Ivan Denisovich has been sent to a Siberian labour camp after being accused of being a spy when he escaped capture on the German front, and spends his time pursuing strategies to gain the extra few grammes of bread that might mean survival for the remainder of his ten year stretch. This slim volume covers the events of one day, but manages to thoroughly describe the conditions and way of life of the camp's inhabitants. Well worth reading, this certainly deserved its Nobel Prize.

A wishlist tag for jax987654321.

Thank you for sending this to me. I look forward to reading it

This was a real eye opener when it was published and it was a real eye opener when I read it. I had heard about people being sent to "Siberia" however had no idea what that meant. These were very close to the Nazi concentration camps, although without the gas chambers and the extreme stuff that went on. That you could be sentenced to 10 years hard labour for just being captured by the Germans during the war. It beggars belief.

I am glad I read this, although it was not an easy read.

Left in the free library near the Orangerie

I took this book at the end of the MBC meeting in Paris. It will travel onward via our street library or as wild release