Paul M. Levitt
Author of The Weighty Word Book
About the Author
Paul M. Levitt is professor of English at the University of Colorado, Boulder.
Works by Paul M. Levitt
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Gender
- male
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Reviews
The Weighty Word Book by Paul M. Levitt
Provides unusual words defined from A to Z. Uses ridiculous puns that will bring peals of laughter to the young at heart.
This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.The very beginning and the very end of this book are very well written. In the middle is a lot of unnecessary filler, random facts and musings from the main character about speech and culture and history. Some of it is very interesting, but very little actually pertains to the plot. The main character is likeable, but imperfect, which is really what this book has going for it. There is a sense of realism that pulls the reader in and will keep them reading until the end just to see what happens.
This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.I really wanted to like this book. Unfortunately, I am not up on my Russian history, so had a hard time getting into it. The writing was superb. If you are a Bolshevik/Stalin aficionado, then this is the book for you!
1 
KimD66 | 11 other reviews | Dec 4, 2014 |
KimD66 | 11 other reviews | Dec 4, 2014 | This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.I have to admit that I had a lot of distractions happening in my life when I was reading this book, so maybe that's why it was hard for me to get into or took so long to finish. There's an incident that happens early on in the novel that captures the reader immediately, but then the story seems to take forever (to me) to progress, much less resolve.
I do think the author has an excellent knowledge of Stalinist Russia and paints a vivid portrait of how difficult it must have been to live in those conditions, particularly when you could never trust anyone for fear that he could turn on you and denounce you to the authorities. The book is also well written; I think it was the storyline itself that didn't work for me. I didn't understand how the hero, Sasha, could commit the crime that he did and then not see his parents again when he is initially described as such a passive person and devoted son. Then there is the love story with Galina, which rather than being a love triangle becomes a love quadrangle, and you really don't know where it is going. Sure, that could be a mystery you want to wait around to discover, but I found I just didn't connect to the characters or feel that invested in their relationships.… (more)
I do think the author has an excellent knowledge of Stalinist Russia and paints a vivid portrait of how difficult it must have been to live in those conditions, particularly when you could never trust anyone for fear that he could turn on you and denounce you to the authorities. The book is also well written; I think it was the storyline itself that didn't work for me. I didn't understand how the hero, Sasha, could commit the crime that he did and then not see his parents again when he is initially described as such a passive person and devoted son. Then there is the love story with Galina, which rather than being a love triangle becomes a love quadrangle, and you really don't know where it is going. Sure, that could be a mystery you want to wait around to discover, but I found I just didn't connect to the characters or feel that invested in their relationships.… (more)
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Statistics
- Works
- 19
- Members
- 224
- Popularity
- #100,172
- Rating
- 3.6
- Reviews
- 23
- ISBNs
- 42
