How do you keep up with all these characters? I am on page 150, I feel like I missed alot of the book as I think I am not retaining everything. Is this normal? Also, I forget who is who and cannot pronounce there names. Its a great book but does anyone have tips for retaining more of it?
>>8149570
you could write down characters when they come in, and a few tidbits about them in a notebook, to help you remember?
I haven't read this but when I'm struggling with the amount of characters, I take notes
also, i think russians were known for having several names for the same person, in context with who's talking to them and the familiarity or relationship they have with that character, so that might be a problem there. i'm sure there are a few character maps online too.
I got lost partway through my copy and gave up entirely. The pages were very thing, and some of them were stuck together by coffee stains, and I couldn't peel them apart without damaging them. So I would be skipping 2 pages at a time and I had no idea what was going on.
>>8149570
shoulda gotten a different translation
>>8149588
Inb4 mod ban me for posting qt3.14
>>8149570
You could start by not being a half-wit.
And yeah, you could also take really basic notes and know how Russian paternal names work.
>Have no problem with all the characters apart from some minor lieutenants.
>1.5 years later when someone brings up the book on /lit/ I realize I've forgotten a lot of characters.
>>8149570
>alot
>>8149570
I don't really see the problem because while there is a large cast of characters there are only a few main characters and a few people close to them. The whole novel boils down to basically to small families and a couple of auxiliary people. I only found it tricky for the first 20 pages or so while you are trying to figure out who is important.
