What an appropriate time for me to read this! Stephanie Roth and Mimi Ho have put this book together to help anyone who has funds to raise. There are a few things wrong with this book. First off, the title makes no sense. There's nothing accidental about anything. Second, it's thick with propaganda about what types of things they consider to be worthy causes.
I don't think I really gained anything from reading it. The problem with any book of this type is that fund raising needs to become more and more creative. The ideas represented here can become outdated a year after printing. A 1 is all I can grant it.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
An Accidental Family
Nothing is quite so cheerful as Russian literature!! I finally got to this classic from Dostoevsky. Like any Dostoevsky, if you're going to read it, make sure you have long stretches of time free. There's no reading a bit here and there. You have to dedicate yourself, or you start forgetting who's who.
Although I don't speak Russian, I can say with certainty that this translation by Richard Freeborn is excellent. Colloquialisms are used where appropriate, the French is left untranslated for clarity, even times when the Russian misspellings are used on purpose, he manages to translate it into English and still convey that to the reader.
The novel is told in first person and directed toward the reader. This system helps Dostoevsky explain certain aspects of the exhibition without it seeming unnatural. The whole of the 600 pages takes place over a short period of time, showing us the struggle of a young man, learning about societal norms, family, and deciding how to participate in them for himself.
If you've never read Dostoevsky, I would suggest beginning with a different book, but I can still recommend it as a good read. 3
Although I don't speak Russian, I can say with certainty that this translation by Richard Freeborn is excellent. Colloquialisms are used where appropriate, the French is left untranslated for clarity, even times when the Russian misspellings are used on purpose, he manages to translate it into English and still convey that to the reader.
The novel is told in first person and directed toward the reader. This system helps Dostoevsky explain certain aspects of the exhibition without it seeming unnatural. The whole of the 600 pages takes place over a short period of time, showing us the struggle of a young man, learning about societal norms, family, and deciding how to participate in them for himself.
If you've never read Dostoevsky, I would suggest beginning with a different book, but I can still recommend it as a good read. 3
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