Each time I read this book a purification happens with in me. Something gets refined. I am not attempting to do a review of this excellent novel. Its beyond my capacity to understand the depth of the revolutionary thoughts and ideas shared in the book. But on each read I enjoy the love that radiates from this book. To me its purely a book on love. I cherish all the relations as my own. The way mother loves everyone and everything. The way she cherish every single appreciation from Pavel her son, the way she loves Andrey, the way she cares for Natasha, Sasha , Sophia and others, the friendship between Pavel and Andrey, the reformation of Viskovishkov, every relation is so beautifully sketched that the characters just refuse to leave you even after keeping the book down.
One of my favorite conversation between Andrey(Little Russian), Pavel and Viskovishkov(Nikolay )
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"Well, I'm not fit for anything but jobs like that!" said Nikolay dully, shrugging his shoulders. "I keep thinking, and thinking where my place in the world is. There is no place for me! The people require to be spoken to, and I cannot. I see everything; I feel all the people's wrongs; but I cannot express myself: I have a dumb soul." He went over to Pavel with drooping head; and scraping his fingers on the table, he said plaintively, and so unlike himself, childishly, sadly: "Give me some hard work to do, comrade. I can't live this life any longer. It's so senseless, so useless. You are all working in the movement, and I see that it is growing, and I'm outside of it all. I haul boards and beams. Is it possible to live for the sake of hauling timber? Give me some hard work."
Pavel clasped his hand, pulling him toward himself."We will!"
From behind the curtains resounded the Little Russian's voice:
"Nikolay, I'll teach you typesetting, and you'll work as a compositor for us. Yes?"
Nikolay went over to him and said:
"If you'll teach me that, I'll give you my knife."
"To the devil with your knife!" exclaimed the Little Russian and burst out laughing.
"It's a good knife," Nikolay insisted. Pavel laughed, too.Vyesovshchikov stopped in the middle of the room and asked:
"Are you laughing at me?"
"Of course," replied the Little Russian, jumping out of bed. "I'll tell you what! Let's take a walk in the fields! The night is fine; there's bright moonshine. Let's go!"
"All right," said Pavel.
"And I'll go with you, too!" declared Nikolay. "I like to hear you laugh, Little Russian."
"And I like to hear you promise presents," answered the Little Russian, smiling.
While Andrey was dressing in the kitchen, the mother scolded him:
"Dress warmer! You'll get sick." And when they all had left, she watched them through the window; then looked at the ikon, and said softly: "God help them!"
She turned off the lamp and began to pray alone in the moonlit room.
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