Product Description
As the turbulent years following the Russian revolution of 1917 settle down into a new Soviet reality, the brilliant and eccentric zoologist Persikov discovers an amazing ray that drastically increases the size and reproductive rate of living organisms. At the same time, a mysterious plague wipes out all the chickens in the Soviet republics. The government expropriates Persikov's untested invention in order to rebuild the poultry industry, but a horrible mix-up quickly leads to a disaster that could threaten the entire world.This H. G. Wells-inspired novel by the legendary Mikhail Bulgakov is the only one of his larger works to have been published in its entirety during the author's lifetime. A poignant work of social science fiction and a brilliant satire on the Soviet revolution, it can now be enjoyed by English-speaking audiences through this accurate new translation.Includes annotations and afterword. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Genius
Bulgakov is wonderful. This story is a charming expression of Bulgakov's sentiments of Soviet Russia. I am constantly amazed that Bulgakov managed to escape the Culling that was suffered by so many of Russia's intellectuals.

sci-fi satire
Of interest to any admirers of Bulgakov and those interested in science fiction or satirical fiction, The Fatal Eggs is a brilliant satire on Stalinist Russia. Bulgakov lived under Stalin's regime and experienced first-hand suppression and censorship (his most celebrated works were not published in his lifetime), giving this satire a thrilling bite. The story is of an eccentric Russian scientist who discovers a form of light ray that accelerates growth in organisms. But when the ray is shone upon the wrong batch of eggs, he accidentally creates giant hybrids which quickly overun the city, while the propaganda-driven press report on all of this as it spirals further and further out of control. Highly entertaining, and well-translated too.

Slow, predictable with some fantastic moments
The satire element of this story is so oudated that it fails completly to enliven the functional prose, the tedious details and the very thin and predictable plot. But Bulgakov IS a great writer, and his genius shines in some intermitent episodes of the book .. and make it worth the while, it's only 100 pages after all. ... Read more

Product Description
In Bulgakov's "Diaboliad", the modest and unassuming office clerk Korotkov is summarily sacked for a trifling error from his job at the First Central Depot for the Materials for Matches, and tries to seek out his newly assigned superior Kalsoner, responsible for his dismissal. His quest through the labyrinth of Soviet bureaucracy takes on the increasingly surreal dimensions of a nightmare. This early satirical story, reminiscent of Gogol and Dostoevsky, was first published in 1924 and incurred the wrath of pro-Soviet critics. Along with the three other stories in this volume which also feature explorations of the absurd and bizarre, it provides a fascinating glimpse into the artistic development of the author of "Master and Margarita". ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Heart of a Dog
"My goodness, what are you saying," Korotkov exclaimed in distress, sensing that here, too something strange was starting, just as it had everywhere else. He looked back as if he were being hunted, afraid that the shaven face and the bald shell would emerge from somewhere, and then he added in a clumsy way, "I'm very glad, yes, very . . ." A motley flush passed lightly over the marble man; raising Korotkov's hand delicately, he drew him toward a little table, reiterating, "I'm very glad, too. But here's the rub, imagine it - I don't even have a place where you can sit down. We're being kept in a pen in spite of our significance." (Mikhail Bulgakov, Diaboliad p30)

A brilliant blend of magical and realistic elements, grotesque situations, and major ethical issues. Its story lies between parable and reality; its tone varies from satire to unguarded vulnerability. Its publication represents the triumph of imagination over politics...

Bulgakov's short stories
Though Bulgakov is perhaps best known in the West for his Master i Margarita, the tale of Satan's vist to the capital of world communism, these tales well exhibit his literary genius and his satirical bite. One ofthe stories in this collection, Fatal Eggs, is in my mind one of themaster's finest works. ... Read more

Product Description
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, and a Satanic ball; to such somber scenes as the meeting of Pilate and Yeshua, and the murder of Judas in the moonlit garden of Gethsemane; to the substanceless, circus-like reality of Moscow. Its central characters, Woland (Satan) and his retinue-including the vodka-drinking, black cat, Behemoth; the poet, Ivan Homeless; Pontius Pilate; and a writer known only as The Master, and his passionate companion, Margarita-exist in a world that blends fantasy and chilling realism, an artful collage of grostesqueries, dark comedy, and timeless ethical questions.

