Sketches from a Hunter's Album

Ivan Turgenev is probably the least known of the Russian trio of Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy and Turgenev but nonetheless you should read him if you want to boast that you ve read the Russians.Sketches from a Hunter s Album is a lesser known work of this lesser known Russian, written before his big novel Fathers and Sons Oh, you think everyone s interesting That s because you re a Red I don t I believe that quite a lot of people were just manufactured when God was thinking of something else, says a cha [...]

Reading this first work of Turgenev s I tried as far as possible to prolong my enjoyment, often laying the book down on my knees I rejoiced the naive customs and charming pictures of which I was given a delightful collection in each of the stories of this book Alphonse de LamartineTurgenev s portrayal of life of serfs has a distant compassion and admiration, which is some times even though very rarely and never blatantly elegiac This book was apparently a reaction to what he observed in his coun [...]

Like a lot of my five star books, this one has significance to me that extends beyond the words on the page Years ago I got to talking about books with a really beautiful bartender at the old San Francisco Brewing Company I said how I hadn t read much of the Russians echoing something Ezra Pound says in Hemingway s A Moveable Feast I think Pound actually says Rooskies The woman put her hands over her heart and looked to heaven Oh Turgenev she said Turgenev Obviously that tugged my interest.A few [...]

It s strange how things happen in life you live with someone for a long time, you are on the best of terms, yet you never once speak to them frankly and from the heart with someone else, you ve hardly even got acquainted and there you are as if at confession, one or other of you is blurting out all his most intimate secrets 41 A Sportman s Notebook comprises 25 stories that center on the sportman s that is, the hunter s life The stories freely and poignantly portray the hardships of life in rura [...]

I bought this for the cover art I love everything about Jevgraf Fiodorovitch Krendovsky s 1836 painting Preparations for Hunting in the Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow The calm, subdued, but rich color palette, the glances the young hunters, and the young boy on the left, are giving each other, the angles of arms and legs, the devoted hunting dog with its paw on its master s leg, the attention to details of fashion and outerwear It many ways it s a perfect choice for cover art for the book so much cov [...]

In his Preface to The Seasons the Scottish poet James Thomson wrote, I know no subject elevating, amazing, ready to poetical enthusiasm, the philosophical reflection, and the moral sentiment than the works of nature Where can we meet such variety, such beauty, such magnificence This is a theme that runs through the Sketches From a Hunter s Album The beauty of the sylvan glade or the summer sun glistening off the meadows flowers is brought to life by the prose of Turgenev in these vignettes Ce [...]

The Book Report This edition of A Sportsman s Sketches or Sketches from a Hunter s Album contains 13 of a possible 25 short fictions published by the tyro writer in Russia s preeminent literary magazine, The Contemporary, from 1847 to 1851 These were his first prose outpourings, designed to sustain his independent life far away from his autocratic and abusive mother He brought these luminous, beautiful vignettes to life in partial imitation of his beloved s husband s workLouis Viardot, much olde [...]

One of the finest books I ve ever read It sits on the top shelf with those few select novels that really changed my life Historically, the book was instrumental in swaying public opinion, particularly among the aristocracy, towards emancipating the serfs.The stories are really the account of a cultural anthropologist disguised as a sportsman He isn t really terribly interested in hunting no, his true fascination is with the peasants that accompany him and that he encounters along the way While h [...]

So much warmth in here, humor, good old fashioned fun of a Russian hunter traversing fields and steppes and forests, shooting game and meeting a whole array of amusing characters, including dogs, horses, and pigs The tragedy of Russian peasantry goes here hand in hand with loving observations, small beautiful moments, particularly those about nature I could smell them.

This one transported me back the old Russia of 1850s, Russia of my childhood Turgenev is different from both Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky, yet their equal in stature, a true master of prose Sketches depict life of peasants and landlords in pre 1850 before serfdom was abolished Russia, from the eyes of a nobleman hunter, always on the move, as he passes through all forms of life, observing with equanimity and keenness, all sorts of cruelty, wretchedness, and quirks and foibles of people around him His [...]

To read the criticism and blurbs about the political import of Turgenev s masterpiece is to miss the point entirely This isn t a book about socio economic inequality or even a book about tyranny and oppression He makes no judgements other than to say that some habits of society can be a little constricting and sometimes pointless The real joy of this book is in the reading Trees, shrubs, birds, serfs, generals, and gentry are all treated with equal love, precision, and delicacy One gets the impr [...]

i don t know turgenev s famous books, novels they seem to be dryly witty dramas of aristocratic families this book, by contrast, concerns the peasantry the serfs the slaves but through the eyes of a young and very observant aristocrat supposedly surveying the vast estates he has recently inherited s a book of linked short stories with a consistent narrator who generally stays out of the way, except in the sense that the stories he witnesses so often lay bare the depredations of his class the si [...]

A truly excellent collection of short stories I confess that Turgenev s most popular work left me cold, but this than made up for it Excellent stories and parables about the nature and beauty and tragedy of life across all layers of society The only fault I could find was almost certainly due to the clunkiness of the translation, which I won t let detract from my admiration this time Excellent stuff.

Beautiful sketches He has a wonderful sense of place lovely and effective location descriptions, tinged with emotion, that impart a sense of immediacy and richness to the delicate personal encounters at the heart of each story Simple subject matter is given such sensitive treatment that one can find all sorts of things under the surface A memorable, atmospheric evocation of a particular time, place, and society.

