Name: Ivan Bunnin
Year Won: 1933
Read: The Liberation of Tolstoy
Original Language: Russian
Reason: "for the strict artistry with which he has carried on the classical Russian traditions in prose writing"
About: The Liberation of Tolstoy is part biography of Tolstoy, part discussion of what Tolstoy's works mean, part autobiography of Bunnin's own life, and part description as to what Tolstoy's works mean to him and his own writing. It's a very peculiar piece of prose, yet is fantastically well researched and strangely compelling to read.
What I liked: I've never read anything quite like this. It's a very unusual piece of prose, yet does a wonderful job of explaining how Tolstoy's life affected his artistry and how his artistry affected other people.
What I Disliked: It's a strange piece of prose. I happen to like Tolstoy, so enjoyed this. But if you weren't already quite familiar with Tolstoy, I suspect this would be meaningless.
Should it have won a Nobel: On its own, probably not. It feels too personal and too trite. But it shows a creativity with prose that I suspect Bunnin's other prose is imbued with. I suspect that, as a whole (what the Nobel is given for), this makes a great deal of sense to have awarded him the prize.
Next up: Luigi Pirandello's "Six Characters in Search of an Author"
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