Saddest books you've ever read

Erick said:
"The Death of Ivan Illyich"
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Yes!

Every time I mention this book nobody reads it.

INFJs please read this book.

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It's really really short. If you read this book and get the theological understanding that Tolstoy is working with, you'll find that it's very profound. It's a shock to the system, really.

Come on guys. Come on.
 
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Pin said:
Yes!

Every time I mention this book nobody reads it.

INFJs please read this book.

It's really really short. If you read this book and get the theological understanding that Tolstoy is working with, you'll find that it's very profound. It's a shock to the system, really.

Come on guys. Come on.
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Absolutely had the same reaction. I read it in high school and I feel like it significantly impacted my world view. Solidified Tolstoy as my favorite author. Always recommend it to anyone when I say Tolstoy is the best. Definitely a must read for INFJs but really anyone. I know fellow INFJs would definitely appreciate it though.
 
Erick said:
Absolutely had the same reaction. I read it in high school and I feel like it significantly impacted my world view. Solidified Tolstoy as my favorite author. Always recommend it to anyone when I say Tolstoy is the best. Definitely a must read for INFJs but really anyone. I know fellow INFJs would definitely appreciate it though.
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Before I read this book, I was singularly interested in making money. In fact, I wanted to work for J.P Morgan Chase as a banker, at least an accountant of some kind of financial job. I would literally be some Wall Street caricature if I hadn't read this book as a younger man.
 
@Pin, @Erick


I read "The Death of Ivan Illyich" when I was doing the night watch when my mom was dying. It didn't actually make me sad, considering the circumstances, but it was a really good book. After that I decided I liked Tolstoy more than Dostoevsky, but if I say that out loud in most placed people lose their minds.

Honestly, Steinbeck's "The Red Pony" makes me sadder than any other book, but I haven't read it since I was little.
 
Asa said:
@Pin, @Erick


I read "The Death of Ivan Illyich" when I was doing the night watch when my mom was dying. It didn't actually make me sad, considering the circumstances, but it was a really good book. After that I decided I liked Tolstoy more than Dostoevsky, but if I say that out loud in most placed people lose their minds.

Honestly, Steinbeck's "The Red Pony" makes me sadder than any other book, but I haven't read it since I was little.
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I prefer Tolstoy too, he's a lot nicer. I've never read The Red Pony.

Are there any important lessons that Ivan Illyich taught you?
 
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Pin said:
I prefer Tolstoy too, he's a lot nicer. I've never read The Red Pony.

Are there any important lessons that Ivan Illyich taught you?
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Ooh I love Tolstoy. Anna karennina!!
 
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Pin said:
I prefer Tolstoy too, he's a lot nicer.
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How is being nicer a criterion for preferring an author?!

I want to say I prefer Dostoyevsky, but it wouldn't make sense because I haven't really read any Tolstoy. Maybe I'll start with The Death of Ivan Illyich.

@slant — I think one of the saddest books I've ever read was Life and Times of Michael K. by J.M. Coetzee. Heart wrenching :sob:
 
Madame Bovary troubled me. I both felt for and despised Emma. That's the one that stands out for me. Maybe because I really didn't know what I was getting into when I read it. It was more depressing than just sad.
 
Pin said:
It's more hopeful, especially his later more explicitly Christian work. I'm not too eager to read anything sad. Who wants to sit around and mope?
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I think there is much hope to be found at the heart of works like Crime and Punishment.
 
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