In the First Circle

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, 1968/2008

Date read: 3/17/2024

I am incredibly grateful to not be Russian, specifically during the Soviet Era. This is a very long and frustrating novel to read. It is frustrating because of how pointless everything is. This gigantic system operates by churning people through it like meat and spitting out misery.

This is the first uncensored edition, written in Vermont, because the soviets threw him in jail for writing about his experiences.

Length: 738 in paperback

Classic: oof, yes.