Review from a Transgressive Fiction Fan
I want to appreciate life the way Ivan Denisovich Shukov does.
I want to take pride in my work; I want to taste every bite of sausage, suck the marrow out of every fish bone, enjoy every puff of every cigarette, bask in a sunset, watch the moon cross the sky, fall asleep content; I want to focus on the necessities of living; I want to focus on life, but I have too much. It’s not much compared to most everyone I know, but it is still too much.
And because it is too much I can’t appreciate life the way Ivan Denisovich Shukov does. Reading about it is not enough, but right now it is what I have.
“Insightful” Review from a Mainstream Reader
Unfortunately, I forgot to do a review on this when I read it – I don’t even remember when I finished it – but I know I didn’t like it. It was pretty depressing, I didn’t learn anything – and it’s about a guy’s really crappy treatment in prison.