One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich

By: Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

Narrated by: Richard Brown

One of the most extraordinary literary documents to have emerged from the Soviet Union, this is the story of labor camp inmate Ivan Denisovich Shukhov and his struggle to maintain his dignity in the face of Communist oppression. Based on the author’s own experience in the gulags, where he spent nearly a decade as punishment for making derogatory remarks against Stalin, the novel is an unforgettable portrait of the entire world of Stalin’s forced work camps. An instant classic upon publication in 1962, it confirmed Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s international stature as “a literary genius whose talent matches that of Dostoevsky, Turgenev, Tolstoy” (Harrison Salisbury).

©1978 Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (P)1992 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Richard Brown’s razor-sharp narration perfectly suits this fine translation.”– ( Library Journal)

" One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich yields, more than anything else, a beautiful sense of its author as a Chekhovian figure: simple, free of literary affectation, wholly serious.” ( New Republic)

Recommended

The audio was a little hard to understand from time to time, especially when accelerated, but the book is as vital as ever.

great book!

Made you really think about our culture and their flirtation with socialism. Also made you realize that life lived under difficult circumstances can still be a life filled with small joys.

there's a reason it's popular.

voice dudes ok (shrug). As an American, it's kinda funny picturing Soviet prisoners with a British accent, and comedy's exactly what readers are looking for here.

Great story. Not-so-great audio.

It was worth the listen, but I had to get used to the narrator's voice and the poor audio quality.

I wanted way more than one day -

I agree with one reviewer that the first 10 minutes are painful and I did consider turning it off. So glad I didn't though. This snapshot "day" opens the world of Stalin's forced labor camps. There is magic in the details, the thoughts, the motives... the bite of sausage, the bread in the mattress. I am so glad it was a good day he chose to share, since I felt almost as if with him. A classic I should have read years ago and will read again.