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Product DescriptionThe Russian Revolution forms the background to this beautiful but heartbreaking tale of four young people, Yury, Tonya, Lara and Pasha, who find love only to lose it again in tragic circumstances. A classic love story, Dr Zhivago remains one of the best-loved romantic books of the century. It was also beautifully filmed with Omar Sharif and Julie Christie in the leading roles.Review“The best way to understand Pasternak’s achievement in Doctor Zhivago is to see it in terms of this great Russian literary tradition, as a fairy tale, not so much of good and evil as of opposing forces and needs in human destiny and history that can never be reconciled . . . [Zhivago is] a figure who embodies the principle of life itself, the principle that contradicts every abstraction of revolutionary politics.”—from the Introduction by John BayleyFrom AudioFileSince the Russian government forced Pasternak to renounce the Nobel Prize in 1958 and refused to allow publication of Dr. Zhivago in Russia, it's natural to think of it as a political novel. It is not...at least, not primarily. Although the historic events in Russia from 1903 to 1943 form the chaotic background of the story, it's the human drama as seen through the eyes of Yurii Zhivago that gives it meaning. As Yurii becomes a prisoner of the Partisans, separated from his wife and family and then from his great love, Lara, his brooding intelligence finds courage and dignity far beyond that of any political ideology. Despite the superb narration of Philip Madoc, however, this isn't an easy book in audio. There are about sixty main characters, all with complicated Russian names, none printed in a list for clarification. Even if such a list is borrowed from a printed book, there are still confusing twists in the complicated plotÐas well as intimidating place namesÐwhich can be difficult to follow on tape. Does this mean that the recorded book is impossible to understand? No, only that it's a challenge. But what an exciting challenge it is! With the eloquence of Philip Madoc as inspiration, a dedicated listener will be privileged to experience the full power of one of the great books of this century. J.C. (c)AudioFile, Portland, MaineExcerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.Part One The Five O'Clock Express 1 They walked and walked and sang "Memory Eternal,"1 and when they stopped, it seemed that the song went on being repeated by their feet, the horses, the gusts of wind. Passers-by made way for the cortège, counted the wreaths, crossed themselves. The curious joined the procession, asked: "Who's being buried?" "Zhivago," came the answer. "So that's it. Now I see." "Not him. Her." "It's all the same. God rest her soul. A rich funeral." The last minutes flashed by, numbered, irrevocable. "The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof; the world, and those that dwell therein." The priest, tracing a cross, threw a handful of earth onto Marya Nikolaevna. They sang "With the souls of the righteous." A terrible bustle began. The coffin was closed, nailed shut, lowered in. A rain of clods drummed down as four shovels hastily filled the grave. Over it a small mound rose. A ten-year-old boy climbed onto it. Only in the state of torpor and insensibility that usually comes at the end of a big funeral could it have seemed that the boy wanted to speak over his mother's grave. He raised his head and looked around from that height at the autumn wastes and the domes of the monastery with an absent gaze. His snub-nosed face became distorted. His neck stretched out. If a wolf cub had raised his head with such a movement, it would have been clear that he was about to howl. Covering his face with his hands, the boy burst into sobs. A cloud flying towards him began to lash his hands and face with the wet whips of a cold downpour. A man in black, with narrow, tight-fitting, gathered sleeves, approached the grave. This was the dece