Although completed in 1940, The Master and Margarita was not published in Moscow until 1966, when the first part appeared in the magazine Moskva. It was an immediate and enduring success: Audiences responded with great enthusiasm to its expression of artistic and spiritual freedom. This new translation has been created from the complete and unabridged Russian texts.Amazon.com Review
Surely no stranger work exists in the annals of protest literature thanThe Master and Margarita. Written during the Soviet crackdown of the1930s, when Mikhail Bulgakov's works were effectively banned, it wraps itsanti-Stalinist message in a complex allegory of good and evil. Or wouldthat be the other way around? The book's chief character is Satan, whoappears in the guise of a foreigner and self-proclaimed black magiciannamed Woland. Accompanied by a talking black tomcat and a "translator"wearing a jockey's cap and cracked pince-nez, Woland wreaks havocthroughout literary Moscow. First he predicts that the head of noted editorBerlioz will be cut off; when it is, he appropriates Berlioz's apartment. (A puzzled relative receives the following telegram: "Have just beenrun over by streetcar at Patriarch's Ponds funeral Friday three afternooncome Berlioz.") Woland and his minions transport one bureaucrat to Yalta,make another one disappear entirely except for his suit, and frightenseveral others so badly that they end up in a psychiatric hospital. In fact, itseems half of Moscow shows up in the bin, demanding to be placed in alocked cell for protection.

Meanwhile, a few doors down in the hospital lives the true object ofWoland's visit: the author of an unpublished novel about Pontius Pilate.This Master--as he calls himself--has been driven mad by rejection, brokennot only by editors' harsh criticism of his novel but, Bulgakov suggests,by political persecution as well. Yet Pilate's story becomes a kind ofparallel narrative, appearing in different forms throughout Bulgakov'snovel: as a manuscript read by the Master's indefatigable love, Margarita,as a scene dreamed by the poet--and fellow lunatic--Ivan Homeless, and even asa story told by Woland himself. Since we see this narrative from so manydifferent points of view, who is truly its author? Given that the Master'snovel and this one end the same way, are they in fact the same book? Theseare only a few of the many questions Bulgakov provokes, in a novel thatreads like a set of infinitely nested Russian dolls: inside one narrativethere is another, and then another, and yet another. His devil is notonly entertaining, he is necessary: "What would your good be doingif there were no evil, and what would the earth look like if shadowsdisappeared from it?"

Unsurprisingly--in view of its frequent, scarcely disguised references tointerrogation and terror--Bulgakov's masterwork was not published until1967, almost three decades after his death. Yet one wonders if the worldwas really ready for this book in the late 1930s, if, indeed, we are readyfor it now. Shocking, touching, and scathingly funny, it is a novel like noother. Woland may reattach heads or produce 10-ruble notes from the air,but Bulgakov proves the true magician here. The Master and Margaritais a different book each time it is opened. --Mary Park ... Read more

Customer Reviews (379)

a great allegory
I am giving 5 stars despite the fact that I didn't enjoy reading this book, it was a little too repetitious for me.But regardless of my personal preference, I definitely think it is a valuable reading experience for its poignant allegory, originality, sophistication and intelligence.It's sort of like a political/philosophical/darker version of Alice in Wonderland where conventional rules and covers don't apply, thus bare truths are boldly exposed.

M&M
I own several Russian editions of "The Master and Margarita", as well as all of the English translations. By far, my favorite translation is by Diana Burgin and Katherine O'Connor (1995 Ardis Publishers). Being a native Russian reader, Burgin/O'Connor translation is the closest to the original. The "flow" of Bulgakov verse is very well preserved. All other translations left me disappointed.

seeing is not believing and believing is not seeing
I found the story to be geographically interesting (because it is Moscow), imaginative like Dante's Inferno, politically relevant (from a historical perspective), and just plain weird. It is so strange and twisted that I would rarely recommend it to someone.On the other hand, if someone has already read it, it would be enchanting to speak with them about it.In addition, if Russian literature and history thrills you, then this is a must read and an enjoyable read.Buried inside all the wonderful illusions and hideous acts, woven amongst demented and scandalous characters, and set against biblical allegories I only partially understand, is a beautiful and haunting romance, a couple of true soles and some diabolical mysteries that captivate. Sometimes, seeing is not believing and believing is not seeing.

wonderful--but check the translator
The Master and Margarita is hilarious and engaging.I took a class called Russian Literature in English, and this book was by far my favorite (though the other texts we read were amazing, like Envy, The Petty Demon, We, and of course numerous Chekhov plays).However, with this and all translated works, be sure to source a good translation.I accidentally bought two copies of this, by two different translators.One was far superior--much funnier, and (according to the Prof) more like the Russian original. I cannot remember who the translator was, but do a quick google search before you purchase to see which translations are better reviewed.