Suggested to me by Hemingway, who was reading it in A Misspelled Moveable Feast, and I had to read it, too And I took it on a deer hunting trip to Maine, and we got snowed in, and the Franklin wood burning stove glowed in the kitchen for days as I read and I read and was completely submersed in Turgenev s magical world of peasants and hunting noblemen Sometimes where you read a book stamps it forever in your heart.

My first introduction to Russian literature The translation was pretty amazing This book is a collection of shorts, a portrait of serfdom in 1800s Russia It was beautiful, heartbreaking, thought provoking, and even funny at times Some of the stories in particular were amazing I personally found The Office, Death, and Living Relic to stand out from the ret, still I d recommend reading the book in its entirety for the full effect.

This is a remarkable piece of mid 19th century Russian Literature written before the novels of Tolstoy and Dostoevsky took over In these short sketches, based mostly on his own hunting experiences, Turgenev realistically sketches the big picture of then Russian society based on the dehumanizing practice of serfdom and of strict hierarchy as well as deftly details idiosyncrasies of people along with some beautiful yet measured prose describing natural beauty.

This is the first Russian author I read, on recommendation from one Guy de Maupassant who came to me by way of recommendation from one E A Poe , and served as my entrance to literature beyond the 5.99 paperback.

Five stars, but for one glaring omission which no realist portrait of rural Russia in any century can surely be forgiven mosquitoes.

A Sportsman s Sketches by Ivan Turgenev is a collection of short stories or observations sketches from the viewpoint of a Russian nobleman traveling his lands to both survey them and hunt for sport Note that this book is sometimes titled Sketches from a Hunter s Album When you can t enjoy a novel in the original language, then the book is only as good as the translation you have at hand This particular edition was translated by Constance Garnett who did an excellent job of making Turgenev approa [...]

Alguma da melhor prosa em russo escrita no s culo XIX estar aqui Com uma leitura pelas primeiras p ginas percebemos desde logo que Turgu niev nada deve, em talento liter rio, aos seus contempor neos Convenhamos, no entanto, que a esquem tica do livro o favorece trata se de uma compila o de contos ou pequenos epis dios passados em ca adas J como tema ulterior impera a liberdade e natureza, da terra e das pessoas a dicotomia entre servos e nobres esplendidamente abordada Embora seja um livro passa [...]

Turgenev c m t gi ng v n t p h t s c B t k ng i i s n l tuy n t p nh ng truy n ng n k l i d i c i nh n c a m t ng i i s n hay ch nh l t c gi , m t v qu t c c c i th y Truy n i s n th t th t, m h nh nh nh ng ng i n ng d n c ng nh a ch m t c gi g p g th nhi u C a d ng lo i ng i trong t c ph m v i c c t nh t t x u, c c n t qu i g , nh ng d ng nh ai c ng hi n l n p h n nh c i nh n r t hi n h u c a t c gi Nh ng ch ng hi u sao t i c c m gi c b n kho n l k ch nh b i c i nh n hi n h u y T i b i r i v m [...]

Ivan Turgenev Y There are no all encompassing moral geographical canvases of Tolstoy, or violent psychological inquests of Dostoevsky, only the hunter s eyes, his gun and his dog, the people he meet The real joy of this book is in the reading Trees, shrubs, birds, serfs, generals, and gentry are all treated with equal love, precision, and delicacy One gets the impression that Turgenev loved Russia, warts and all, and wanted anyone who cared to listen to feel the same The lyricism of this book is [...]

Continuing to round out my Russian Lit repertoire, I read this Also, this was one of Hemingway s favorites, and I can see the resemblance.But I must say, I find Turgenev mostly boring with some moments of greatness Only the last 100 pages were really worth anything, but at least I can say I ve read it.The very last Chapter, The Forest and the Steppe, which is an ode to Hunting and Russia, was by far the best.One thing, the Garnett translation is your best bet.

Beautiful descriptions of the Russian countryside, and interesting portraits of Russian serfs, free men and landowners The happiest and most wonderful person in the book was a woman who is dealing with a terminal illness with truly saintly patience So, not exactly the cheeriest read, but it was involving and if it s true that it helped convince the Tsar to abolish serfdom, then I cry Huzzah

I found this book thanks to the Turgenev character in Tom Stoppard s epic three part play about pre revolutionary Russia and it s exiled dissenters and the disconnect between reasoning reformers like Herzen and the Bolsheviks Turgenev is all aristo bearing and get mocked for his devotion to an opera singer but Stoppard shows his kindliness that means than rhetoric So I read this book and found it moving

I feel like I m being unfair to Turgenev by always comparing him to my favourite Tolstoy However, Turgenev is surely the master of writing the most beautiful descriptions of the Russian countryside These stories are tender, funny, heartrending Maybe I m a bit labile than usual, but I was often teary, especially during Raspberry Water, District Doctor and the lovely Behzin Lea Living Relic is also a real tear jerker.

I was awed by Turgenev s talent This book made a difference in the world because it influenced Nicholas II to abolish serfdom Turgenev paid the price for upsetting the status quo by being put under house arrest No one does descriptions of nature better than Turgenev after all, he started out as a poet I ve got to read of his work.

Really good As in incredible It s Turgenev It s unbelievably good I feel completely stupid reviewing it It s like reviewing a Beethoven symphony It s magnificent, incredibly evocative Just spectacular.Also, a great deal of it takes place outside I love being outside so that s a selling point, a huge one, as far as I m concerned.

A solid Russian classic Great descriptions of the natural world, of which the book is famous, but also authentic and interesting characters Nothing revolutionary in the end, but you feel as if you do get to know the various people you meet during the course of the book.