A review by sharonb
The Adolescent by Fyodor Dostoevsky

slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I struggled with this. I love Dostoyevsky, but this is not one of my favourites. The only book by D written in first person. I don't mind first-person POV, but a 19 year old adolescent was a bit all over the place.  That said, I preferred the character of Arkady more than most of the others. D certainly got into the mind/psychology of an adolescent.  I was reading this at the same time as two other books, so it seemed to take forever.

I think maybe I should have concentrated on this book alone and not read others. It did get better when I was reading larger portions in a sitting, but I had breaks of several days at times, which may have disrupted the flow. I probably need to re read it or at least the versilov explanation from the last few chapters, but realistically, I don't know when/if I will do that.