A great work.
I first read M+M when it came out in English translation.I'm not sure I quite got it that time (was, say 20 years of age).Recently read the Penguin translation offered here, which is flat out brilliant, and the intro and notes are helpful.Found the earlier Signet edition (the one with the wonderful picture of the cat, Behemoth, on the cover) in a used book store and am now reading that.I'm not certain that translation deserves to be denigrated in light of this more recent one.Fabulous read in any event.Other reviews here go into what it's "about" so no need for that from me.All I can say is get hands on a copy and read it! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Still the real thing
I first came across Dr. Bulgakov (pre-having read "Master and Margerita") many years ago in a Paris bookstall. He seemed to me then, and on re-reading "A Country Doctor's Notebook" now", the best expression I have ever read of the life-transformation of a young doctor, particularly in unforgiving solo practice in isolated circumstance, whether it was the Russian forest of 1917, or, as it was for me, Nepal in the early 1960s.
As Dr. B would say, "Sometimes you do the wrong thing, and nobody will ever know, and sometimes you do the right thing, and nobody will ever know."
If you want to know how it really is, read this book. Laugh, cry, and ponder, and be amazed at the strange glory of medical practice.
Also read his masterpiece, long buried by the Soviet censors, "The Master and Margerita"-- the Devil visits Moscow in the early 1920's, with his black cat Margerita. And for good measure, read
"The White Guard" and "Head of a Dog. Bulgakov is a tragi-comic genius.

docdoc

A good book for new doctors
I gave this book to a young person 4 months out of medical school. She said it exactly described her own feelings of inadequacy, but in a funny way. She wanted it to be longer.Some things haven't changed in 100 years.

Bulgakov the genius does it again
This is Bulgakov's own personal journey as a doctor recently graduated and sent to the countryside to practice.This is something that is still common in a number of developing countries and is used both to even up the social balance of city and country and also to provide medical care to those who otherwise would have to do without.

Bulgakov is dispatched and displays all the idealism of a young doctor mixed with the pessimism's of a man who is being sent far from home and the comforts of the city to a place that may as well be a foreign country.

Bulgakov in his usual quiet way exposes the ignorance of the common people and often the incompetence of his own skill.The stories he retells here are both moving and touching, peasants who when given medicine apply it to their outer clothing rather than the skin, a hospital staff who medical skill leaves a lot to be desired.

Bulgakov is humorous as usual and while providing the reader with a book that judging by the cover may be slow and tedious is in fact fast paced, and will leave the reader laughing at times and in disbelief in others.

A wonderful book that should be read.

Powerful, Human and Real
The true stories of a 24 year old country doctor who finds himself thrust from the university to a rural Russian village in pre-Revolutionary 1916 Russia. And find himself he does, as he chronicles his growth as an independent physician and as a compassionate young man.One of his greatest fears upon arrival at his small country "hospital" is that he shall have to perform a difficult delivery of a baby.His fears eventually come true, and with the help of his two midwives and a helper roughly equivalent to today's physician assistant, the baby and mother survive and thrive, somewhat to his surprise.He returns to his study, opens his obstetrical manuals and is thrilled to find that the illustrations and words now make complete sense to him.

These are remarkable stories told very, very well. Savor this book, there is none other like it.

Emotional and moving
These are the true stories of Mikhail Bulgakov, author of the Master and Margarita from the two years he spent as a medical intern in rural Russia.He vividly describes the loneliness and hardships of life in rural Russia, as well as resistence of the peasants to modern medical knowledge.He shows his inexperience, rudeness, and medical mistakes even more graphically, making one cringe for those under his knife or care.The best story, Morphine, recounts a descent into morphine addiction by the addict himself.This is emotional and moving, attributes that are missing from the tales Bulgakov tells himself.He seems to be fixated on his own suffering and his own value as a doctor and a human and doesn't show much sympathy for his patients or his fellow rural residents. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (61)

Excellent novel
Bulgakov is one of my favorite authors and I had already read the book in russian a long time ago. I got it for my husband and was very worried about translation but it was really good. The book is very interesting and is full of humor as the author keeps pointing out and mocking some of the things that were so common in every day life and in general during the USSR. But this must be a good read for anybody even if not all nuances will be understood by foreign readers or might need clarifications. And well I don't need to advertise this to Russians :)

