You'll Be Amazed at How this reads like a Modern Book

books:

	• The White Guard Mikhail Afanasevich Bulgakov Academy Chicago Publishers, 1995 - 319 pages average customer review:based on 16 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

moving tale by a master of tales

bulgakov may have written master and margarita and black snow, both bizarre quirky novels, but white guard is undoubtedly the most human.
moving and touching it pulls at the heartstrings with its complexities of family relations and social environment.
beautiful

Good but not a masterpiece

I recommend this book for:
- someone who enjoys Russian/Soviet authors, but understands White Guard is closer to Hemmingway in its story lines and characters than it is to Tolstoy;
- someone planning to visit Kiev and wanting to get some grounding the city and one of its most famous authors
- someone who enjoys "historical fiction" and is interested in Kiev just after WWI

I may have suffered a bit from "anticipointment" in that based on what I heard about Bulgakov and my interest in the setting of this novel, I was ready to be blown away. Instead I found myself enjoying it, but definitely not feeling like I had stumbled upon a classic. White Guard is worth reading, but certainly is eclipsed by the earlier generation of "Russian" authors from the 19th century and later Soviet Authors like Vasily Grossman. Those are of course extremely high standards to meet! So in fairness to Bulgakov, its worth pointing out he tells a memorable tale and does a nice job of bringing the city of Kiev to life as one of his primary "characters." One definitely gets a sense of the chaos and uncertainty in the city between the end of WWI and the take over by the Soviets. On the downside, the human characters feel a bit stock -- the author doesn't really develop them, they are just there fully formed without the reader knowing enough as to the hows and whys. It is interesting that the novel was subsequently made into a play, because in reading it, it feels like the reverse was true and that the author assumed familarity with the characters from their stage run. This is probably a product of the fact the characters probably WERE familar to Bulgakov since the story is based on his actual experiences at the time of its setting. All in all, a fine book, but if you don't need to read about this particular period and you do want to be blow away, read Vasily Grossman's "Life and Fate" instead.

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Great book!!

What i loved most about it (i'm Russian myself) was the poetry with which Bulgakov infused every line of the novel. The language seems to give it a certain timeless quality, and at times a heartwrenching beauty..
I just looked at the excerpt from this translation and it seems to be pretty good. I'd recommend the edition to anyone.

Great and terrible was the year of Our Lord 1918

This was an excellent Russian novel set in 1918 Kiev. It follows the Turbins, a Tsarist middle class family in hiding. It is the end of WWI, and the Bolshevik Revolution is taking hold in Moscow. As loyalists to the Russian crown, the Turbins and friends are on the run from not only the Bolsheviks, but also the fierce Ukranian nationalist movement which is equally threatening. In fact, the Bolsheviks are still far away at Moscow, while the nationalists are much closer to home, and thus more of a direct threat. It is the story of a proud and pious people whose era is coming to an end. There is treachery around every corner, as the Turbins despairingly watch their beloved city of Kiev fall to the enemy. The prose is excellent, and the story is at once sad, humorous, and tragic. It is a pleasure to read and although fictional, I would consider it a good snapshot of the Russian Revolution, told from the perspective of the losing side.

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You'll Be Amazed at How this reads like a Modern Book

From the language used to the references about government, politics and religion, you would think that this book was written about current times. But it is written about one of the most unknown parts of the Communist take- over in Russia following the first world war.

After the fall of the Russian Empire and the deposing of the Tsar in February 1917, and then the October Revolution in 1917; many of the constituent parts of the Empire opted for independence. Most people know of the creation of Finland, the Baltic States and Poland, and even about the civil war between the whites and the reds. What is not normally known is that the Ukraine declared itself an independent republic at the same time. Unfortunately for the Ukrainians, no one recognized them.

Actually two Ukraines were declared, one in Austrian Galicia (Western Ukraine) which was swallowed up by the Poles under Polsudski, and another based in Kiev. The one in Kiev was originally allied with the German Army who had signed a peace accord with the Reds at Brest-Litovsk, that included much of the land around Kiev. The German's saw this area as a protectorate and placed it under the control of 'Hetman' Shchnolpolsky and the Rada (Parliment). This is the group that was backed by the "White Guard" made up of Tsarist officers and cadets from the local military academies.

As the story begins we are introduced to the Turbins, Alexi, Elena and Nikolta. Alexi was a doctor in the Tsarist army, Elena's huband was a colonel and Niki was a cadet. In a short period of time they are visited by some old friends who are also ex-officers. But Germany has now been declared a Republic and the German Army is leaving. So too does the Hetman and most of his cronies. Elena's husband is also on the run. Alexi and Niki and their friends have all joined the Guards. But with the break down of the Hetman group, another group under General Petlyura (a cossack leader) has declared themselves head of the Ukrainin People's Republic (they are actually called Greens and fought under the Blue and Gold banner of modern Ukraine).

Most of Petlyura's soldiers are from the ranks of the old tsarist army and they hate the "officers" of the White Guard almost (if not more) than they do the Bolshvik 'Reds'. What we witness is the divided loyalties or the upper classes (officers) and the 'normal' people who just want to go on with their lives (and will cheer anyone they have to as liberators).

Though this book was not published until 1967, as the play "Days of the Turbins", was a big favorite in the Soviet Union (and was supposedly seen by Stalin fifteen times) though Bulgakov was not allowed to publish any of his material after 1920.

The White Guard is not the White Army, which later kicked out Petlyura, under General Deniken, who was subsequently defeated by the Red Army under Trotzky in the Crimea and had to abandon Russia in 1921. For those who know the history of the 'famine' in the Ukraine in 1922-23, this story will give them more understanding of why Stalin allowed so many people to starve to death (he could never trust their loyalty).

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4

The setting is Kiev in 1918, a time of revolution, turmoil and civil war. The Germans have occupied the city, Petlyura's Socialists are camped outside awaiting their moment, while the Bolsheviks watch, contemplating their buried armaments. It is a time of suspense and anguished uncertainty for everyone, including the once-wealthy Turbin family, who, like the other last supporters of the Tsar, will find their world growing smaller and smaller until it disappears altogether. This memorable novel, published in 1923, was Bulgakov's first major work.

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