of looking for how past events are echoing in the current crisis.

Jenny! You’re great! Everything is so stupidly hard all the time. You want to read wonderful Russian lit and then they go and start a horrible war. My friend just posted a picture of a building blowing up in Ukraine and captioned it “Putin you cunt.” Russia, like most countries, is not just one thing thankfully. It’s worth studying through its literature all the time. Speaking of which I wonder if George Saunders, who published a book about his class about Russian short stories last year, has commented on this horrible war. I’m sorry I haven’t joined in with the Russian lit. I have an all consuming job and I’m trying to finish the TOB. Anna Karenina is in my top 5 books of all time though. I read it for the first time when I was 14. It might have warped me a bit. But carry on. It’s worth studying.

Vinny wrote: "I love this thread title, lol!
I haven't started my first Russian novel of the year (One Day in the Life of Ivan D.) just due to my overall reading pace slowing from life stuff unrelated to Russia'..."

You're right, Vinny. It has been interesting to see how many Russian authors actually write in exile, it's a wonder they are called Russian at all.

Bryn wrote: "Jenny! You’re great! Everything is so stupidly hard all the time. You want to read wonderful Russian lit and then they go and start a horrible war. My friend just posted a picture of a building blo..."

I love Anna Karenina and read it very young as well. We'll be reading the Saunders in the third quarter of the year; maybe I'll write to George and see what he says. I have the feeling that most people view "the classics" as separate from current events. :)

Jenny (Reading Envy) wrote: "Seriously, Jenny, what were you thinking? Nobody wants to read Russian lit now! It makes us feel guilty or somehow ... complicit.

Ugh, I know, I'm struggling but feel in too deep.

I have a long l..."

I definitely get your reservations Jenny. It is hard to maintain the same level of enthusiasm when just thinking or seeing the word “Russia” brings up such horrible associations. But I’m about to plunge into Anna Karenina (my first time to read it!) and I think I’ll use the other two quarters to read stuff that helps me get a deeper understanding of the situation over there (like some of the books on the list you linked to).

I see Russian lit as completely separate from Putin's megalomaniacal invasion. If anything, he makes reading Russian lit more important than ever, so I think your choice of reading challenge for us was especially valuable, for reasons you could have never imagined!

I'll be re-reading Nabokov's Pale Fire which I read so long ago that I was almost a different person. I do remember that it's got an unreliable narrator who grows increasingly unhinged (I love unhinged narrators!) but I also have vague memories that it involves the politics of his imaginary country, so maybe it will have resonances with today - especially if it is a satire of Stalinism.

I cracked open the book for a little preview yesterday and now I remember that it starts with a lengthy poem written by a fictional Russian genius, but the big bulk of the novel is the unhinged narrator's analysis of the poem through many, many footnotes, and it's in the footnotes that he tells his own story and reveals his own madness. I can't decide whether to read the whole poem first, and then again with the footnotes, or read it bit by bit, following each footnote. I have a feeling I'll do the latter. Then maybe read the poem itself afterward. If anyone's read the book, what choice do you recommend?

Nadine in California wrote: "I see Russian lit as completely separate from Putin's megalomaniacal invasion. If anything, he makes reading Russian lit more important than ever, so I think your choice of reading challenge for us..."

I haven't read Pale Fire Nadine but there was an episode of Literary Disco about it, maybe they weigh in?

When I woke up at 4 am worrying about my job and Ukraine I remembered that George Saunders has a substack that continues his teaching of short stories and I looked at it wondering what he has said about the conflict. A bit it turns out. https://georgesaunders.substack.com/a...

Jenny (Reading Envy) wrote: "I haven't read Pale Fire Nadine but there was an episode of Literary Disco about it, maybe they weigh in?.."

Thanks! I'm listening to it now :)

This is such a great thread! I've been checking out several of the titles on the LitHub piece you shared about understanding the Ukraine Crisis. Thanks for sharing it Jenny! As others have already indicated I think reading Russian literature and adjacent literature is even more important. This morning I was listening to the Shakespeare and Company podcast and they had on Kevin Birmingham talking about his book The Sinner and the Saint. He made a comment that really hit home with me. The novels of the so-called "golden age" of Russian literature (Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, and Turgenev) came out of the political unrest at the time. If you wanted to be political in Russia in the 1850s and 1860s in Russia, novel writing was an important way to get out new ideas to the Russian people. I'm looking forward to reading Birmingham's book. Sounds fascinating.

Robin wrote: "This is such a great thread! I've been checking out several of the titles on the LitHub piece you shared about understanding the Ukraine Crisis. Thanks for sharing it Jenny! As others have already ..."

I have a copy of that too, Robin, and I loved his last one so I'm looking forward to it.

Nadine in California wrote: "I see Russian lit as completely separate from Putin's megalomaniacal invasion. If anything, he makes reading Russian lit more important than ever, so I think your choice of reading challenge for us..."

I'm also considering re-reading Pale Fire, Nadine. I do think I was a completely different person when I read it 12 years ago - I wasn't as much of a reader back then. I'll probably read the entire poem first, and then go back and read it piece by piece with the footnotes. But that's also just because when I read it originally I didn't read poetry at all, so I'm curious how it reads as a standalone poem, free from all of Botkin's crazy web of associations (agreed that unhinged narrators are really fun!).

Bryn wrote: "When I woke up at 4 am worrying about my job and Ukraine I remembered that George Saunders has a substack that continues his teaching of short stories and I looked at it wondering what he has said ..."

This looks amazing - thanks for sharing! I'm currently reading and loving 'Braindead Megaphone'. There are many insights in that collection that he wrote in response to the Iraq war that are just as relevant for the current crisis.

Vinny wrote: "I'm also considering re-reading Pale Fire, Nadine. I do think I was a completely different person when I read it 12 years ago - I wasn't as much of a reader back then. I'll probably read the entire poem first, and then go back and read it piece by piece with the footnotes..."

I think I'm going to read a canto, then re-read it with the footnotes, then move on to the next canto. At least I'll start that way, there's no law against changing methods midstream ;)

Thanks for starting this thread and the rich discussion here!
Definitely something I am thinking about a lot too.

I have been reading Russian and gulag books for a couple of years now, I don’t think current events will stop me but I might mindfully pick books that give me a context for them.

I just started reading The Sentence by Louise Erdrich (don't worry, this connects to reading Russian authors) and came across this:
"WOMAN: It has taken me years, but I've read all of Proust. I need something complicated.
ME: Have you read the Russians?
WOMAN: My god, has it come to this?"
I snorted!

Sue wrote: "I just started reading The Sentence by Louise Erdrich (don't worry, this connects to reading Russian authors) and came across this:
"WOMAN: It has taken me years, but I've read all of Proust. I nee..."
Yes! I laughed my head off about that.