The book was new
The book was new as promised, delivered very fast, so I was very glad to have deal with the seller.
Veniamin Belkin

Stay away from this translation of Bulgakov's short masterpiece.
A terrible (abominably bad!) translation set to slipshod do-it-your typography. I just got this book and was amazed that this undergraduate-level attempt to English Bulgakov's prose is sold on Amazon. The translator was fortunate not to have his or her name credited anywhere between the covers. Don't expect an introduction to the author or the work, either. This is a home-spun desktop project from from first page to last.My advice is to buy the wonderful Grove Press translation by Mirra Ginsburg.http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0802150594/ref=s9_simh_gw_p14_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=0R5KW2HQ29X3R1MZNX4W&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846. You'll save yourself a few bucks to boot if you buy it used.Enjoy the novel!

Poor edition
I have to echo the reviews that are critical of this particular edition.The text was obviously composed by scanning some older version of the book with text-converting software.As a result, there are dozens of typos that you'd expect from software of this nature."Sam" instead of "5am," "Toligraph Poligraphovich" instead of "Poligraph Poligraphovich," "Amoldovich" instead of "Arnoldovich," "fiat" instead of "flat," and even the nonsensical "litde dog" instead of "little dog."There are even asterisks in the place of quotes (i.e., "Quiet!* barked Sharikov.).There are also distracting spaces in between some paragraphs that give the impression of a scene change when no scene change is taking place, while in other places the story seems to shift scenes mid-paragraph.All this sloppiness ends up noticeably detracting from what was otherwise a quick, pleasant read.Not as good as The White Guard or The Master and Margarita, in my opinion, but worth a read--if you get your hands on an edition the editor actually spell-checked.

Heart of a Dog
Don't buy this edition!This is a terrible translation; neither the translator nor the original copyright date is listed.Poorly edited.Full of typos. The quality seems like that of a pirated publication. This is the first such purchase in many years that we discarded rather than to pass it along after reading.

The novella, however, is worth reading, and Bulgakov wrote "Heart of a Dog" in a play version as well.Make sure the edition you purchase has an acknowledged/credited translator. ... Read more

Product Description
When it was published this was the full, post-glasnost critical biography of Mikhail Bulgakov (1891-1940), a great comic writer whose works are regarded as modern classics. This account of Bulgakov's career as playwright and prose-writer examines all his works in the context of the changing demands put upon artists in the Soviet Union of the 1920s and 1930s, who were faced with the choice of integrity at the price of silence, or publication and production at the price of conformty with the totalitarian state. Lesley Milne traces through Bulgakov's career an ethical concept of the writer's role, his response to his time, and his search for an audience in and beyond that time. ... Read more

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A new translation of one of the most popular satires on the Russian Revolution and Soviet society

Best known for The Master and Margarita, Mikhail Bulgakov is one of twentieth-century Russia's most prominent novelists. A Dead Man's Memoir is a semi- autobiographical story about a writer who fails to sell his novel, then fails to commit suicide. When the writer's play is taken up for production in a theater, literary success beckons, but he is not prepared to reckon with the grotesquely inflated egos of the actors, directors, and theater managers. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Bulgakov at his best
This is such a great book that someone such as myself that had no interest in the theater or plays could not put it down.That is because this book is less about theater and more about people and living under oppression.Here is a biography of sorts on how a great work of writing can be buried under the weight of large egos, jealousy, and the soveit system.Yet this book dose not exclusivly apply to a period of time or place, it is made timeless through its superb use of memorable and realistic characters.This novel gives every reader the abailty to feel the pain of having ones best work destroyed before there very eyes and is highly recommened for people that have read any previous works of Bulgakov. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (21)

have not read yet
I can only review the service i rec'd buying the book -- in a word: great! I went for the three-book Bulgakov package because of advantageous pricing. Delivery was very quick; book in seemingly new shape.

Worth your time.
If you enjoy Russian authors, or this time period in Russian history, this book is fantastic. I was actually sad that it ever had to end it was superb. Kudos to Bulgakov.

"White Guard" by Mikhail Bulgakov
White Guard Very good translation, quite in a spirit of the original Russian version by Bulgakov.

