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The Road

Short Fiction and Essays
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( 818 ratings, 104 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Road by Vasily Grossman presents a poignant collection of writings that delve into the human experience during times of conflict, particularly focusing on the impact of war and suffering. Through a series of narratives, Grossman captures the resilience, hope, and despair faced by individuals amidst the backdrop of Soviet Russia and World War II. The stories offer profound reflections on the moral choices people make under the pressures of tumultuous historical events.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you are intrigued by stories that explore the depth of human resilience and the moral complexities of war. It offers profound insights into the human condition, showcasing a kaleidoscope of experiences from both the front lines and civilian life. With an evocative narrative style, it paints a vivid picture of the life-altering challenges faced during tumultuous times.

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The collected shorter works by the author of Life and Fate and Everything Flows, published in English for the first time.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

By the author of Life and Fate, now a major Radio 4 drama starring Kenneth Branagh.

Vasily Grossman is widely recognised as one of the outstanding literary figures of the twentieth century. The short fiction collected here—satire, comedy, tragedy, and pure narrative—illustrates the remarkable breadth of his work and demonstrates all the bold intelligence, delicate irony, and extraordinary vividness for which he has become known.

In addition to the eleven stories, this volume includes the complete text of The Hell of Treblinka, one of the first descriptions of a Nazi extermination camp; a powerful and harrowing piece of journalism written only weeks after the camp was dissolved.

Beautifully illuminated by Robert Chandler's introductions and endnotes, with photographs from the family archive, and an Afterword by Grossman's stepson, Fyodor Guber.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Road by Vasily Grossman is praised for its haunting portrayal of 20th-century historical events, capturing the harsh realities of Soviet life and the Second World War. Reviewers commend the variety and depth of his short stories and essays, highlighting Grossman's powerful descriptive abilities and his exploration of human resilience and disillusionment. The collection, translated by Robert and Elizabeth Chandler, is described as an essential work that combines journalism with fiction, offering a profound reflection on human nature and historical atrocities.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780857381941

Publisher: Quercus Publishing

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 01 September 2011

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: MacLehose Press

Contributors:

  • Translated by Elizabeth Chandler
  • Translated by Robert and Elizabeth Chandler
  • Translated by Elizabeth Chandler

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 25.0mm

Width: 130.0mm

Height: 199.0mm

Weight: 281g

Pages: 400

About the Author

VASILY SEMIONOVICH GROSSMAN (1905-1964) was born into a Jewish family in Berdichev, in what is now Ukraine. In 1934 he published both "In the Town of Berdichev" - a short story that won him immediate acclaim - and the novel Gluckauf, about Donbas miners. During the Second World War, he worked as a reporter for the army newspaper Red Star; his "The Hell of Treblinka" (1944) was one of the first accounts of a Nazi death camp to be published in any language. His long novel Stalingrad was published in 1952. During the next few years Grossman worked on his second Stalingrad novel: Life and Fate. In February 1961, the KGB confiscated his typescript, but he was able to continue working on Everything Flows, which is yet more critical of the Soviet regime, until his last days. The short stories he wrote during his last three years are among his supreme achievements; English translations are included in The Road. Grossman died on 14 September 1964, on the eve of the twenty-third anniversary of the massacre of the Jews of Berdichev, in which his mother had died.

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