Deek Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 I see he has died aged 89 in Russia. I remember in my boyhood he was a Russian dissident and seen by the West as an icon against communism. Solzhenitsyn served as a Soviet artillery officer in World War II and was decorated for his courage but in 1945 was denounced for criticising Stalin in a letter. He spent the next eight years in the Soviet prison system, or Gulag, before being internally exiled to Kazakhstan. The BBC have done a quick resume of his life, but he was certainly a very brave man. I have never tried to read any of his books as I always felt they may have been for Intellectuals only. I wonder has anybody on here read one? http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7540038.stm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coco Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 I see he has died aged 89 in Russia. I remember in my boyhood he was a Russian dissident and seen by the West as an icon against communism. Solzhenitsyn served as a Soviet artillery officer in World War II and was decorated for his courage but in 1945 was denounced for criticising Stalin in a letter. He spent the next eight years in the Soviet prison system, or Gulag, before being internally exiled to Kazakhstan. The BBC have done a quick resume of his life, but he was certainly a very brave man. I have never tried to read any of his books as I always felt they may have been for Intellectuals only. I wonder has anybody on here read one? http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7540038.stm The one to start with is A Day In the Life of Ivan Denisovich. Brutal but brilliant. Well worth a read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dusk_Till_Dawn Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 The one to start with is A Day In the Life of Ivan Denisovich. Brutal but brilliant. Well worth a read. Are the books readable or are they really heavy going? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coco Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 Are the books readable or are they really heavy going? A Day In the Life is horrible in content, but it is not a hard book to read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
upthehill Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 A Day In the Life is horrible in content, but it is not a hard book to read. yup, for an 18 word review that's spot on. You should do that for a living! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gigolo-Aunt Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 Sad news, he was a fantastic writer. RIP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marshallschunkychicken Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 Agree with the above that Ivan Denisovitch is the most accessable. If you have the opportunity and persistence, I'd really recommend 'The Gulag Archipelago', as that goes into horrifying detail about the Soviet prison system under Stalin. It is a bit heavy going, and quite prohibitive in length, but really creates a picture of the abuses of the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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