A Brilliant Family Portrait, Taken During Civil War
Mikhail Bulgakov lived in House No. 13 on Andrew's Descent during the 1918 Ukrainian civil war and this novel has many autobiographical features.However, this is a novel, not a memoir.Bulgakov captures not only historical facts, but also the essence of a fictional, quintessentially Ukrainian, family you will not soon forget.Bulgakov is a master of sketching character and capturing the moment, but Bulgakov achieves much more.Notwithstanding the setting, or perhaps because of it, the novel is more about personal and family relationships than it is about politics.The politics of the time are not absent, but they are primarily a backdrop to the traumas the Turbin family suffers.The end result is a deep look into character and love in the midst of tragic crises.

This novel was never fully published in the Soviet Union until after the author's death.One reason may be the fact that a touching portrait of a family who sympathized with the "White's" was counterproductive to Stalin's "Red" totalitarian regime.The play based on the novel, however, was very popular, apparently even with Stalin who reportedly watched it numerous times.

While the novel transcends politics, it fully inhabits the time and place.The sense of Kiev is palpable, as are the competing factions and loyalties within the city in 1918."The White Guard" has plenty of action both on stage and off.It is not dry history, but a fully realized novel of impressive depth.

(One final point, this book is realist in contrast to Bulgakov's more famous The Master and Margarita which is a surrealist portrait of the Soviet Union and a primary source of inspiration for Rushdie's Midnight's Children: A Novel.I make this point both to convince you of Bulgakov's importance in literary history and to warn you that the two books are masterful in very different ways.)

Anarchy in the Ukraine: A beautiful depiction of the imbecility of war and its messy aftermath
I am one of those people who believe that the greatest novels have already been written. I also believe that they were written by Russians. Following on from the towering edifices of Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky et al in the nineteenth century Mikhail Bulgakov (along with Mikhail Sholokov) was a worthy successor. This, his first work (originally recast into a play), tells the story of how the tumult of WWI/Revolution/Civil War impacted upon the unfortunate citizens of Kiev (then within the Russian Empire) as the city dissolves into a morass of confusion, turmoil and fear. White Guard royalists, Bolsheviks, Ukrainian nationalists, Cossacks, the rump German army, Poles, and even Senegalese troops, fight it out with nobody having the least notion of what is happening or even why. Commands and counter-commands, retreats, advances, rumours, counter-rumours, flight, corpses, chaos...
Whereas Tolstoy had sought to unravel the meaning and causes of war and Andreyev to describe graphically the horror, Bulgakov depicts the imbecility, the sheer monumental stupidity of it all, and its messy aftermath. He does this with a rare sensitivity through the experiences of the young Turbin family, a family of Tsarist patriots who live in an apartment in central Kiev. Following the death of their mother, twenty-eight year old Alex, a doctor, is left as the eldest, with his married (and abandoned) sister Elena, teenage brother Nikolai and their maid Anyuta. As ever with Russian novels in this tradition, we see the world through the eyes of real, thinking, feeling people, an ordinary family, caught up in the turbulence and having to make life-changing decisions with minimal or no information on which to base those decisions, and deeply concerned about the consequences of their actions on both their family and their own notions of self-worth. Like War and Peace, this book is a deeply moving look at the way different individuals respond to life's challenges and emerge as greater or lesser people.
The true tragedy for the people of the Ukraine (from 1922 a republic of the Soviet Union) is that this period of upheaval was followed by far greater horrors: the purges, the famine, the gulag, the Great Patriotic War; human sacrifices and loss on a scale that no other European country save neighbouring Russia and Poland has ever comparably suffered. As for Bulgakov, well it was a few years yet before he was to produce his fantasy masterpiece, The Master and Margarita, but this is a genuine classic, too.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A genre of its own
I read this in the Russian so can't guarantee anything about this translation.

This is a biography, a novel and an experimental work all rolled into one. Bulgakov describes the life of one of the most famous and beloved French playwrights and indeed authors. He goes into the intrigue between him and his enemies, the controversies surrounding his satires, his times and personality. The end result is a magical picture of Moliere's France with the splendour and opulence of the period (the reign of Louis XIV). All this is done in a way that reminds me that common ideas about writing (eg. show don't tell) are just that: ideas. Bulgakov definitely tells more than he shows and the work ends up being a crossover genre piece rather than a straight novel. But this does not detract, in fact his intrusions into the text with respect to the evidence for certain periods in Moliere's life work well.

