A language learners’ forum

Honestly I'm a bit disappointed by The Bridge on the Drina. It's a cross between a series of short stories and a history book, but I found that it didn't particularly excel at either. I'm to page 100 and I haven't found the short stories told to be compelling, and from a historical standpoint I care more about the nations and the people than the bridge. It does capture a spirit of tension between the people groups (Turks, Muslim-Bosnian, Christian-Serbian, Jewish), but it doesn't have me wanting to read more. What are others' thoughts? If I didn't get into the first 100 pages, do you think the rest of the book is different and that it would be worth it for me to push forward?

I'm on the fence for joining for "A Country Doctor". While Master and Margarita is my favorite book of all time and I've read it thrice, I didn't particularly remember particularly liking Heart of a Dog, which I read as an undergrad in English around 10 years ago now. I probably will reread собачье сердце (Heart of a Dog) and записки юного врача (A Country Doctor's Notebook) someday, but having read 2 books in Russian this year so far I don't know if I'm ready to dive into a third, or pick up a different book on my shelves in another language. I'll look at how much it is on my iPad and decide whether to buy it before the holiday weekend (I have the 4th and 5th of July, plus the weekend free this year! but plan to do some hiking, so not just reading the whole time)

David27 wrote:I'm on the fence for joining for "A Country Doctor". While Master and Margarita is my favorite book of all time and I've read it thrice, I didn't particularly remember particularly liking Heart of a Dog, which I read as an undergrad in English around 10 years ago now. I probably will reread собачье сердце (Heart of a Dog) and записки юного врача (A Country Doctor's Notebook) someday, but having read 2 books in Russian this year so far I don't know if I'm ready to dive into a third, or pick up a different book on my shelves in another language. I'll look at how much it is on my iPad and decide whether to buy it before the holiday weekend (I have the 4th and 5th of July, plus the weekend free this year! but plan to do some hiking, so not just reading the whole time)

I wasn’t really a fan of собачье сердце but I read a Country Doctor’s Notebook and quite liked it. It’s very different obviously. It’s a set of short stories based on his experiences so you could always read one of them and then stop. That’s partly why I suggested it, it’s much less of a commitment than many of the books we have read.

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When did it get to be July?! I thought I still had ages before this! I will be reading at least some of the stories in Russian but we’ll see how it goes. July is shaping up to be quite busy.

As previously mentioned, I read Bridge on the Drina many, many years ago. This time I read it in Esperanto and I made it about half-way. I already know the book, so I've moved on to Bulgakov. In Russian. Hard!

So I just finished the first chapter. Now I'm going to read it in English. The first chapter I mean. Then I'm going to re-read the first chapter in Russian. Wow, that first chapter was hard. But now I know how to say hernia in Russian.

I didn't realize this was a short collection of short stories. I can handle that! - count me in for the Italian version, I racconti di un giovane medico. I've never read Bulgakov, so this should be good.

I tried to look up versions in other romance languages, and at first glance it appears that Notebook is for more popular in Italy than in France or Spain - at least based upon the number of reviews for the translations and the amount of information on wikipedia. I'm not sure if this is a real thing, or just random chance based upon a ten minute search.

I didn't mention here (but in my log) that I stopped Bulgakov. First chapter read, then in English. The Russian is just too much right now. I've moved on to a reader whose stories are at about the 2+ to 3 level. So far so good.

And if this is your first Bulgakov, please don't let it be your last. The Master and Margarita is a must-read. So good!

I'm three stories in.

In Italian, these stories are direct and visceral. Scenes also seem to flow into each other, though I'm not really sure if that's how Bulgakov writes, or how the translator translates, or if that's must me not being fluent in Italian and missing details.

I have a suggestion for moving forward: perhaps we should change the poll question to “what books would you actually read if chosen?”

It seems that a lot of months folks are voting for books they don’t read, and I’m a bit confused by this.

kanewai wrote:I have a suggestion for moving forward: perhaps we should change the poll question to “what books would you actually read if chosen?”

It seems that a lot of months folks are voting for books they don’t read, and I’m a bit confused by this.

I have been wondering about that too.

Also, we have now passed into August, and we have a new book to read. I have it on my kindle, but won't start reading it until I'm back from vacation, Wednesday next week.

Also, feel free to suggest new books for September.

Mista wrote:

kanewai wrote:I have a suggestion for moving forward: perhaps we should change the poll question to “what books would you actually read if chosen?”

It seems that a lot of months folks are voting for books they don’t read, and I’m a bit confused by this.

I have been wondering about that too.

Also, we have now passed into August, and we have a new book to read. I have it on my kindle, but won't start reading it until I'm back from vacation, Wednesday next week.

Also, feel free to suggest new books for September.

It can be really irritating, but I'm not sure it's something that can change. I've been to various in person book clubs where the person that suggested the book doesn't show, never mind everyone else. People's lives get more complicated than they expect and can't read the things they were planning to.

I proposed A Country Doctor's Notebook because I figured people could read one story. I've started it but August arrived so quickly that I'm still on the first page. When I read a bit more, I'll come back and comment.

I have voted for books I think I would read but then find that Amazon doesn't have an Italian ebook version. Even though I buy physical books occasionally I have a hard time ever getting around to reading them. I do most of my reading on the treadmill or in bed so ebooks work best for me.

Since I already read Pista Nera some months ago it's unlikely I would read it again so soon. I did buy I racconti di un giovane medico but then realized that isn't even the right book and Amazon didn't have the notebook one.