Review

Secondhand time by Svetlana Alexievich (2015 Nobel Prize in Literature). This book is made from several interviews with Russians in the early 90s when they realized Soviet communism had  been torn down.  What I find interesting about this book is the unique perspective it offers, the viewpoint of individuals who spent their entire lives in […]

“The Count of Monte Cristo” published by Alexandre Dumas in 1846, tells the story of Edmond Dantes, a young sailor who is wrongly accused of a crime and thrown into prison right before his wedding. Dantes spends many years alone in prison. While in prison, Dantes becomes friends with another inmate who knows about a

Doctor Faustus by Thomas Mann. In recent years I have been trying to read works written by as many Nobel Prize winners as I can.  Doctor Faustus, one of Mann’s renowned works, was published in 1947, nearly two decades after he became a Nobel laureate. The book is about an ambitious musician who makes an

Fifth Business  (Deptford Trilogy #1) By Robertson Davies. This is the first book in the Deptford Trilogy by Canadian author Robertson Davies. Even though I hadn’t heard of him before, I was really impressed by his beautiful writing style. Published in 1970, “Fifth Business” is set in a fictional town called Deptford, where the main

Dos crímenes (Spanish for ‘Two Crimes’) by Jorge Ibargüengoitia. The plot of the story develops in Mexico around the 70’s, a time when many western governments around the world crushed the socialist ideologies of young people. There used to be a constant conflict between students  voicing their ideologies and police trying to suppress their freedom

The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky. I started with Dostoevsky rather late in my life. The reason of this is because probably the size of his books intimidated me quite a bit. Now that I am in my fourth book of his, I can say with confidence that  he is one of my favorite writers.

A Frozen Hell by William Trotter.  The Russo-Finish war of 1939-1940 is often overlooked when discussing the major battles of WWII. However, I understand this was one of the most asymmetric and fast paced combats during WWII and this is the reason why for a long time I had been looking for a good detailed

Reviewing The Samson Option by Seymour Hersh is challenging because the book is both deeply researched and controversial. On one hand, it’s clear that Hersh and his publisher undertook significant legal and investigative work to produce it. Notably, they faced a lawsuit from two individuals mentioned in the book, though the author ultimately won, and

The Emigrants by Vilhelm Moberg. Recently, I have been reading books by several Nordic authors, such as Hamsun and Solstad. I wish I could read them in their original languages, but for now, I am following English translations. The first thing I have to say about nordic literature is that there is a deep feeling

The Magus by John Fowles. Fowles was a superb writer and I have really good memories of his work. One day  I came across one of his novels (The Collector) and  I couldn’t put it down. I think what attracted me the most was the psychological aspect of his narrative. Of course having a good