This may not be a masterpiece of world literature but it depicts Moliere in a very interesting way and it's from a writer who felt a special connection with him because of Bulgakov's own troubles with censorship and being ahead of his time. In fact, he refers to Moliere as a wolf of his time in the book, the same image he speaks of himself in one of his poems about how he was hounded; which makes this a splendid exposition of one literary wolf by another...

A very pro Moliere book that is a pleasure to read.
Mikhail Bulgakov's book The Life of Monsieur de Moliere is a very biased book that is uncritical of the great French writer Moliere.Despite the author's unabashed love of Moliere, the book is a treat from beginning toend.Bulgakov feels an affinity with Moliere because he wrote under atotalitarian regime headed by Stalin in Russia and Moliere wrote during thereign of Louis XIV.Although Moliere certainly had much more freedom thanBulgakov did, he still felt the sting of censorship from religious zealotsand was often persecuted by those whom he made fun of in his plays, (nobles, doctors, the affected ladies of French society).Bulgakov praisesMoliere as the greatest French writer and as one of the greatest comediensever.Indeed history has proven him correct.Three centuries laterMoliere's works are performed in almost every nation in the world.Thegreat joy that Bulgakov feels towards Moliere infuses the entire book(sometimes to the point of unintentional farce.) But he paints a vivid andenergenic portrait of the playwright, actor and director that captures theessence of his work.Many of the details of Moliere's life are unknown andBulgakov does take Moliere's side wherever there is ambiguity.( Forexample, many of his enemies have said that Moliere married his owndaughter and knew that in fact she was his daughter.)Bulgakov refutesthis charge as ridiculous and indeed, without proof, it should bediscounted.Bulgakov takes us from Moliere's birth (a very funny tellingof how the midwife who delivered him couldn't realize he was more importantto history than any royal baby she may have delivered) to his tragicallyironic death right after a performance of his play The Imaginary Invalid. Bulgakov wheres his love of Moliere on his sleeve and it works toperfection in this book.Moliere's plays have an energy that imbues everyverse.This book is the same way. Most other biographies are staid incomparison.They rarely capture the true genius of the great writer andalmost never convey the great fun embodied in his works.MikhailBulgakov's biography is the best book, even though it is biased, everwritten about the great French playwright. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

A Volume of Outstanding Plays by Bulgakov
Mikhail Bulgakov may best be known in America as a novelist, but is also one of Russia's greatest playwrights of the 20th century -- in a class with Anton Chekhov.This volume is an excellent English language translation of six of his plays from the British publisher Methuen.These plays range from drama set during the period of the Russian civil war to drama of relationships and character, and though written before 1940 none of the plays seemed dated to me.From my own searches this is evidently the only English translation of all of these plays in one volume.So, if, like me, you liked Bulgakov's novel "The Master and Margarita" (and are not fluent in Russian) you can expect to enjoy this translation of his plays.

Bulgakov: Six Plays (World Classics)

Interesting
A selection of plays by the great Soviet writer Mikhail Bulgakov.Best known in the USA as the author of the novel The Master and Margarita, Bulgakov was a successful playwright until he ran afoul of censorship under Stalin.This selection opens with The White Guard, a sympathetic depiction of opponents of the Bolsheviks that Bulgakov adapted from his own novel of the same name.This popular play inaugurated Bulgakov's career as a playwright.Madame Zoyka, Flight, Moliere, Adam and Eve, and The Last Days are other plays in this collection.Much of Bulgakov's work reflects his engagement with and criticism of the Soviet State.Madame Zoyka is a satirical look at the NEP (New Economic Policy), Flight is a combined satire and sympathetic portrayal of emigres from the Soviet Union, Moliere and The Last Days (based on the life of Pushkin) are about artists trapped within autocratic political systems, and Adam and Eve is a kind of satirical science fiction fantasy reminescent of the later Shaw or Capek.Bulgakov is clearly an effective playwright with a talent for witty dialogue and staging.The best of these plays is Moliere, an imaginative and smartly constructed allegory of Bulgakov's own life. ... Read more

