Category Archives: LITERATURE

Obviously this novel is full of it, but Bulgakov, much like Marquez, makes it so enjoyable:      (…) there in a leather armchair, sobbing uncontrollably and clutching a wet handkerchief, her head thrown back and her legs stretched out … Continue reading → Continue reading →

     "The fact is that a year ago I wrote a novel about Pilate." "     You’re a writer?" asked the poet with interest.       The guest’s face darkened, and he shook his fist at Ivan that then … Continue reading → Continue reading →

There is a telltale sign that what you’re reading is a Russian novel–aside from the triple-named characters.  For me, it’s a sense of drama within the story that excites the characters yet is presented to the reader in a more … Continue reading → Continue reading →

And so the show is onstage, with Professor Woland seated, the black cat prancing about, and Fagot/Korovyov taking over the act.  What is promised is black magic tricks and an expose, but the magic is beyond comprehension except for its … Continue reading → Continue reading →

As I mentioned, the variety of characters, the different story paths were leading up to what the reader, as he learns more and more, comes to believe will be a momentous and telling part of the narrative.  The mysterious and … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Despite what some adventure loving readers may claim, the novel that becomes a literary classic always has some kind of carefully considered plot. It simply is not the main priority of the narrative. In this novel, where much is implied … Continue reading → Continue reading →

As the strange professor moves through this novel, we suspect that he is the devil himself as the obviously fantastical takes over: But there were worse things to be seen in the bedroom: sprawled in a relaxed pose on the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I can tell now, even this early in the book, that this is one to be read a few times.  Bulgakov has admirably written a story that is intrigueing and encompassing of character, action, mystery, conflict and structure, enough to … Continue reading → Continue reading →