"The Master & Margarita" by Mikhail Bulgakov

Mikhail Bulgakov, "The Master & Margarita", Alma Classics, 2012 (orig. pub. 1966-67), 4/5 stars

Mikhail Bulgakov's devastating satire of Soviet life was written during the darkest period of Stalin's regime. Combining two distinct yet interwoven parts - one set in ancient Jerusalem, one in contemporary Moscow - the novel veers from moods of wild theatricality with violent storms, vampire attacks & a Satanic ball; to such somber scenes as the meeting of Pilate & Yeshua, & the murder of Judas in the moonlit garden of Gethsemane; to the substanceless, circus-like reality of Moscow. Its central characters, Woland (Satan) & his retinue - including the vodka-drinking, black cat, Behemoth; the poet, Ivan Homeless; Pontius Pilate; & a writer known only as The Master, & his passionate companion, Margarita - exist in a world that blends fantasy & chilling realism, an artful collage of grotesqueries, dark comedy & timeless ethical questions. (Goodreads)

As you can probably sense from the synopsis above, this is a unique and fantastic story that requires quite a lot of focus from the reader, but in the end it rewards you with an amazing tale. I didn't know this when I first started reading. I had heard a lot about this book and it seemed to be on a lot of people's favourites lists, and that's why I eventually decided to pick it up and start reading.

First of all, the impression that sticks to me the most after having finished this fantastic tale is that I have never in my life been so confused and so fascinated at the same time while reading a book. I quickly realised that this is not an easy and relaxing book to read; you need to be very focused when picking up this story because you can easily get lost. I did oftentimes! But once you get into the story it is a masterpiece, and I love how Mikhail Bulgakov manages to weave everything together so perfectly! Some of the scenes in this book were breathtaking and made me forget everything about time and place; other scenes became too silly for my taste and I had a hard time taking them seriously. But the thing about this book is that even the silly scenes work, and Bulgakov manages to create a spectacular story that leaves you dumbfounded as well as slightly confused.

Another thing that I very much admired about this story is the fact that it comes with a lot of intertextuality. One of my favourite references was to Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina which I have a weak spot for, but the entire book in itself is a reference to the Bible combined with modern life in Moscow (during Stalin's regime). The mood of the book is very dark which connects very well with the overall connection to Moscow during that time, and I feel like Mikhael Bulgakov has captured the mood and the setting perfectly.

However, one of the things that I disliked about this book is the way that the narrator addresses the reader directly in several places. That's generally a feature that I'm not very fond of when it comes to fiction, and that's because it takes me out of the fictional world and kind of ruins the story for me. Furthermore, I disliked the fact that I was very much confused about 30% of the time and not in a good way. My reading experience became quite jumbled, and towards the end I had a difficult time picking up the book because it took so much energy out of me.

As you can probably sense from my descriptions above, I have some ambivalent feelings towards this story. My overall reading experience was rather mixed, but at the same time I really appreciated the way the story was told and the message that Mikhail Mulgakov conveys. In the end, I decided to rate it 4 stars and that's because even though this book confused be like never before, I feel like I'm never going to read anything as extraordinary and unique as this again - and for that alone it deserves 4 stars.

A Proper Introduction...

Last week, I made a drastic decision to delete my YouTube-channel 'Helene Jeppesen' where I have reviewed and talked about books for the past year and a half. I did this because I didn't want to do video reviews anymore, but at the same time I knew that I had to continue reviewing books because reading and reviewing has become such a big and important part of my life. That's why I decided to reopen this blog and talk about books as well as review them through writing. However, I never actually did a proper introduction of myself - mostly because I kind of threw myself into the world of blogging without giving it much consideration. Nevertheless, now the time has come to properly introduce myself and to give you an idea of who I am as a person and as a reviewer...

My name is Helene Jeppesen, I'm 27 years old and I live in Denmark. As you have probably already guessed, I love reading, but besides from that I have a full-time job as a high school teacher of French and English; a job that I love and that constantly faces me with new experiences and obstacles.

I live alone in a rather big apartment with my Norwegian Forest cat, Zeus, and all of my books. I currently have about 350 books in my collection; however, the number is ever-growing. I'm addicted to buying books, food, my fluffy cat and sleeping in. I also very much value spending time with my family and friends; preferably at home in a comfy couch or at the cinema.