Product Description
See - All we need is...a map and...some kind of plan. This overcoat is neutral darling, neither Bolshevik nor Menshevik. Just essence of Prole. In Kiev during the Russian Civil War, the Turbin household is sanctuary to a ragtag, close-knit crowd presided over by the beautiful Lena. As her brothers prepare to fight for the White Guard, friends charge in from the riotous streets amidst an atmosphere of heady chaos, quaffing vodka, keeling over, declaiming, taking baths, playing guitar, and falling in love. But the new regime is poised and in its brutal triumph lies destruction for the Turbins and their world. And those are the real enemies we face, deep in the shadows. This modern man with no name, no past, no love. This desperate hate-filled man born of loneliness and frustration. This man with nothing to be proud of, nothing he is part of...This is Andrew Upton's version of "Mikhail Bulgakov's The White Guard" premiered at the National Theatre, London, in March 2010. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Satanic Fantasy
The book opens with a magazine editor Berlioz and a poet named Bezdomny sitting in a Moscow park when a stranger, obviously not Russian, approaches them and begins a conversation.When this stranger finds out they are non-Christian believers, he assures them that Jesus Christ really existed.Then he tells a story of Pontius Pilate first meeting Jesus and what happened at that meeting.Then the stranger goes on to tell Berlioz how he will die and his death becomes a realty not long afterwards.Berlioz's death shakes Bezdomny up considerably and he is convinced this stranger had something to do with Berlioz's death.Bezdomny begins following the stranger and finally ends up in the insane asylum.

The stranger goes by the name of Woland and professes to do black magic and plans to give a public show at the local theater.Woland is not alone; however, he is accompanied by Korovyov who claims to be Woland's assistant and by a large walking cat named Behemoth and a short, fat man with a fang named Azazello.Also included in this little group is a woman named Hella who is very beautiful except for a scar on her neck and she goes around naked.They go about wrecking havoc on Moscow.

The Master is a writer who has written a biography of Pontius Pilate but his novel is critized by the major publishers and critics.He becomes so despondent he leaves the love of his life, Margarita, and checks himself into the same insane asylum that Bezdomny is in.Margarita takes extraordinary steps to become reunited with the Master and through the help of Woland and company achieves her goal. There is quite a bit of excitement as Margarita goes through the steps to become reunited with the Master.

This book is fun, cynical, and wonderful.Also you'll want to read it because it is rich and rewarding - a must read.

Everything as expected.
I really like this book, it's one of my favorites.I have bought it for a few people now.
Everything was as expected.

Magnificent book, good translation.
I have read this book at least 5 times (4 times in Russian and 1 in English) and consider this book to be my favorite. It is hard to find a genre for this book: for me it is one of a kind. It could be hard to read for people not familiar with Soviet Union culture, because in order to understand the irony of that way of life you have to know how it really was there and then. I found translation of this book to be very exact and I was very satisfied with the style. Overall, this book is not for everybody to understand, but if you enjoy reading books of international authors, and have read and enjoyed reading at least one Russian writer, I would recommend to read "Master and Margarita" by Mikhail Bulgakov.

An excellent translation of a masterpiece
For anyone who tends to think of Russian literature as dull, depressing, and overly long, I would suggest this novel.It is witty, and a wonderful tale of the devil's visit to Moscow, which also satirizes the Soviet system.

The translation accurately captured the nuances and connotations of the original Russian texts, and does well at combining Bulgakov's various versions which he apparently continually revised.

This is a good translation, but my first experience with this novel was still a bit confusing
Plot Summary:The devil visits Moscow sometime in the springtime of the 1930s and he wreaks havoc.His traveling companions include a talking black cat named Behemoth, a comely witch who never wears clothes, and a scruffy translator who wears a cracked pince-nez.Most of the citizens who encounter this satanic posse come out considerably worse for wear, but for one historical writer named only the Master, and his lover, Margarita, the devil himself may be heaven-sent.

First a little background, of which I was pretty much ignorant until I dived into this book (why do I always do that?).Mikhail Bulgakov was a Russian novelist who worked on The Master and Margarita between 1928 to 1940.He wrote this book with the knowledge that he would likely never see it published, and a censored version of the text was finally published in 1966 - 26-years after his death.Apparently all of the English translations up until this point never captured the nuanced humor that's evident in its native Russian, but the translators of this edition went to great lengths to give English-language readers a fully-realized copy.

Is this book scandalous to a modern-day American?Hardly, but when placed within its historical context I could see how it might piss a few people off, namely the Stalinist regime that was in control at the time.To be honest, I feel woefully inadequate to even review this book, because it is brimming over with allegory, Fausitan references, and religious history. A literature professor would be better suited to dissect this book, but you're stuck with me.

