5 Books I definitely do not love (part 4)

4. Doctor Zhivago I fully accept responsibility for not liking this book - my own lack of knowledge about the political agenda of the time in which it was set meant I found it almost impossible to follow what was going on for large sections of the book. I did attempt some research into the political situation, but it was so complex, and so difficult to relate to the events portrayed in the novel that I gave up that avenue. I did also read some reviews to see if I could get a potted version of the plot on which I could hang the events I was reading about, but the reviews made it sound like such a simple excercise in comprehension that I found myself even more frustrated that I was failing to 'get' any of it. I did plough on to the end, but mostly because I realised that I was unlikley to re-read this with a better understanding of the social and political intricacies of the time, but I did long for the end, particularly as I was reading it in the dark on buses to and from work mostly which was not a particularly nice way to begin or end the day. I feel as though I should make more of an effort with this one - the problems are all mine - but I can't begin what could end up as my life's work just to satisfy my understanding of this novel. On the plus side, the fact that Pasternak apparently means parsnip has retrspectively made this much more amusing.