Book Review: The Death of Ivan Ilych

The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Death of Ivan Ilych is what one would expect it to be. First it talks about the aftermath, then his life and finally his death. It's what one doesn't expect it to be that makes it glorious. One expects reminiscing about life, nostalgia, sadness, desperation, and granted, it's filled to the brim with it. What one doesn't expect is that, in the end, you wish you could escape with Ivan. Because all throughout his narrative we weave our own life, our own failures our own mediocrity until at last we are confronted with the harsh and harrowing truth of the worthlessness of our own existence, and unlike Ivan, we can't escape it.
The Death of Ivan Ilych is one of those books, those short unassuming little books that you can read in an hour and then spend your lifetime in it's numbing wake. The Death of Ivan Ilych is a book that probably should be read by everyone, but then again, the consequences would be disastrous.

View all my reviews