Parts of this novel were incredibly entertaining and engaging.The story is rife with supernatural stuff - talking cats, naked witches, magic tricks, and Satan himself - and any fan of paranormal stories can't help but be entertained.However, it took me a solid 100 pages to get into the book, and I thought about abandoning it a few times.The main characters, namely the Master and Margarita, don't even show up until well after the 100-page mark, and I found this story making greater demands on my patience than usual.There's no denying that parts of it are very confusing, but it does make sense in hindsight.It took me about three days to wade through it all, and if you follow my blog you know that I usually read 350-page books in one day.

So no, it wasn't always easy to read, and part of that stems from the cultural/language barrier.So many of the terms remain completely foreign for modern readers (even after being translated), and I was also confused by the fact that each character had at least three names.I'm not familiar with Russian culture, but in addition to a first and last name, each character had a third name used by intimate friends.Here in the U.S., a person's nickname is often derived from their first name, but not so here.Unfortunately for me, Mr. Bulgakov switched between all three names indiscriminately, and I had a hard time keeping them straight amongst a cast numbering in the dozens.

Even with these burdens, I am glad I read this story because some of the scenes could be grafted into a contemporary urban fantasy without a single edit, and that is incredible to me.It speaks to Mr. Bulgakov's imagination, which he used to give a cheeky slap to Russian society during the 1930s.This is the kind of story that probably grows on people with subsequent readings.The first time is a little rough, the second time things become clearer, and by the third time they probably think it's a masterpiece.I'm still on round one.

This particular translation has a nice set of notes in the back, but alas no footnotes.When encountering a strange word or a new character, there may or may not be an explanation in the back.The reader must check constantly.There is no foreword, but the afterword provides a respectable amount of information about the author, the context, and an examination of the work itself.I wish I had read it first instead of last. ... Read more

Product Description
Through his surreal, often grotesque humour, Bulgakov creates in this book - a new translation of one of the most popular satires on the Russian Revolution and on Soviet society - an ingenious new twist to the 'Frankenstein' parable. Having been scalded by boiling water earlier that day, and with little chance to survive the severe winter night, a stray dog is left for dead on the streets.Lamenting his fate, he is ill prepared for the chance arrival of a wealthy professor who befriends him and takes him home.However, it seems the professor's motives are not entirely altruistic - an expert in medical experimentation, he sees his new charge as the potential subject for a bizarre operation, and implants glands from a dead criminal in the dog.The resulting half-man, half-beast is, as to be expected, a monstrosity, yet one that fits in remarkably well with Soviet society... ... Read more

Product Description
This study takes as its premise that the novel, which is fascinating for both what it reveals and what it conceals, carries within itself a coherence of meaning. It is widely acknowledged that religious categories of understanding are necessary for a proper interpretation of the novel, but it is common to conclude that Mikhail Bulgakov's outlook is heterodox. This study places him within the theological tradition of Eastern Orthodoxy. The novel draws upon the long line of apocalyptic visionary writing and takes its place in that line. This interpretation allows the reader to make sense of the abundant symbolic correspondences in the novel, including the fact that they are skewed, inexact, and often overlapping. To see the novel as both completed and coherent depends on the cumulative evidence amassed through analysis of the novel's many significant details. ... Read more

Product Description
The Body in the Library is a unique tour of the history of medicine and its practitioners. It provides a nuanced and realistic picture of how medicine and society have abetted and thwarted each other ever since the lawyers behind the French Revolution banished the clergy and replaced them with doctors, priests of the body.

Ranging from Charles Dickens to Oliver Sacks, Anton Chekhov to Raymond Queneau, Fanny Burney to Virginia Woolf, Miguel Torga to Guido Ceronetti, The Body in the Library is an anthology of poems, stories, journal entries, Socratic dialogue, table-talk, clinical vignettes, aphorisms, and excerpts written by doctor-writers themselves.

Engaging and provocative, philosophical and instructive, intermittently funny and sometimes appalling, this anthology sets out to stimulate and entertain. With an acerbic introduction and witty contextual preface to each account, it will educate both patients and doctors curious to know more about the historical dimensions of medical practice.

Armed with a first-hand experience of liberal medicine and knowledge of several languages, Iain Bamforth has scoured the literatures of Europe to provide a well-rounded and cross-cultural sense of what it means to be a doctor entering the twenty-first century. A book for every bedside. ... Read more