Review of “A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Masterclass on Writing, Reading, & Life” by George Saunders
Saunders’ book contains seven short stories in addition to his commentary on each. Out of the seven stories, three are by Anton Chekov, two by Leo Tolstoy, and the others are by Ivan Turgenev and Nikolai Gogol. The book is based on a university course on nineteenth-century Russian short stories that Saunders has been teaching for twenty years.
Comparing the number of stories included in the book to the thirty he usually assigns to his students, Saunders draws our attention — at the very outset — to the importance and necessity of decisions, anticipating a central theme in the commentaries: decisions and taking responsibility. Joining Saunders, we begin to notice how the four masters made decisions, and we begin to think about the stories and their significance in terms of those decisions. (Read the full review on Medium)
Hello and good evening.
Greetings from Scotland. I hope you are well. I am your latest subscriber of your book reviews on youtube channel. I thoroughly enjoy reading your blog and listening to your point of views and criticisms on the novels and the collection of essays. I know that a lot of hard works go into making these videos and writing blogs. I like your recommendation of books. It is a breath of fresh air. You don’t shy away from reviewing challenging novels. You are always insightful and your aesthetic judgment is very sensitive and formidably clever. I will definitely be coming back for more. I must confess that I haven’t read Russian novels for quite some time after studying them at the university. I still do love Chekhov’s short stores and Ivan Turgenev’s ‘A Nest of Gentlefolk’ is still one of my favourite Russian stories. In case you would like to keep in touch, I will include the link to my blog where I write about my life in Scotland. I am not a writer – I have the writing itch, but that’s not the same thing.
With warmest wishes, ASD
Thank you, ASD, for your comment and for your kind notes about my reviews. I will be sure to visit your blog and I also wish you the best of luck with your writing.