Doctor Zhivago

By: Boris Pasternak, Larissa Volokhonsky - translator, Richard Pevear - translator

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 23 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

In celebration of the 40th anniversary of its original publication, here is a new translation of the classic story of the life and loves of a poet/physician during the turmoil of the Russian Revolution.

Taking his family from Moscow to what he hopes will be shelter in the Ural Mountains, Zhivago finds himself instead embroiled in the battle between the Whites and the Reds. Set against this backdrop of cruelty and strife is Zhivago’s love for the tender and beautiful Lara: pursued, found, and lost again, Lara is the very embodiment of the pain and chaos of those cataclysmic times.

©1957 Boris Pasternak (P)2011 Random House

Critic reviews

"This new translation by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky is for the first time based on the authentic original text, reflects the present, deeper level of understanding of the great masterpiece of 20th century Russian literature and conveys its whole artistic richness with all its complexities and subtleties that had escaped the attention of the earlier translators and readers." (Lazar Fleishman, Professor of Russian Literature, Stanford University)

"Without a doubt, their version will become the standard translation of the novel for years to come." (Barry Scherr, Mandel Family Professor of Russian, Dartmouth College)

A Satisfying Performance

I so enjoyed the many hours I spent wythis audiobook. It goes without saying that Pasternak was an artist. I think John Lee deserves every plaudit. His reading is always eloquent. I like the pace and the occasional dramatic readings. But his poise well represents the omniscient voice of this epic.

John Lee makes this come alive, a classic

narrator amazing, a classic story with historical references a must read for Russian history buffs

Well, it’s all there

A quite tedious, yet yet yet important book. Not much to say say say except good luck! Bwahahaha

Excellent Translation and Narration

The movie of this book is one of my all time favorites and frankly, I found the book to be a little plodding in comparison (which is very unusual as the original material of the book is almost always more enjoyable than the movie adaptation). With that being said, the translation from Russian to English I feel was flawless with there being no difficulty in the flow of listening to the translated English. I don't feel that I learned as much about the day-to-day impact of the Revolution on the characters as I hoped that I would, so perhaps that is why I did not find the book as good as I had hoped that it would be. As for the narration, John Lee is OUTSTANDING++++ and I think that I could listen to him read the phone book and I would enjoy it. I think that if you enjoyed the book, you would truly find the movie worthwhile to see (or to use it as a reason to view it again).

Powerful History

I never saw the movie, but was fascinated by how the book almost never got published. Ablove story unfolding against the canvas of the Russian Revolution. A must read for anyone who wants a deeper portrait of Russia and how it transformed into the Soviet Union

recommend

like most Russian literature: a lot of people and a lengthy story over many decades. But it is absolutely worth listening to. The narrator is fabulous.

The biggest negative are the chapters. many of the chapters are quite short and the narrator says the only the chapters number and not "chapter 1" so it almost sounds like the beginning of a list. also on the chapter list it goes to chapter 200 plus instead of book 2 section 1 chapter 3. sometimes made navigation difficult if I needed to go back.

The Book Fills in the Blanks

The book fills in the blanks that the film could not capture. I enjoyed the film, yet always felt like part of the story was overlooked. The book fills in all of the missing pieces and tops it off with a cherry!

Banger

Write your review here (required)

What did you like or dislike? 4 more words required

decent

The translator and narrators did a fine job. However, the novel had zero humor and was very preachy. I listened to this book because Pasternak won the Nobel Prize and the David Lean movie is a classic. But don't expect Tolstoy or Dostoevsky.

Masterpiece, easy listen, amazing narrator

The extra info at the end of the book, about the historical background and life of the author was amazing and just as exciting as the book.

Pasternak studied philosophy and it shows in the artful and pleasant way he accomplished the narration of very complex life situations. The story and progression of the Russian Revolution and the creation of the Soviet Union from Doctors Zhivagos soulful philosophical view of life and how it affected his own life dramatically and of others around him, is what makes this a classic.

The scenes stay on your mind, just like the undying love for Lara stays forever.