[Kropotkin]

Hello everyone, I guess I'll try to hit the ground running as this is my first post...

There is an unexplainable charisma and attractiveness that seems to exist in the tone of Russian writing that seems, to me at least, to be absent from the works of other cultures. My all-time favorite is still Chekhov. The plays, the short stories; Amazing! Too many favorite stories to list, but I think I can say that The Three Sisters wins in the play department. I loved Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov, but my favorite of his is White Nights, probably because it's quiet, dreamlike, sentimentality basically just reminds me of Chekhov. As I understand it, this was written in his earlier days which might explain it's lack of the trademark dark pessimism that he is so famous for, as found in his more well known works. A close second favorite, for very different reasons, is The Dream of a Ridiculous Man. I also find Notes From Underground to be fantastically witty and entertaining, the man truly did have quite a sense of humor. As far a Tolstoy goes I, admittedly, have made my share of failed attempts at War and Peace, I do have a special affection for Tolstoy's shorter works, one of my favorites also being The Death of Ivan Ilyich. Tolstoy's non-fiction works on politics and religion have also played a large part in my life. While I am not a religious person by any means, I find Tolstoy's philosophy of Christian-based Libertarian Socialism quite interesting. Growing up in the United States in a primarily conservative town during the rise of the "Religious Right", I was grateful to be able to, when needing ammunition for arguments, borrow from Tolstoy's message that pure Anarchism is the only form of government that can truly coexist with Christian values. His writings and teachings on pacifism, civil disobedience, mutual aid, and classical libertarianism could have made Russia a very different place today had Russia's dominant revolutionary spirit looked more to them than to Germany for their influence. But I do understand how some people find his preachiness to be exhausting even when it comes through in his fictional works. Yet another reason why Chekhov is the best.

Has everyone heard the one about the Russian who hung himself? He fastened the rope to the rafters and jumped off of his note.

I know, not really a great joke, but it does address the stereotype that the Russians tend to write works that many find to be a bit on the long side. I you haven't guessed by now, I personally prefer the shorter works, which explains why I have merely been "working on" War and Peace on and off for several years now and haven't actually picked it up in at least two years.