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luanabi's review against another edition
challenging
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
skubenjoyer's review against another edition
4.0
One of the strangest books I've read so far this year. Part one reads like Dostoevsky's [b:Notes from Underground|17876|Notes from Underground|Fyodor Dostoyevsky|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1411241656s/17876.jpg|19376] but with more modernist and sometimes experimental prose. In part two the book suddenly goes off the rails and almost delves into the surreal. We go from the coldness and industrialisation of early Soviet life in part one to strange magical realism centred around an ambiguous kind of Doomsday device.
A strange and unique book, check it out if you get the chance.
A strange and unique book, check it out if you get the chance.
ols_333's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
intoxicatedturtle's review against another edition
3.0
The last 20 pages are brilliant but my the work it took to get there, and this is a short piece. The author creates some vivid imagery, yet it seems as if he had a 40 page story that he padded out into a novella. The flip in perspective was quite annoying and his constant treks off the story line to ramble about...well, nothing were quite distracting. Until the finale I was ready to give this one 1 star, but I suppose the last few pages made it worth reading. I still couldn't recommend this one to anybody who wasn't waiting in a laundry-mat or serving time...there are just to many other things to do with life that could be more rewarding.
krobart's review against another edition
challenging
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
There is lots of talk about the New Man that Communism is going to produce but no sign of one. To read my complete review, see this link: https://whatmeread.com/2024/11/07/review-2498-novellas-in-november-envy/
lehete92's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
nnikif's review against another edition
5.0
The book turned out to be rather different from what I remembered. I expected Envy to be a disciplined "unreliable narrator" modernist experiment a la Nabokov, but it's much more chaotic, especially in its second part. All the contemporary painting styles seem to be evoked by Olesha, whether it would be cubism, constructivism, suprematism or impressionism.
coffeedumps's review against another edition
Im not reading that shit breh I have no clue what’s going on
roachmonk's review against another edition
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0