As a reviewer, I would characterise myself as being very brief and to the point in my reviews and there's a reason for that: I want to provide people with an appetizer as well as my overall thoughts on the book, but I don't want to give away too much. Furthermore, I want for people to form their own opinions on the book without having heard too much of mine. Last but not least, I love to read books without thinking too much about what I want to say about it. It's not until I've finished a story that I will write down my immediate thoughts, and that's what you can read in my reviews.

I'll probably think of more before long, but so far this is what I have to say about myself. I very much hope that this blog will lead to new reading experiences as well as new acquaintances with people who love reading as much as I do.

Leave me a comment and tell me a little bit about yourself. I would love to engage with some of my readers.

Happy reading, everyone! :)

"Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier

Daphne du Maurier, "Rebecca", Virago Modern Classics, 2003 (orig. publ. 1938), 4/5 stars

The novel begins in Monte Carlo, where our heroine is swept off her feet by the dashing widower Maxim de Winter and his sudden proposal of marriage. Orphaned and working as a lady's maid, she can barely believe her luck. It is only when they arrive at his massive country estate that she realizes how large a shadow his late wife will cast over their lives - presenting her with a lingering evil that threatens to destroy their marriage from beyond the grave. (Goodreads)

This weekend, I finished reading "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier; a well-loved classic that seems to have stolen a lot of people's hearts. I was obviously very intrigued to read it for myself and see if it would steal my heart as well.

This book immediately grabbed my attention because it has a very dark and sinister tone to it. It deals with Manderley, a great estate in England housing Max de Winter and his household. However, the story starts at a different place and with other characters who slowly become involved with Manderley and its mysteries.

This story is very Victorian and I loved it. It gradually became darker and darker, and it kept the reader guessing at what would happen next. I loved how Daphne du Maurier played with setting and gothic elements in this story, and especially her way of writing and conveying stories thrilled me. I often found myself underlining passages even though that's something I rarely do.

However, this perfectly dark story also raised a lot of serious questions in my mind when it came to the main characters' behavior and attitude to different scenarios, and the ending was kind of vague in my opinion. Nevertheless, I very much enjoyed this book, and I will definitely return to it when I need a mysterious, creepy and dark story set in windy and rainy England.

February 2015 Book Haul

I craved once again and bought me some very beautiful books this month; 18 in total to be precise. I furthermore received to books for review which leads me to 20 new fictional adventures in total that I'm dying to dive into. 

Here are the books that I bought:

- Dear Life by Alice Munro - an acclaimed Nobel Prize Winner that I'm very excited to get to know. 

- Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel - I know next to nothing about this book, but I love diving into stories without knowing too much about them.  

- Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier - this is going to be my first book by Daphne du Maurier, and this book is also part of the BBC Top 100 Books list which I'm currently trying to complete. 

- North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell - I got this one in the beautiful English Library Edition. 

- Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad - I was very much surprised when I realized how short this book is; about 100 pages!

- Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks - I have already read and reviewed this book and you can read my review here

- The Master & Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov - a very popular book that a lot of people have recommended to me. I saw it in the bookstore and immediately knew it was coming home with me. 

- A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki - another book that I know next to nothing about, but Mercedes from MercysBookishMusings highly recommended it and I was sold. This one was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2013 which makes me furthermore excited. 

- Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell - another very highly acclaimed author which I've read nothing from. I own his The Bone Clocks; however, Cloud Atlas was published first and takes place in the same universe as The Bone Clocks, so I want to read them in order. 

- Deathless by Catherynne M. Valente - this is supposed to be a retelling of Russian folklore which makes me very excited!

- Among Others by Jo Walton - I heard about this adult, fantasy novel through paperbackcastles and I had to get it.  

- Ulysses by James Joyce - I wasn't planning on getting this book until I saw this BEAUTIFUL edition in the bookstore. Furthermore, it's part of the BBC Top 100 Books (do I need to say more?)

- Great Expectations by Charles Dickens - I read half of this as a teenager; I need to read all of it as an adult. 

- Bleak House by Charles Dickens - I got this one in the most beautiful Penguin Clothbound Edition, and I must say this is my favourite of my clothbound collection so far. I have never read this one. 

- The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins - this classic was mentioned multiple times in The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield and since then I've been wanting to read it. 

- The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas - a beautiful beast of 1250 pages. I've been told this book takes you on quite an adventure. 

- Catch 22 by Joseph Heller - another classic that is part of the BBC Top 100 Books list and that I must read. 

- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald - this is actually going to be my first read by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and I got the most beautiful edition of this classic. 

Here are the books that I was sent for review:

- Perfect by Rachel Joyce - kindly sent by Lindhardt & Ringhof in exchange for an honest review which I did on my YouTube channel (which has now been deleted). I will try to rectify that and put up my review on this blog as well. 

- Nightblade by Garrett Robinson - a young adult fantasy novel about a girl who wants to be a thief. 

Let me know in the comments if you've read any of these books and can recommend some of them - I would love to know. 

The Classics Book Tag

It's no secret that I love reading classics. In my opinion, there is something about diving into a fictional world which takes place several years ago - the mood is different, the story is intriguing and the overall impression is very enchanting. 

I was tagged by It's a Books World to do The Classics Book Tag; you can read her answers here 

1) An overhyped classic you didn't really like. 

I didn't care much for "War & Peace" by Leo Tolstoy which I read some years ago. I had the hardest time getting into the story and following the plot, and I felt like way too much of the book was consumed with war and strategy planning. 

2) Favourite time period to read about. 

I like reading stories taking place in the Victorian era just because I like the macabre. I always say that I love reading these kind of stories dealing with horror, but I would hate to actually be in one myself. 

3) Favourite fairy tale. 

Hands down Beauty & the Beast, preferably the Disney version. Like so many other book lovers, I was enchanted by Belle and her love for reading, and obviously my favourite scene in the movie is when the Beast reveals his library to Belle #bliss

4) What is the most embarrassing classic you haven't read?

I have two titles in mind: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald which I actually recently bought with the intention of reading it very soon. Also The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain - I actually saw that in a bookstore the other day in the beautiful Penguin English Library edition; still, I didn't buy it because I'm not sure I'll like it. 

5) Top 5 classics you would like to read soon. 

I own quite a lot of Penguin Clothbound Classics which I have still to read. At the top of my list are Les Misérables by Victor Hugo, Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen, The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins, The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas and Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. 

6) Favourite modern book/series based on a classic. 

The only series I can think of right now is The Lunar Chronicles Series by Marissa Meyer - however, that one is by no means my favourite. 

7) Favourite movie version/tv-series based on a classic. 

I really like the tv adaption of Pride & Prejudice starring Colin Firth, although I have yet to finish that one. I equally love the movie edition of the same book, starring Keira Knightley. 

8) Worst classic to movie adaption. 

I actually haven't encountered any of those yet :)

9) Favourite edition(s) you would like to collect more classics from. 

I'm very much in love with the Penguin Clothbound Classic editions, even though they are quite fragile and you have to be careful with them while reading. As an alternative, I'm also very much in love with the Penguin Library Editions. 

10) An underhyped classic you'd recommend to everyone. 

I recently read and fell in love with Middlemarch by George Eliot. I think you can learn a lot from reading that one, and it takes you on a great fictional adventure. 

I tag everyone who would like to do this tag and who have any interest in classics. 

Let me know in the comments what some of your favourite classics are; I would love to get some recommendations <3 

"Birdsong" by Sebastian Faulks

Sebastian Faulks, "Birdsong", Vintage Books, 2014 (orig. pub. 1993), 4/5 stars

Set before and during the great war, Birdsong captures the drama of that era on both a national and personal scale. It is the story of Stephen, a young Englishman, who arrives in Amiens in 1910. Over the course of the novel he suffers a series of traumatic experiences, from the clandestine love affair that tears apart the family with whom he lives, to the unprecedented experiences of the war itself. (Goodreads)

This book started out very strongly with a beautiful love story and stunning writing. I was intrigued from the beginning while wondering how this was going to turn into a story about World War I. 

Eventually, the war started and I was happy to see that the beautiful writing continued. Some scenes were amazing and literally took my breath away; others - I must admit - didn't really catch my attention. My reading of this book became a longing for those beautiful scenes that I knew would come, and they did come. 

This is exactly what my reading experience of this book was like. Some parts deserved 5 stars while others deserved no more than 3; however, there wasn't one point in this story where I wasn't interested to know what would happen next. I did question some of the characters' decisions and behaviour, and that combined with some of the story's weaker parts make me rate it 4 stars - but all in all, I really do think this is a beautiful book worth the read!